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Naturalism in Education

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Naturalism in Education
NATURALISM IN EDUCATION

Dr V.K.MAHESHWARI , Ph.D Principal D.I.M.S. Meerut,INDIA

Dr SAROJ AGGARWAL, Ph.D Sr Lecturer D.I.M.S. Meerut,INDIA

We are born weak, we need strength; helpless, we need aid; foolish, we need reason. All that we lack at birth, all that we need when we come to man 's estate, is the gift of education. Jean Jacques Rousseau

RUNNING through most of the educational literature today one finds a dominant thread. The importance of this fact is for life as well as for education. The central theme of this thread is expressed in such terms as ³continuous progress,´ ³the perfectibility of mankind,´ and ³perpetual betterment through scientific advances.´ The underlying philosophy of this outlook is signified by the term ³naturalism .As a philosophy of life (perhaps the oldest one) it maintains that nature is the only reality worthy of the serious consideration of man, and that man himself is the apex of this reality.. Naturalism is a concept that firmly believes that ultimate reality lies in the nature of the matter. Matter is considered to be supreme and mind is the functioning of

the brain that is made up of matter. The whole universe is governed by laws of nature and they are changeable. It¶s through our sense that we are able to get the real knowledge. The senses works like real gateways of knowledge and exploration is he method that helps in studying nature Basic Concept of Naturalism The meaning of the name naturalism is strongly implied in the word itself. It is the view point which regards the world of nature as the all in all of realityNaturalism, commonly known as materialism, is a philosophical paradigm whereby everything can be explained in terms of natural causes. Physical matter is the only reality -- everything can be explained in terms of matter and physical phenomena. Naturalism, by definition, excludes any Supernatural Agent or activity. Thus, naturalism is atheism. Naturalism 's exclusion of God necessitates moral



References: Breed, Frederick, ³Education and the Realistic Outlook,´ Philosophies of Education. National Society for the Study of Education, Forty-first Yearbook, Part 1. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1942. Broundy, Harry S., Building a Philosophy of Education. Englewood Cliffs, N.J. : Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1961.. Butler, J. Donald, Four Philosophies and Their««« Education and Religion. New York : Harper & Row. Comenius, John Amos, The Great Didactic. London : A & C Black, 1910. The application of Comenius¶ sense-realism to education. Herbart, J.F., The Science of Education. Boston : D.C.Heath & Company, 1902. Locke, John Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Oxford : Clarendon Press, 1902. The basic statement of Locke¶s epistemological position. Weber, Christian O., Basic Philosophies of Education. New York : Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1960. This book, especially in chapters 11-14,. Wild, John, ³Education and human Society : A Realistic View,´ Modern Philosophies and Education. National Society for the study of Education, Fiftyfourth Yearbook, Part I. Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 1955. Broudy, Harry S., Building a Philosophy of Education. Englewood Cliffs, N.J. Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1961.. . Frank Thilly, ³A History of philosophy´, Central Publishing House, Allahabad. John Dewey, Reconstruction in Philosophy, London Press Ltd. 1921. p-38. London, University of John Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding 1960, Introduction. Rusk, R.R., ³Philosophical Basis of Education´ p-68, footnote, London, University of London Press, 1956.. The Concise Oxford Dictionary, Sixth Edition, III. Impression, 1976, p-868. . :

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