Democracy and Education · Chapter
Education as Preparation explained
This chapter critiques the idea that education is primarily a process of preparing for adult life or a distant future.
What happens
This chapter critiques the idea that education is primarily a process of preparing for adult life or a distant future. Dewey argues that this view leads to loss of impetus, procrastination, reliance on conventional standards, and the use of external rewards and punishments. Instead, he maintains that education is a continuous process of growth, where the present experience should be made as rich and significant as possible, thereby naturally preparing for the future.
Themes in this chapter
Education as Life and Growth
Dewey contrasts the idea of education as preparation with his own conception of education as a continuous process of growth, where each stage aims at added capacity for growth.
Critique of Traditional Curriculum
The chapter criticizes the traditional view that treats children as candidates for adult life, leading to practices that ignore present capacities and rely on external motives.
Key passages
“We have laid it down that the educative process is a continuous process of growth, having as its aim at every stage an added capacity of growth.”
Dewey asserts that education is an ongoing process of development, with the goal at each stage being to increase the ability to grow further.
This foundational statement sets up the contrast with the preparation theory.
“The mistake is not in attaching importance to preparation for future need, but in making it the mainspring of present effort.”
The error lies not in valuing future preparation, but in using it as the primary driver of current activities.
Dewey clarifies that preparation is not wrong, but it should not dominate present educational efforts.