Philosophy of Education

About this Course

Educational practice throws up questions that can be articulated and beneficially understood using ways of thinking, concepts, principles, and theories developed in several other disciplines. The nature of the most fundamental questions in education can be understood by studying the Philosophy of Education, Sociology of Education, and Perspectives on Learning and Development. These three are considered Foundational Disciplines of Education. The series is designed to acquaint participants with these perspectives. Under the series, Digantar is announcing an online course – An Introduction to Philosophy of Education. This course distinguishes itself by its serious deliberations on the Indian education system and its processes at various levels. Specifically aligned to the context, it delves into fundamental philosophical principles within the Indian Context and aligns with educational policies such as NEP2020 and NCFSE23. The provided reading material is written with Indian context in mind, striving to enhance its comprehensibility, relevance, and utility for participants. It is a common concern that the Philosophy of Education (PoE) often fails to resonate with the practical aspects of education, leading to a perceived boredom among practitioners. We believe this is a wrong perception of PoE, and this course will try to correct this wrong impression. The content and objectives outlined below aim to develop a framework for analyzing educational endeavors at various levels.

Course Objectives

To develop the capability to recognize philosophically significant issues in the thought and practice of education.

Develop an understanding of normative issues in education with adequate justification, coherence, and consistency.

Identify and examine significant assumptions concerning human nature underlying educational discourse and practice.

Understand and articulate distinctions between types of knowledge, and trace their relationships with bodies of disciplinary knowledge.

Take well-reasoned, sensitive stances on debates in the politics of knowledge and education.

Identify the moral principles that are assumed in educational practices and articulate their views on the appropriateness of the practices.

Course Outline

Module 1 - Philosophy, Language, and Logic

Module 2 - Concept of Education

Module 3 - Human Nature

Module 4 - Desirable social order for Humans

Module 5 - Aims of Education

Module 6 - Aims and Knowledge

Module 7 - Forms of Understanding, Disciplines and School Subjects

Module 8 - Ethics and Education

Module 9 - Aesthetics and Education

Module 10 - Judgment and Action

Module 11 - Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram and Curriculum

Module 12 - Teaching: A Philosophical Analysis

Module 13 - Assessment: A Philosophical Perspective

Assessment and Certification

Certificate of Participation:

Certificate of Completion:

Reflection/response notes on reading will be mandatory.

Attendance in online sessions: Attending the online sessions of live discussion for each unit on Fridays will be mandatory to earn a certificate in the course.

Interaction: Interactions in online sessions and timely uploading of response/reflection notes will carry a weightage.

Assignments: All participants who want to get a certificate of completion will have to submit the course-end assignment. It will require the participants to write about 2,500-3,000 words. Course End Assignment (CEA) will be graded; feedback will be given within two weeks of submission of the same and grades will be reflected in the certificate. The assessment scheme with criteria and nature of the assignment will be uploaded online with the course material.

Grading: Assessment will be expressed in grades and not in marks. Cumulative course grades will be mentioned in the certificate. Note: A Certificate of Completion will be awarded only to participants who have above 75% attendance in online sessions, submit 75% response notes, and complete the Course End Assignment. For a Certificate of Participation, a minimum of 50% attendance in discussion sessions is required. Although submission of the course end assignment and response notes are optional for the Certificate of Participation, participants are encouraged to consider submission of these for their own benefit!

Course Instructors

Rohit Dhankar

Rohit is a Professor of Philosophy of Education at Azim Premji University, Bangalore; and founder Secretary of Digantar, Jaipur. Rohit has been part of many initiatives in developing material and curriculum through various committees and collaborative efforts across the country. His interest in the curriculum for school education and teacher education resulted in collaboration with NCERT and various SCERTs. Interest in education studies resulted in starting the Foundations of Education Programme at Digantar in 2005, in collaboration with TISS and several NGOs in developing MA Education (Elementary) at TISS, Bombay. He trained as a teacher under David Horsburgh in the Neelbagh School and taught at the elementary level for about 15 years in a Digantar school he founded with help from Mr. Jitendra Pal Singh and Ms. Faith Singh of Jaipur. Digantar eventually grew into a voluntary organization providing quality education to rural children. Digantar endeavors to nurture self-motivated and independent learners equipped with the ability to think critically. His formal education is graduation in science and a master’s in mathematics, school education is through indifferently functioning government schools in rural Rajasthan.