Theory in education

Theory in Education
Curriculum Theory
EDU5356

Dr. NOR HAYATI BT ALWI

Mina Badiei (GS31016)

Definition of Terms

Oxford:
-a system of ideas intended to explain something,
especially one based on general principles
independent of the thing to be explained.

Business Dictionary:
-A set of assumptions, propositions, or accepted
facts that attempts to provide a reasonable
or rational explanation of cause-and-effect (causal)
relationships among a group of observed
phenomenon.

Definition of Terms
Logan and Olmstead(1955):
 Statements about sets of events differ greatly in
complexity.
Rudner(1966):
 A systematically related set of statements,
including some law like generalizations, that is
empirically testable.
Kerlinger(1973):
 A theory is a set of interrelated concepts, that
present a systematic view of phenomena by
specifying relations among variables with the
purpose of explaining the phenomena.

Definition of Terms
 Statements of a theory may be expressed in such
forms as statements of facts, definitions, propositions,
hypothesis, assumptions, generalizations, laws , or
theorems.
is a phenomenon known by observation.
is a formal statement of meaning or
signification.
is a formal statement affirming or
denying something about a subject.
consists of one or more propositions
designed to explain a set of events.

are also special cases of the propositions.

Definition of Terms

Oxford:
-The process of receiving or giving systematic
instruction, especially at a school or university.
education is the delivery of knowledge, skills,
and information from teachers to students.
-According to Pestalozzi, "Education is the
natural, harmonious and progressive
development of man's innate powers."

Definition of Terms
 John Dewey stated, "Education is the
development of all those capacities in the
individual which will enable him to control his
environment and fulfill his possibilities”.

 According to John Adams, "Education is
conscious and deliberate process in which
one personality acts upon another in order to
modify the development of that other by the
communication and manipulation of
knowledge"

Theory In Education
 Figure1 in page 5
Theories in
Social
Sciences

Theories in
Education

Theory in
school Instructional
Administratio Curriculum Theory
n Theories

Theory In Education
 Traditionally, the word “theory” has been
employed in education without definition.
- The dimensions of educational theory had not
been defined.
- There was no sufficient research on the
subject.
 Recently theory in education has been a topic
of serious discussion.
 So the definition is that Educational theory is
speculative educational thought that guides,
explains, or describes educational practice.

Theory In Education
 Notice:
The educational theory will grow, but it
will grow first from the sub-theories now
being developed within the broad field
of education.

Approaches to Educational Theory
 Theory and Practice
 Theory by its very nature is impractical.
 The world of practicality is built around cluster of
specific events.
 The world of theory derives from generalizations,
laws, and theorems which are explaining specific
events and the relationships among them.
 Meaningful relationships may be established
between the work of theorists and the work of
practitioners, but theory and practice are not the
same.

Approaches to Educational
Theory
 Theory may direct practice or it may explain
the nature of practice.
 In another way, It is the job of educational
theory to guide educational practices.
 According to John Dewey “We may propose to
use practice work as an instrument in making
real and vital theoretical instruction; the
knowledge of subject-matter and of principles
of education”.

Approaches to Educational
Theory
 Theory and Philosophy

- Individuals frequently have used the name of
philosophies of education and theories of
education interchangeably.

 Philosophy is the investigation of the nature,
causes, and principles of reality, knowledge, or
values, based on logical reasoning rather than
empirical methods.

 Dimensions of philosophy have much to
contribute to educational theorizing.

Theory and Philosophy in
Education

Descriptive Prescriptive
Theory Theory

Types
of
Theory

Education
 Descriptive theories consists of a set of propositions
that are logically interrelated from which relationships
may be demonstrated and new information derived by
deductive processes.

 Prescriptive theories consist of a set of proposals for
action or a set of propositions about related problems.
Here the techniques of philosophy relates to
theory.(page37)

 There were various philosophies have been posed as
theories of education such as realism, idealism,
pragmatism, reconstructionism, etc.

Education
 Philosophy has a close relationship to theory
development in education:

A good philosophy must encompass a theory of knowledge.

A philosophy of education should lead to formulation of a
theory of method.

Value and ethics, in the preview of philosophy, play a
significant role in education.

Education
 Theories must be developed within general area of
philosophy to account for the many dimensions of
education.
 Among all educational theories, Black(1952) labeled
four theories: Traditionalists, Progressive, Learning-
Product theory, and Learning-Process theory.

 These four theory show four aspect of education:
1. Education as transmission of social heritage
2. Education as individual development
3. Education as product
4. Education as process

Education
 We should also note the role of philosopher
is theoretical work in education in two
points of view;
1- Main function of philosopher is to clarify
the language ( a tool for educational
theorizing) used to talk about problems.
2- The skill of correctly use of language and
the building of more adequate logic.

Other Approaches
 The problem for educational theory is to
explain all dimensions of education , and to
explain all aspects of education or even
schooling as a limited domain of education,
both prescriptive and descriptive theory are
needed.
 One approach in developing educational
theory was voiced by Broudy who called for
unifying principles to be used in the resolution
of conflict associated with innovations in
school practices.

Other Approaches
A much different approach to educational theory
was taken by Brauner(1964), who analyzed six
major traditions in American Education.
1)Monitorial Method , 2)Object-Teaching
3)Herbatianism , 4)Child study
5)Experimentalism , 6)Current Academic Emphasis
 A growing theme in educational theorizing is
the conception of education as a discipline.
 Education is the application of many
disciplines; a discipline develops its own way
of study and behaving.

Theory in School
Administration
 An excellent example of educational theorizing
is the field of school administration.
 Professors of school administration, are
actually building a sub-theory of educational
theory.

 Individuals working on these projects used
theory development as their route to
improvement.
 The theorists in administration have disciplined
themselves to use basic rules for theorizing
from social and behavioral sciences.

Theory in School
Administration
Griffiths (1978) presented a paradigm for theory
development:
presumptions

Observation Resulting in
Descriptions

Sensitizing Concepts

Integrating Concepts

Theory : A set of assumptions from which are derived laws

Theory in School
Administration
 During recent years theoretical work in
administration has shifted to management,
organizational theory, and system development.

 Theoretical models are being developed that may
apply to the solution of administrative problems
with respect to organization and functions in
various environments.
 There is a conflict between theoreticians and
the practitioners in educational administration
because administrators are very practical
people and they truly been leaders in this
activity.

Instructional Theory
 Another sub-theory to educational theory is the
rapid growth of thinking and research relating
to instruction.
 There are articles on pedagogy that lead
toward theories of instruction.

 Bruner in his book “The Process of Education”
proposed four aspects of a theory of
instruction:

1. Theory of instruction should concern with the
factors that influence a child to learn
effectively.
2. It should concern with optimal structuring of
knowledge.
3. It should concern with the ideal sequence
that is required for learning.
4. It should concern with the nature and pacing
of rewards and punishments and the
success and failures.

 James Macdonald(1963) suggested that it
should be a valid distinction between
curriculum, instruction, and teaching.
 Having singled out the instruction as a
unique concept, he discussed the needs for
research and theories about models of
instruction and identification and description
of principle variables.

 The concept “teaching” appears more broadly
than concept “ instruction” on research.
 Broudy(1972), distinguished 3 types of
teaching :
- Didactics : imparting and reinforcing of skill
and knowledge.
- Heuristics: efforts to promote discoveries by
pupils.
- Phyletic: behaviors associated with love.
 This classification is for study the effects of
teaching process on learning outcomes.

Conclusion
 It is significant that the domain of
theories of instruction is being
differentiated from other potential areas
of education such as administration and
curriculum.

 The Demand for bringing together the
theoretical work done in sub-theories
such as curriculum, instruction, and
administration into total educational

Theory in education

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