Historical Foundations of Teaching and Learning

 Article #1: The history of education: State and the art at the turn of the century in Europe and North America (Herbst, 1999)

• Innovation: My definition of innovation supports the idea that innovation breeds from the need or desire for change. Herbst's article focuses on the fact that the 1960’s was a time of great significance for educational historians and “those leading the charge into new interpretations, subject matters, and methodologies proudly called themselves revisionists” (Herbst, 1999, p. 738). It seems that the 60’s and 70’s were a time in history when the field of education was in a surge of innovation and change and by the time this article was written that had subsided greatly.  Historians were left feeling like they were stuck in a cycle of nothing new or “little genuine fresh input” (1999, p.739).

• Creativity: At the time of this article (25 years ago) Herbst explains that true creativity and innovation had waned greatly (1999, p. 739). He also states that at this time people had become “epigones-inferior imitators of creative thinkers” (Herbst, 1999, p. 739). What I think he is missing is that creativity usually requires some repetition or exploration of already existing ideas, values and thoughts in order to create something new. Perhaps the upsurge of creative thinking in the 1960’s makes his current time feel like it lacks creativity, but in reality the world climate had changed and creativity was about to blossom once again (with the onslaught of new technological innovations). 

• Teaching: Throughout the article Herbst speaks of the importance of historians to the field of education. Historians imparted their knowledge of the past onto educators in order to drive the field forward. Herbst recognizes, like I have in my definition, that teaching is about sharing knowledge in order to achieve an end goal for all parties involved. 

• Learning: Herbst suggests that learners at this time have become “mental robots who amass information without understanding its significance” (Herbst, 1999, p. 740). One of the things I suggested in my definition is that learning can be an active or passive process and sometimes learning merely involves that transfer of information at the basic level. Obviously this is not an ideal educational scenario, but it does happen in order for knowledge to be passed onto future generations. 

• Question: I would ask Herbst what if he believes the history of education or education in general to be something that is in constant fluctuation or in periods of great change and periods of rest or idleness? If it was always in constant fluctuation how could we research what is working and what is not? 

Herbst, J. (1999). The history of education: State and the art at the turn of the century in Europe and North America. Paedegogia Historica: International Journal of the History of Education, 35(3), 737–-47. doi: 10.1080/0030923990350308

Article #2: Foreign Influences on Curriculum and Curriculum Policy Making in Canada (Tomkins, 1981)

• Innovation: As part of my definition states, innovation occurs because of the necessity for something new. Tomkins mentions several times that the changes in education were linked to social changes such as urbanization, industrialization and ever changing political influence over the decades (Tomkins 1981). 

• Creativity: While there was rhetoric that the Canadian curriculum was too Americanized, it can be suggested that in fact the new “approaches derived and adapted from various American projects” (Tomkins 1981, p. 165) were also developed based on the needs of Canadian students. Creativity is when something new is created and has value for the stakeholders. It also requires that pre-existing concepts are explored and experimented with in order to create something new that benefits the people involved. 

• Teaching: Teaching involves tailoring the knowledge, skills and concepts taught to meet the needs of the students. Tomkins mentions that in the 1960’s Canada, much like  America, was faced with “tensions associated with the upsurge of francophone nationalism, the demands of the native peoples, and those of the “third force” mosaic groups” (Tomkins 1981, p. 164). Teaching had to shift in order to make connections with these new political ideas, changes in social climate and diversity in the Canadian population. 

• Learning: AS mentioned in my definition, learning is situational and it is important that societies decide what knowledge, skills and concepts are necessary to pass onto our future generations. After World War I, Canada was faced with shifting the learning in schools due to a new diverse student body. This led to more vocational and occupational training as well as character building and a focus on citizenship (Tomkins 1981).

• Question: Innovation and creativity both require some form of background knowledge or expertise in order to create something new, so why is it problematic that Canada drew on ideas and concepts from America and European countries?

Tomkins, G. (1981). Foreign influences on curriculum and curriculum policy making in Canada: Some impressions in historical and contemporary perspective. Curriculum Inquiry, 11(2), 157-166