Jim Garrison

Deweyan Pragmatism and the Epistemology of Contemporary Social Constructivism

In the quest for an epistemology that supports theories of situated cognition and social constructivism, educational theorists and researchers have overlooked one of the most familiar figures in the modern history of educational inquiry—John Dewey. Perhaps one reason for this oversight is that if we adopted Deweyan social epistemology and constructivism we would have to come to grips with his social behaviorism as well. Besides advocating Deweyan epistemological behaviorism, the other purpose for writing this article is to urge the field of education to seriously consider behaviorism as one way of understanding social constructivism and situated cognition.

Some Principles of Postpositivistic Philosophy of Science

In recent years there has been a great deal of methodological debate among educational researchers, theoreticians, and practitioners concerning issues such as relativism raised by the so-called “new,” “Kuhnian” or “postpositivistic” philosophy of science. The intensity of this debate notwithstanding, the fundamental principles and their relations that comprise the postpositivistic view have not always been carefully spelled out. Some of the principles discussed will include (a) the problem of confirmation, (b) the underdetermination of theory by logic, (c) the underdetermination of theory by experience, (d) the Quine-Duhem thesis, (e) the theory-ladenness of experience, and (f) the incommensurability of theories. No attempt will be made to evaluate these principles. However, those who are prepared to accept all of these will be hard pressed to avoid the dangers of relativism. I will argue that these dangers, if they exist, may be lessened if not eliminated by practicing the pragmatic virtues of epistemological conservatism and good sense.

Cases as Shared Inquiry: A Dialogical Model of Teacher Preparation

Increasingly, case-based pedagogy is being advocated as an effective method for preparing preservice teachers for the context complexity of classrooms. The specific foci for cases, in both their construction and implementation, are viewed in a variety of ways. In this paper, we propose a dialogical model for connecting theory to practice by conceiving of cases as problems that initiate shared inquiry. Shared inquiry, dialogue, provides us with opportunities to acknowledge and address the theory and value-ladenness of experience; doing so allows us to transcend the limitations of our own experience and to generate better solutions for all of the students in our care.

An Alternative to Von Glasersfeld's Subjectivism in Science Education: Deweyan Social Constructivism

An influential view of constructivism in science and mathematics educational research and practice is that of Ernst von Glasersfeld. It is a peculiarly subjectivist form of constructivism that should not be attractive to science and mathematics educators concerned with retaining some sort of realism that leaves room for objectivity. The subjectivist constructivism of von Glasersfeld also becomes entangled in untenable mind/body and subject/object dualisms. Finally, these dualisms are unnecessary for social constructivism. I will provide one example of a social constructivist alternative to social constructivism, that of the pragmatic philosopher John Dewey. In presenting Deweys position I will appeal to Ockhams razor, that is, the admonition not to multiply entities beyond necessity, to shave off the needless mentalistic and psychic entities that lead von Glasersfeld into his subjectivism and dualism.

Habits as Social Tools in Context

In the tradition of American pragmatism, occupational capacity is embodied in the habits of a persons body. These habits are living functions involving thought, feeling, and attitudes that allow the person to carry out the various practices that occupy him or her in daily life. Such habits are artistic modes of self-expression; they are how people engage and transform the world for their purposes (dressing themselves, driving a car, writing a letter to a friend, etc.). Loss of functioning is a loss of personal identity and expression. Occupational therapy involves restoring habitual functioning, or building new habits that allow people once again to integrate their thoughts, feelings, and actions.

Pragmatism and Public Administration

This article is a response to three articles that examine the promise of pragmatism for educational administration. The first, by Professors Zanetti and Carr, rejects pragmatism outright yet only refers to pragmatism obliquely if at all. This article does not seem sufficiently knowledgeable to provide any analysis, pro or con. The remaining articles evaluate the promise of pragmatism positively and seem well warranted in their appraisal. The article by Professor Snider does a good job of setting the historical context of pragmatism and explaining why it never caught on in public administration, and the article by Professor Evans also provides critical and creative appraisal. This article is an attempt to play the three articles off of each other in ways that allow them to illuminate one another.

Dewey's philosophy and the experience of working : labor, tools and language

Although Richard Rorty has done much to renew interest in the philosophy of John Dewey, he nonetheless rejects two of the most important components of Deweys philosophy, that is, his metaphysics and epistemology. Following George Santayana, Rorty accuses Dewey of trying to serve Locke and Hegel, an impossibility as Rorty rightly sees it. Rorty (1982) says that Dewey should have been “Hegelian all the way” (p. 85). By reconstructing a bit of Hegels early philosophy of work, and comparing it to Deweys metaphysics and epistemology we can see that Dewey was indeed “Hegelian all the way” and that Rorty has constructed a false dilemma. We also gain some interesting insight into Deweys philosophy by viewing it in terms of labor, tools and language.

Dewey, qualitative thought, and context 1

It is widely acknowledged by qualitative researchers that all inquiry, qualitative or not, is context dependent. Nonetheless, exactly what is meant by the idea of context is elusive. My paper is an exposition of John Deweys notions about what he called “qualitative thought” and its role in determining context. From a Deweyan perspective there is always a mostly noncognitive background that precedes and acts continuously to influence the cognitive problem‐solving foreground of inquiry. Indeed, without the background there would be no foreground. The paper calls special attention to the aesthetic dimensions that Dewey believed present in inquiry of all kinds. The paper concludes that the widely held distinction between rational and critical thinking is an untenable dualism. I will aggressively state Deweys case, but I do not mean to suggest that Dewey has resolved the thorny issue of what is a context, and how it is established. I do believe, though, that readers will find his reflections a useful and cha...

The creative use of companion values in environmental education and education for sustainable development: exploring the educative moment

Our paper addresses the emergence and evolution of values in educational settings. It builds upon and extends earlier work on companion meanings to develop a theory of the creative use of companion values and meanings in education. The recognition of companion values in educational practices highlight epistemological, ethical, and aesthetic transactions that occur in ways we characterize as ‘other than modern.’ Introducing the idea of educative moments allows us to identify situations where value spheres interpenetrate and interrogate each other in the meaning-making of students and teachers. These moments occur when students suddenly experience companion meanings and values such that teacher and student must deliberate together rather than the teacher dictating some dominating epistemological, ethical, or aesthetic value. This way, it is possible to accommodate critical and creative reflection in education where new values can emerge or evolve. We illustrate the theory by empirical examples from classroom conversations.

Dewey, Derrida, and ‘the Double Bind’

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