09 Jul Philosopher Analysis Assignment

PhilosopherAnalysis Assignment Instructions

Overview

 

The purpose of thePhilosopher Analysis Assignment isto evaluate beliefs and actions that have influenced educational developmentsthroughout history. From historical examples presented in the current course, candidateswill propose one of them as a model of educational philosophy and practice. Theselected model will be compared to opposing views and analyzed through apersonal philosophy of education. The analysis will address issues ofmetaphysics, epistemology, and practical implementation and will offer acritique from a Biblical worldview perspective. As candidates research andconduct the analysis, they demonstrate knowledge of educational ideas of thepast, consider the relevance of the philosopher, analyze the philosopher inlight of their own educational beliefs, and critically analyze thephilosophers beliefs and actions.

 

Instructions

 

Write an analysis ofthe beliefs of the educational philosopher you chose in your Topic Proposal Assignment. You willpresent the cultural context of the individual, analyze the various aspects ofthe philosophers beliefs and actions, present critiques in opposition to theindividual, persuasively convey why this individuals ideas and actions arerelevant, and relate implications that may be applicable to todays field ofeducation.

 

Though your personalbeliefs serve as a lens for your analysis, this assignment is not per se yourpersonal philosophy of education and should rarely use first-person pronouns,if at all. Without plagiarizing, you may draw ideas from the Annotated Bibliography Assignment,textbook readings, videos, and discussions. However, this is a new anddifferent assignment. You may not submit a previously written assignment thathas been submitted for another course. Doing so would be self-plagiarism. Youranalysis should be based primarily on readings and studies you have recentlyconducted in this current course.

 

As a philosophicalanalysis, the assignment should present ideas in a persuasive manner. Avoidfirst-person pronouns (e.g., I, me, we, us) and second-person pronouns (i.e.,you) because they tend to soften and weaken the declarative strength of yourwriting. Rely more on third-personplural (e.g., people, educators, students, they, them) and think in termsof strong, declarative statements of ought and should. Avoid beginningsentences with I think that and I believe that. Also avoid for me and tome.

 

You will discusswhat the individual believed to be the purpose and outcome of education. Whatlong-range impact did the individual hope to make on individuals and onsociety? Though your primary focus will be on beliefs, you may briefly discussthe practices and methods the philosopher implemented.

 

Length: This paper is to be at least 1,300 words in length from theintroductory paragraph to the conclusion. This does not count the title page,abstract, or reference pages.

 

Citations and References: Cite at least fivesources throughout the paper and list them on the reference page. One of yoursources is required to be the course textbook. Other sources may be coursevideos, academic journal articles, books, and textbooks from other courses. Youmay incorporate articles from your AnnotatedBibliography Assignment and other course assignments as appropriate. Afterensuring that current course materials are cited, you are encouraged to citesources from other courses, such as textbooks or articles.

 

Structure: To ensure the manuscript meets therequirements of the Philosopher AnalysisGrading Rubric, you are to include the elements listed below. Note therequired headings are to be placed in the same order in your paper as theyappear in the outline below.

 

1.    TitlePage

• Pagination: In APA, all pages are numbered. The title page should be page 1.
• Title: The title should not be the name of the assignment (i.e., Philosopher Analysis). It should be a phrase drawn from the thesis statement in the introductory paragraph. It should provide the reader a hint of the topic and the main idea supported throughout the paper and may be phrased in a clever, unique fashion. The first letter of all words should be capitalized except for articles (e.g. a, an, the), conjunctions (e.g., and, but), and short prepositions (e.g., of, about), unless they appear as the first word, which is always capitalized. Center and bold your title and position it near the middle of the page or slightly above the middle.
• Other Information on Title Page: All other information on the title page should comply with current APA requirements.

 

2.    Abstract:Theheading of the abstract should be centered and in bold font.

      Place the abstractafter the title page and before the introduction.

      Do not indent thefirst line.

      The abstract is abrief, comprehensive summary of the contents of the paper. It should presentthe main idea, main supporting ideas, and the main conclusion/implication.

 

3.    Introduction:Donot use the word Introduction as aheading for this section. Per APA, it is optional to insert the title again asthe heading for the introduction. If you choose to do so, it should be in bold,centered font and should be capitalized the same way as on the title page.

      The purpose of theintroductory paragraph is different from the abstract. Do not simply copy theabstract.

      In this section,introduce your thesis statement that will be developed throughout the paper. Itis the main idea you are presenting. All other ideas will serve to support thethesis statement.

      It is best to placethe thesis statement at the end of the introduction. It is typically one or twosentences that serve as a transition into the rest of the paper.

      Below are some tipsto help avoid common errors in writing a strong introductory paragraph:

• Focus on a simple introduction of the thesis statement.
• Ensure that sentences flow in a logical progression from one to the other.
• Keep it simple with only the necessary concept(s) to introduce the thesis statement.
• Avoid including so many distracting facts that the reader is unclear what the thesis statement is. Save most supporting facts for the body of the manuscript.
• Avoid fragmented, disjointed sentences that read like bulleted lists.

 

4.    Backgroundand Cultural Context: Centered in bold with all major wordscapitalized, enter the first Level 1 heading of your paper. (Level 2 headingsare unnecessary for this short of a paper.) Use the words Background andCultural Context.

• This brief section situates the individual you have chosen so the reader understands the setting in which the ideas developed. This is not an extensive biography but is a succinct presentation of events or circumstances that may have influenced the development of the individuals thoughts and/or actions.
• Include transitions that build a logical progression from the thesis statement in the introductory paragraph into the background and cultural context.
• The length of this section should be no more than 10% to 20% of the total manuscript. Anything longer distorts the main intent of the paper.

 

5.    Philosophyof Education: The heading for this section is also a Level 1 heading, which meansthatjust like the previous headingit should be centered and in bold with allmajor words capitalized. This is not your own personal philosophy of education.It is a presentation of the ideas of the philosopher you have selected.

• Ensure that this section flows smoothly and logically from the previous one.
• This is the core part of the paper where you expound more specifically on the thesis statement.

      Consider what thiseducational thinker perceived as the main purpose or outcome of education. Focuson the individuals why of educationthe long-range impact he or she believedschools and learning should make on individuals and on society.

      Depending on thebeliefs of your selected individual, you may address various aspects ofphilosophy. The questions below are suggestions for you to consider:

o   How did he or she view the needs of individuals and of society?

o   What was his or her view of the nature of the learner and how didthat play into other beliefs?

o   Was the individual motivated by concerns that were metaphysical,supernatural, pragmatic, political, etc.?

o   What knowledge, skills, or dispositions were of most value to beincluded in the curriculum?

      Save theindividuals actions, practices, and process (i.e., the how) of education forthe next section. In this current section, state what the person believed.

      If a philosophicallabel clearly applies to this individual, address it and describe it (e.g.,idealism, realism, scholasticism, perennialism, essentialism, pragmatism,progressivism, existentialism, postmodernism, critical pedagogy, socialism,Marxism, etc. See the course textbook Appendix for more information on this.). Ifnot, you may attempt to situate the individuals ideas among similarphilosophies; be careful, however, not to speculate if you are unsure. Some philosophersare difficult to label.

 

6.    Theoryto Practice: This Level 1 heading should be centered and in bold. Use the wordsTheory to Practice.

      This section shouldflow smoothly from the previous one.

      Some educationalthinkers were such philosophers that it is difficult to describe what actionsthey took other than to write or to philosophize. If this is the case, addressthe actions others took as they were influenced by the educational thinker. Forinstance, Rousseaus ideas influenced the actions of Pestalozzi, Froebel,Piaget, and others.

      The questions beloware suggestions for you to consider:

o   How did the individual believe learners come to know truth? Whatcauses learning to occur? What were the thinkers epistemological beliefs?

o   What movements, organizations, or schools did the individualinitiate?

o   What pedagogical practices did the individual implement orencourage others to use?

o   What did he or she hope to accomplish by using these strategies?

 

7.    Perspectiveson Diversity: This Level 1 heading should be centered in bold. Use the wordsPerspectives on Diversity. This section should reflect the most significantaspect of the philosophers thoughts and approaches to diversity in societyand/or individuals. If the philosophers ideas do not address diversity,discuss that in this section.

 

8.    CriticalAnalysis: This Level 1 heading should be formatted the same as the previousones. Use the words Critical Analysis. This section should reflect the mostsignificant criticisms about the persons work. Indicate who the thinkersopponents and supporters were and distinguish elements of opposing ideas and/oractions. Another aspect of this section is for you to analyze the educationalthinkers ideas and actions through a biblical worldview lens.

      Focus on situatingthe individuals ideas and actions among those of others. These others may becontemporaries who lived during or near the time of your philosopher. They mayalso be historians, philosophers, or cultural analysts who came after him orher.

      Part of the criticalanalysis may address the thinkers views (or the lack thereof) on societal andindividual diversity as discussed in the previous section.

      To critique means toconvey both opposition and support with rationale for both. Therefore, youranalysis should include those who opposed and also those who supported thisindividual and should provide an explanation of why they did so.

 

9.    Implicationsand Conclusions: Use the same Level 1 formatting as you havedone with your other headings above and simply enter the words Implicationsand Conclusions is centered, boldedfont. Although your conclusion should include concepts from the thesisstatement in the introduction and should have some alignment with the title ofthe paper, you should not simply restate the thesis. Wrap up the paper byemphasizing your main idea and draw a clear conclusion. Because you will beaddressing both implications and conclusions in this section, it may be a bitlonger than a typical conclusion section. You may extend the conclusion tothree paragraphs or longer as appropriate. The questions below are suggestionsfor you to consider:

      What might currenteducators, policymakers, or other stakeholders glean from this person?

      What do you observein the field of education based on your analysis of this philosopher?

      What aspect of thisindividuals thoughts and actions resonate with you most and why? Remember, youcan do this persuasively without using first-person pronouns (e.g., Perhapsthe most relevant idea of Comenius was . . .; Most significantly, todayseducational system would benefit from Booker T. Washingtons notion that . ..; If applied by todays classroom teachers, Calvins idea that . . .

      At what point do youdisagree or conflict with the educational thinker? Consider how you canconfidently convey this by avoiding first-person pronouns (e.g., Dewey wasperhaps misguided in his approach to . . .; An inconsistency in Freirestheory is that . . .; Du Bois may have been incorrect in that . . .

According to the APA manual, first-personpronouns are permitted, but they should be used only when the writer mustdescribe a personal action taken or an event the writer experienced. Beliefsand opinions are best conveyed in strong, declarative statements. Therefore,avoid statements such as I think that, I believe, for me, to me, etc.

 

Miscellaneous Tips

 

Direct Quotes: No more than 10% of your paper should bemade up of direct quotes. Therefore, do more summarizing and paraphrasing thanquoting. Short quotes should be in quotation marks and longer quotes of 40words or more should be indented (see APA). If you do not set off direct quotesin this manner and/or do not cite them, it is plagiarism. Also, page orparagraph numbers are required in citations for all direct quotes.

 

Ideas and Facts: If the idea or factis not your own, cite its source. When not directly quoting, summarize, oranalyze the idea in your own words.

 

Mechanics: Below are common errors in graduate-levelwriting. If you are unsure how to avoid these errors, do an internet search ofthe topic or contact LibertyUniversitys Writing Center.

      Dangling/ Misplaced Modifiers: If you use a phrase or word as an adjective,the noun closest to it (usually immediately following it) should be the nounbeing modified; otherwise, the modifier is dangling or misplaced.

o   Incorrect: Being an influential person in his time, his book soldmany copies. (His book was not an influential person.)

o   Incorrect: Being an influential person in his time, many peoplebought copies of his book. (Many people was not an influential person.)

o   Correct: Being an influential person in his time, Freire sold manycopies of his book. (Freire was an influential person.)

      CommaUsage: Familiarize yourself with comma rules. Know how they are used afterintroductory phrases and subordinate clauses, series of items, and before aconjunction in a compound sentence. They may not be used to separateindependent clauses; doing so creates a run-on, also known as a comma splice.

 

Note: Your assignmentwill be checked for originality via an online plagiarism tool.