student possible.After the role of the student and the teacher have been defined, I believe thateducation should seek to develop critical thinking skills, not supply students with areservoir of factual data. Factual data is important, but the ability to know that the Battleof Bull was fought on July 21, 1861 is not going to help in a problem solving situation,which is one of the most important skills to have in life.I do not believe that meaningful educational reform is possible in a pluralistic,democratic society. There are too many differences among Americans to be able todecide on what educational reforms are necessary. Today, the public is convinced thatour country’s educational system is not at the level it should be. Most people agree thatreforms are necessary. Problems arise, however, when the questions of what to reformand how to reform education are asked. I do not believe that truly beneficial decisionscould be made.Of all the philosophers that we have studied I would place myself among thephilosophers who advocate experience and wide range of base knowledge. Above allothers, I have discovered myself agreeing most with the ideas of Rousseau. Some of Rousseau’s ideas that have stood out include his belief that childrenmust learn by experience, and that learning is more meaningful when it is “owned”. It is hard to find an elementary school teacher who does not believe thatexperience is the best way to learn. Yet even though it is pretty much assumed intoday’s classrooms, I still keep experiences at the top of my priority list. Just as Emilelearned quickly from his experiences in the garden, children in school learn quickly fromexperiences. This type of learning lasts a lifetime. I also agree with Rousseau’s idea that creating a sense of ownership will makelearning more meaningful. This can be applied across many aspects of education -including discipline, academics, moral educa...
