First read this,
In general, existentialist educators believe that the primary aim of education is to facilitate the development of individual creativity. Students should be encouraged to inquire into:
Who am I?
Where am I going?
Why am I here?
To respect individuals as autonomous moral agents, existentialist educators believe that teachers must respect students’ freedom/choices. To existentialist educators, there should be a reciprocal relationship between students and teachers. And, students and teachers must learn to make decisions through dialogues.
To a large extent, Summerhill School, founded by S. Neill, reflects existentialist educational philosophy. Here, I would like to invite you to review the first three chapters of Neill’s Summerhill: A Radical Approach to Child-rearing. [FYI: Summerhill School’s web site: http://www.summerhillschool.co.uk/pages/]
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Second Review the attached article
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Finally, respond to the following question:
What are your own conceptions of “happiness” and “freedom”? How would you compare and contrast your conceptions of “happiness” and “freedom” to those of Neill? Should concerned educators and citizens attend to Neill’s or your conceptions of “happiness” and “freedom” today’s discipline polices in schools? Why? How?
