John Dewey was arguably the most important educational thinker of the 20th century. Its principles sparked a series of changes that have impacted what are now considered global best practices in education. He was of the opinion that the way education was organized in his time meant that school seemed uninteresting to students while life outside school was very interesting. The educational model back then was the assembly line, so it was about preparing students to fit into a mold designed without much consideration of the student's intrinsic interests or needs. Furthermore, the school system did not adequately prepare students to discover and maximize their potential. Students were simply taught a set of basic skills so they could excel at specific jobs (Cole, 2020). For example, if manufacturing industries needed machinists, then that is why students are trained. They didn't take much care to find out what their natural inclinations were or what might be best suited to them. According to Dewey this was not an effective way to achieve social efficiency in the education of children. According to him, they needed to learn how to learn rather than learn a set of simple skills. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayReading, writing and arithmetic were the main focus of schools. Learning to read, count and write is necessary to live a meaningful life, but are these the sole purpose of education? Many thinkers have tried to answer the question: what is the purpose of education? Cognitive psychologist Jean Piaget once said, “The main goal of education is to create men capable of doing new things, not simply of repeating what other generations have done; creative, inventive and discovering men and women, who know how to be critical and verify, and not accept, everything that is offered to them". This is an echo of what John Dewey advocated in his era. According to Dewey “education is not a preparation for life; it is life itself. The child lives in the present. The future has no meaning for him. So it's absurd to expect him to do things for future preparation. Since the child lives in the present, the educational process will naturally be based on the child's current needs and interests” (Ayala 2020). This is the essence of the Latin phrase “non scholæ sed vitae discimus”, which means 'We learn not for school, but for life'. It is possible to model in school what happens in society because school can be seen as a microcosm of the world out there. When students are given monitoring tasks to perform or are allowed to participate in student leadership, valuable lessons in democracy can be instilled. Another purpose of education identified by Dewey is experience. He stated that education aids “the process of reconstructing experience, giving it a more socialized value through the means of greater individual efficiency.” Therefore, when the child interacts with his environment and with the tools at his disposal, an unconscious reconstruction of precious experiences occurs which ultimately becomes part of who he is. In an enriched classroom environment, there is always a constant search for creative ways to make every experience educational. If a child encounters a problem that causes anxiety, it may be a good opportunity to devise a strategy to mitigate its effects or avoid it. The latent qualities or abilities of the child may thus bedeveloped according to his abilities and not according to a fixed criterion. One principle that stands out in Dewey's body of ideas is that students can learn much more effectively by having or participating in relevant learning experiences rather than by simply observing. He was a tireless advocate for meaningful hands-on activities that engage students at their level of proficiency. Since every experience has the potential to affect the student positively or negatively, teachers should deliberately design such experiences that have the desirable impact. Every good school today takes pride in providing students with ample opportunities to learn through practical sessions in classrooms, fields, workshops and laboratories. The traditional vocational education system prepared students for specific roles. Dewey criticized the concept of using vocational training to provide labor for industry. Students were being groomed for jobs they might be stuck in for their entire lives. Interest in vocational education in the early 20th century was partly stimulated by major economic and social changes. Factory owners faced a shortage of skilled labor in a rapidly industrializing society. “Dewey opposed vocational education because he thought it introduced a class distinction directly into the design” of public education, says David Stern, whose research focuses on the relationship between education and work. “And I think history has proven him right” (Walsh, 2015). Eventually, by the 1990s, vocational programs had become something of a dumping ground for students who were not successful in the traditional academic environment due to behavioral problems or learning disabilities. Dewey's idea was that both the theory and the practical aspects of a discipline should be introduced to the child according to his interests and propensities. Progressive education asserted that students should be interested in what they were learning and that the curriculum should be relevant to students' lives. He viewed learning by doing and developing practical life skills as very important in education (Levin, 2014). IB education was established to provide a challenging and comprehensive education that would enable students to understand and manage the complexities of our world and equip them with skills and attitudes to act responsibly for the future. These goals are in line with Dewey's principles of social efficiency and education for life. The IB school environment is organized in such a way that the activities of the outside world are reflected just as Dewey proposed. Students are given the opportunity to encounter real-life problems through everyday activities, including CAS which provides the platform for risk-taking, open-mindedness, communication and caring. These qualities of the IB learner profile are integrated into Dewey's principles. Perhaps the most outstanding profile that aligns remarkably with Dewey's principles is inquiry-based learning. Dewey emphasized that “inquiry should be used to achieve balance and equilibrium in nature. For it is through their own inquiry that reflective organisms are able to contemplate probable actions and measures for self-sustaining and improving conditions” (Hickman, 2007). Unlike previous teaching models, which relied on authoritarianism and rote learning, IB schools prioritize inquiry-based learning. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now.:/69151.