FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION :: IDEALISM

Idealism: 

Idealism is derived from the Greek word 'idea', which means something seen or look for something. Idealism is derived from idea and ideals.

Brightman presents five steps of Idealism:

Idealism- Education Implications:

Aim of education: In Idealism the aim of education should be providing the power to an individual to discover and develop his inner abilities to the best of his limits and serve for the society. The education providing institute should work on the upliftment of intellectual activities such as self-control, self-realization, individual responsibility, will power, moral judgement and aesthetic judgement in order to achieve the development. 

Idealism values:

 According to Plato, aim includes the following:

• Truth
• Beauty
• Goodness.

These are the eternal values.

Idealism- Content:

1. Preserving the subject matter content, which is important for the development of mind.
2. Including subjects in the curriculum which helps in mental and moral development such as literature, history, philosophy and religion.
3. As these subjects helps in understanding the culture, these should be mandatory. Moreover, subject matter should be kept constant for all.

Idealism- Methods of education:

Idealism believes that the methods of teaching should be based upon facts and help the students think above the horizons, about the factual rather than being in darkness or ignorant. They should be taught to reflect on these facts. Teaching methods should encourage the students for logical thinking, reflective thinking, applying their knowledge over the moral and social problems. Teaching methods should bring interest in the subject and the content and encourage students towards the acceptance of the values of human civilization. Holding the ideas through lecture, discussion, socratic dialogue, introspection, intuition, insight and whole-part logic are used for consciousness. Pestalozzi believes that teaching method should be in harmony with the development of mind. He called this method of acquiring knowledge as "Aschaung".

Idealism- The Teacher:

1. Idealists have great expectations from the teacher.
2. No other element is as important as the teachers.
3. The teacher must be excellent to motivate his students intellectually and emotionally.
4. The teacher must excel in knowledge and he should excel in bringing up that spirit in the students. He should demonstrate moral excellence.
5. The teacher must himself exercise the creative skills and must attract the students even to walk on the same line with all his hidden potentialities.

Idealism- The Child:

1. Equality in the children is called  as completeness. This completeness must be considered, is a fact said by idealists.
2. The modern idealist believe that there are physical and moral differences among the children.
3. For effective development of children these physical and moral differences must be considered with their aptitude, interests, needs etc.

Idealism- Discipline:

1. Believe in discipline.
2. True discipline is guided by the soul.
3. The idealists transform the kids as per their designed way. They first understand them and their virtues and then educate them in and as per the virtues.
4. Believes in inner discipline.