»Problem solving«, a method in education or an end for ethics?

Subject Areas : Educational Science

Elaheh Abdollahi ¹ , Ali Moradkhani ² , Fatemeh Ahmadbeigi ³

1 - Ph.D. student of Philosophy, Department of Philosophy, North Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
2 - Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy, North Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
3 - Education humanity North Tehran Branch Islamic Azad University Tehran Iran

Received: 2024-06-26 Accepted : 2024-06-23 Published : 2024-06-23

Keywords: problem solving, education, moral education, thinking, John Dewey,

Abstract :

The purpose of this article is to examine John Dewey's views on "education" and "ethics" and his efforts to apply these two categories in solving society's problems. Dewey introduces "problem solving" as a practical method in education and believes that this method plays an effective role in achieving social goals. Although Dewey does not explicitly mention the "problem solving" method in his moral philosophy, he seems to be trying to present a similar method in this area, especially moral education. In order to achieve this goal, he pushes fixed moral principles to the sidelines and makes moral judgment dependent on the evaluation of each situation and its unique characteristics. Dewey believes that the presentation of ethics lessons by educators and the learning of ethical principles by students does not lead to any results, and the prerequisites for the effectiveness of ethics should be provided in the field of "action". The main issue in this article is how Dewey tries to present a method such as "problem solving" in the field of ethics and moral education, a method that is used to solve a complex situation in which a person is caught. The results of this research show that Dewey, as one of the pioneers of pragmatism and instrumentalism, considering ethics as a "science", considers moral principles as "hypotheses" that need to be re-evaluated to be used in a new situation. Therefore, moral education depends on "rational inquiry", "thinking", "research" and "experience", elements that evoke "problem solving" in Dewey's philosophy of education.

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