The Pie-day-ah Proposal

Summary of Key Points

Paideia History

• Between 1979 and 1985 a group of educators met with Mortimer Adler, then Chairman of the Board of Editors for Encyclopedia Britannica, to discuss education reform.

• Some of their concerns were the high use of lecture by teachers (85% of teacher time) as reported by John Goodlad in A Place Called School, excessive stress on coverage of material, lack of equal opportunity to education in the schools, and poor conditions for learning within the school environment created by such elements as large class size numbers. (Sound familiar)

• The Paideia Group published three books: Paideia Proposal (1982), Paideia Problems and Possibilities (1983), and the Paideia Program (1984). These books sparked public interest across the country. By 1994 the Paideia Proposal was translated into 6 different languages.

Paideia Principles 1. That all children can learn;2. That, therefore, they all deserve the same quality of

schooling, not just the same quantity3. That the quality of schooling to which they are

entitled is what the wisest parents would wish for their own children, the best education for the best being the best education for all;

4. That schooling at its best is preparation for becoming generally educated in the course of a whole lifetime, and that schools should be judged on how well they provide such preparation.

5. That the three callings for which schooling should prepare all Americans are (a) to earn a decent livelihood, (b) to be a good citizen of the nation and the world, and (c) to make a good life for oneself;

6. That the primary cause of genuine learning is the activity of the learner's own mind, sometimes with the help of a teacher functioning as a secondary and cooperative cause;

7. That the three kinds of teaching that should occur in our schools are didactic teaching of subject matter, coaching that produces the skills of learning, and Socratic questioning in seminar discussion;

8. That the results of these three kinds of teaching should be (a) the acquisition of organized knowledge, (b) the formation of habits of skill in the use of language and mathematics, and (c) the growth of the mind's understanding of basic ideas and issues;

9. That each student's achievement of these results should be evaluated in terms of that student's capacities and not solely related to the achievements of other students;

10. That the principal of a school should never be a mere administrator, but also a leading teacher who should cooperate with the faculty in planning, reforming, and reorganizing the school as an educational community;

11. That the principal and faculty of a school should themselves be actively engaged in learning; and,

12. That the desire to continue their own learning should be the prime motivation of those who dedicate their lives to the profession of teaching.

What are the results?• According to Patricia Weiss, Ph.D., President

PGI• PGI is a national not-for-profit organization with national and

international members. Mortimer Adler is the Honorary Chairman. Its purpose is to monitor and guide Paideia development, foster networking and sharing of information. In 1992, PGI instituted the stages of development and the essential elements for a Paideia school. In 1993, the board issued the certification process for trainers. PGI conducts regional workshops, an annual national conference and on site Paideia training programs.

• Educators have seen improved attendance and school climate; increases in reading, writing and communication skills; more frequent opportunities for integration of the curriculum and joint teacher planning; and more enjoyment with active learning in the seminars.

Useful Resources

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paideia_Proposal• http://www.thegreatideas.org/syntopicon.html • http://www.thegreatideas.org/index.html

PPT text from:THE PAIDEIA EDUCATIONAL REFORMSPaideia History by Patricia Weiss, Ph.D., President PGI

http://www.classicalhomeschooling.

com/html/paideia_educational_reforms.html