By Amber Strong Makaiau
The following post is the final in a 3-part series reflecting on Human Restoration Project’s first ever Conference to Restore Humanity!, during which I had the pleasure of participating in the Modern Progressive Education Panel Discussion. View a complete recording of our discussion here as well as parts 1 and 2 of my reflections here and here.
In this final musing on the many thought-provoking questions we barely scratched the surfaces of, I invite you to think with me about the ways the progressive education movement has grown between the early 1900s and today: What are the driving factors behind the growth of the modern progressive education movement? What is different in a modern progressive education versus that of the past? How is it expanding today?
History reveals a waxing and waning of the progressive education movement over time. Many if not most beginning teachers are drawn to the progressive impulse of education, but depending on the cultural and political landscape of the time, it is either easier or harder for educators to translate a progressive philosophy of education into a classroom practice, let alone build a progressive education school system. A good example of this is the progressive education movement in Hawai‘i.
Here is an early timeline of progressive education in Hawai‘i:
First visiting Honolulu in 1899 as the guest of Mary Tenney Castle and her family, Dewey would help establish Hawai'i's first progressive schools.
1870: Henry S. Townsend, Inspector General of Hawai‘i’s public schools, is a staunch supporter of progressive education and promotes it in public schools
1889: Col Francis Parker is invited to Hawai‘i to speak to educators
1899: John Dewey is invited to Hawai‘i and gives a series of ten lectures and ultimately plays “an important and foundational role in efforts to establish university level education in Hawai‘i, nine years before the founding of the University of Hawai‘i” (McEwan, 2015, p. 3)
1889: Dewey helps to found the Henry & Dorothy Memorial Free Kindergarten in Hawai‘i
1893: Illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy
1900: Organic Act forced replacement of Townsend, which led to the “virtual end” of the progressive movement in Hawai‘i’s public schools
1908: Mid-Pacific Institute founded with progressive ideals
1918: Hanahau‘oli School founded in partnership with Francis Parker School
In Hawai‘i’s history we see an example of a growing progressive education movement, and then with the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy, a major political effort was made to move away from the progressive approach and instead use public schools as sites for political and cultural assimilation. As that takes place, smaller independent schools start to champion the movement in Hawai‘i. This is a stark example of how the progressive education movement is affected by shifting cultural and political trends.
Lia Woo, Head of Hanahau‘oli School, studies children and their play at Shirley G. Moore Laboratory School at the University of Minnesota
I have many ideas about what it means to be a modern progressive educator, the first of which grows from the writings of the first principal at Hanahau’oli School, Louisa Palmer. Palmer wisely explained, “progressive education is a moving, dynamic, changing education... a living thing, growing, continuously having to change because of the three great changing elements with which we deal - children, environment and civilization or culture” (Palmer, 1937). As such, progressive education “indicates watching life and children alertly” (Palmer, 1937). This has been the mantra of progressive educators for decades: we study children and society. I think we now know that this is not enough. There are two other elements, and likely more, that science and the modern world point to as important areas of focus for progressive educators–studying ourselves, and understanding the natural environment.
Louise Derman-Sparks and Julie Olsen Edwards’ textbook offers guidance on confronting prejudice, misinformation, and bias in early childhood education
Modern progressive educators must study ourselves because this is essential to promoting social justice in education. Each of us must do a deep dive into our own identity, positionality, and unconscious biases. We must understand how our particular life experience influences our assumptions about students, families, and the communities we work in. Tracey Benson and Sarah Fiarman (2019) tell us, “before you start supporting other people around understanding unconscious racial [or other] bias you have to understand your own racial identity [and other aspects of your identity] and you have to understand the ways in which a binary mindset might be manifesting in your thinking...We are all on a continuum of learning about anti-racist [or social justice] behavior…what it means to be an anti-racist educator...it’s an ongoing journey….allow yourself to be a learner on this journey...” Therefore, educators must also engage in deep self-study, not just of one’s practice but of the lenses that shape the way we see the world and one another. This critical component of self-study and self-awareness, especially as it relates to issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion, is an important trait of the modern progressive educator.
Hanahau’oli teachers explore a local trail with a guide and graduate of the school as part of professional development before children return for the ‘22-’23 school year
Progressive educators of today must also study the environment. All of us need an improved relationship with the natural world to increase climate consciousness and address climate change. In addition to keeping up with the science of our changing climate, this includes spending time in nature observing, experiencing and learning from the natural world. When teachers strengthen their relationships with the environments in which we live and learn, our students will do the same. Everyone is going to need to do their part to address the impacts of climate change on human life and evolution and this is why progressive educators must build their relationships with planet earth, including the knowledge and approaches necessary to teach climate consciousness in schools.
In addition to increased understanding of our own positionality and of the environment, progressive educators of today must keep up with changing technologies. This does not mean having to know how to use every new application or technological learning tool, but it does mean keeping up with technological innovation and all of the ethical issues that arise with new technologies. This is the hallmark of a progressive education–taking the time to question and think deeply about the implications of technology and how it impacts the way we want to live, and live together, in our ever changing world.
Works Cited:
Benson, T. & Fiarman, S. (2019). Unconscious bias in schools : a developmental approach to exploring race and racism. Harvard Education Press, Cambridge.
Palmer, Louisa F. Memories of Hanahauoli: The First Fifty Years. Honolulu: Unknown, 1968. Print.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Dr. Amber Strong Makaiau is a Specialist at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Director of Curriculum and Research at the Uehiro Academy for Philosophy and Ethics in Education, Director of the Hanahau‘oli School Professional Development Center, and Co-Director of the Progressive Philosophy and Pedagogy MEd Interdisciplinary Education, Curriculum Studies program. A former Hawai‘i State Department of Education high school social studies teacher, her work in education is focused around promoting a more just and equitable democracy for today’s children. Dr. Makaiau lives in Honolulu where she enjoys spending time in the ocean with her husband and two children.
