John Dewey was not a philosopher of education in the now-traditional sense of a doctor of philosophy who examines educational ends, means, and controversies through the disciplinary lenses of epistemology, ethics, and political theory, or of agenda-driven schools such as existentialism, feminism, and critical theory. Rather, Dewey was both an educator and a philosopher, and he saw in each discipline reconstructive possibilities for the other, famously characterizing "philosophy . . . as the general theory of education" (1985, p. 338). Dewey (...) wanted each discipline to overcome its tendency to alienate knowledge and theory from experience and reconstruct itself as an enterprise aimed at personal and collective .. (shrink)

Welcome, readers, to the latest edition of Education & Culture. It's prime leaf peeping time here in upstate New York, as I gaze at the beautiful fall foliage framed so picturesquely by my office window. Much like John Dewey, I feel fortunate indeed to live in this part of the country during what has long been my favorite season. Let's hope that it brings with it the advent of a return to something resembling democratic sentiment and human decency in politics (...) and public affairs.Our fall 2018 issue opens with a thoughtful and heartfelt commentary on the proliferation of gun violence in the US precipitated by recent events, in addition to four articles exploring the possibilities and limits of Deweyan progressivism... (shrink)

Greetings and welcome to the latest issue of Education & Culture. Before highlighting the articles featured in this issue, I would like to report briefly on the history and usage of the Open Access feature at Education & Culture. As you might recall, the journal moved to Open Access in 2013, making issues three years and older available through Purdue e-Pubs, the online publishing platform of Purdue University Press. This archive is accessible through the dropdown menu on the Education & (...) Culture page of the PUP website and extends all the way back to volume one from 1976. Almost since the day this feature was first enabled, it saw a great deal of activity, with... (shrink)

Welcome, one and all, to volume 32, issue 2 of Education & Culture. I originally began assembling this issue without a specific theme in mind. Nonetheless, as you can see from the title of my remarks, one soon began to emerge. More than a few scholars have commented on an apparent shift in Dewey’s later writings that provided a counterbalance to his ardent attention to science in his early- and middle-period works—a so-called aesthetic turn. It seems to me that this (...) move loosely parallels current initiatives in education calling for a broadening of popular curriculum focused on the STEM fields to something like STEAM, which looks to add the arts, in various forms, to... (shrink)

It was my great pleasure to take over for A. G. Rud this past summer as editor of Education and Culture. As you are well aware, A. G. did an exceptional job during his distinguished tenure as editor, enhancing the profile and overall quality of the journal in numerous ways. In his first editor's note after moving the journal to Purdue University Press (volume 20, issue 2), A. G. wrote of his interest in "seeking out scholars who are examining not (...) only Dewey himself, but his influence upon his contemporaries, and his enduring legacy." He then added that he was also "keenly interested in exploring how the new technologies may be used in the journal." It's clear to everyone, I'm sure, that A. G.'s efforts in these .. (shrink)

Greetings, readers, and welcome to the spring 2019 issue of Education & Culture. This latest edition of the journal features four articles and two book reviews, and it should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with recent scholarship on Dewey that all of the contributors speak in some way to contemporary issues and problems related to the prospects for democracy and/in diversity.We begin with Kathy Hytten's "Cultivating Democratic Hope in Dark Times: Strategies for Action." In her contribution, Hytten explores (...) the necessity for a democratic conception of hope that might help us more effectively counter the many social, political, and educational challenges we face today. In doing so, she appeals to... (shrink)

Greetings, readers, and welcome to the spring 2019 issue of Education & Culture. This latest edition of the journal features four articles and two book reviews, and it should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with recent scholarship on Dewey that all of the contributors speak in some way to contemporary issues and problems related to the prospects for democracy and/in diversity.We begin with Kathy Hytten's "Cultivating Democratic Hope in Dark Times: Strategies for Action." In her contribution, Hytten explores (...) the necessity for a democratic conception of hope that might help us more effectively counter the many social, political, and educational challenges we face today. In doing so, she appeals to... (shrink)

Welcome, readers, to the latest issue of Education & Culture. This exciting edition brings us five articles and three book reviews ranging across topics including educational reform, academic freedom, teacher education, political theory, Deweyan pedagogy and aesthetics, and, a topic not often addressed by Deweyans, the practice of inclusion in today’s classrooms.Continuing a pattern of late, we open with a piece first presented as the Dewey Lecture at AERA in 2014. Diane Ravitch’s “Does Evidence Matter?” takes a direct and largely (...) critical look at educational reform over the last several decades, highlighting No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top, but.. (shrink)

I am pleased to offer for your insight and edification the latest issue of Education & Culture. Though this edition is a bit shorter than readers will have come to expect, it does feature a dynamic duo of recent John Dewey Lectures as well as two original contributions looking at Dewey's innovative perspective on the nature of human experience and its continued relevance for both democratic living and sense-making in the classroom.The issue begins with Ellen Lagemann's 2016 Dewey Lecture entitled (...) "The Continuing Challenge of Progressive Thought: Lessons from a College in Prison." Taking on what seems to be one of the most intractable problems of our day, Lagemann briefly sketches the crisis of incarceration and... (shrink)

Greetings, readers! Spring is finally here and that means it’s time for a new issue of Education & Culture. This latest edition of the journal features several articles that use Dewey’s social and political philosophy to illuminate the myriad ways in which forces beyond the school and classroom continue to create major challenges for an education that might prepare students for democratic life in our increasingly complex twenty-first century world. The task before us is a challenging one, indeed. However, the (...) contributions of our latest authors might help us to forge a fruitful path through the many perils and possibilities that lie ahead.We begin with Atli Harðarson’s “The School as a Democratic Workplace: The... (shrink)

"What would Dewey say?" I seem to hear this question posed at least once at virtually every academic conference I attend. Following the typical pattern, the speaker goes on to submit for consideration whatever he thinks Dewey would say about the issue at hand. So why is this question so common? On some occasions, the speaker is addressing a subject—perhaps something contemporary—about which Dewey never spoke, at least not directly. Or, perhaps, he is responding to Dewey's tendency to work at (...) a high level of abstraction, offering topographical maps of some critical portion of the lived world while leaving the map reader to determine the relevant connections to contexts that are more local and concrete in nature. .. (shrink)

Welcome readers!As you have no doubt noted, Education & Culture has an all new cover design and formatting thanks to our good friends at PUP. I hope folks like it. I think we can at least be sure that Dewey would approve of the color!But that is not all that is new. There are some other important changes readers should know about concerning access to the journal. Following current practice, Dewey Society members will continue to receive the journal in hard (...) copy, with the most recent three years still available online through Project Muse. However, a new archive has been established to make issues older than three years available Open Access through Purdue e-Pubs, the online publishing platform of Purdue .. (shrink)

This symposium provides five case studies of the ways that John Dewey's philosophy and practice were influenced by women or "weirdoes" (our choices include F. M. Alexander, Albert Barnes, Helen Bradford Thompson, Elsie Ripley Clapp, and Jane Addams) and presents some conclusions about the value of dialoging across difference for philosophers and other scholars.