Dewey's Argumentative Essay

Students need to recognize the reason they are learning to not to fall into mental slavery. The slave is a “person who executes the purposes of another [or] his own blind desires” (pg. 28). Dewey says, “A genuine purpose always starts with an impulse” (pg. 28), in fact the goal of the purpose is to realize the consequences to one’s impulses. A purpose originates from first observing conditions then comparing it to experiences of similar conditions, which together allow determining the significance. Therefore, schools are not targeted to appeal to the desires and impulses of students, rather “a purpose [should be] developed, [and] guidance given by the teacher” (pg. 30) to the exercise the pupils' intelligence which actually enables freedom, rather than pose another restriction.
The ideal educational structure is one where students establish new concepts and ideas in the context of their day-to-day life when learning new information. On the other hand, every student has a different background which leads to an eternal number of variations for potential experiences. Thus it is the …show more content…
It is not uncommon in Saudi Arabia for students to be completely silenced if they question the validity of a professor’s argument. Students can be dismissed from the classroom for simply challenging the teacher’s line of reasoning. Educational systems in America have adopted a system where students are encouraged to contemplate conflicting opinions to strengthen and reinforce the quality of debates that might arise in the classroom. Critical thinking is essential to a healthy and progressive education. Unfortunately, this type of instruction is not employed in educational system of Saudi Arabia at public school, private or college level. Saudi schools do not emphasize the importance of independent thinking, but banking model or spoon-feed students’ information that does not test their mental