Contemporary political and socioeconomic conditions largely characterized by corruption and inequity have added new urgency to recurring calls for reorienting American public schools to their historic purpose: educating a citizenry both equipped and motivated to serve as the ultimate guardians of democracy. While the Founding Fathers, including Jefferson, as well as the founders of public schools, including Horace Mann, explicitly stated that rationale, perhaps no one has done more than John Dewey to detail the inextricable relationship between education and democratic society. In Moral Principles in Education and My Pedagogic Creed, Dewey reminds readers of public schools’ original purpose, identifying specific educational principles and practices that either promote or undermine their essential democratic goals. “There cannot be two sets of ethical principles,” he says, “one for life in the school, and the other for life outside of the school.” In these works and through such caveats, Dewey offers readers both the motivation to engage in the struggle for a new emphasis on educating for democratic citizenship and the guidance necessary to translate his theory into effective practice. Perfect for courses such as: Philosophy of Education, Teaching Methods, Principles of Teaching and Learning, Education Policy, Education Leadership, Education Foundations, Curriculum Theory and History, Curriculum Design, The Philosophy of John Dewey, and School Change/Reform.

Grounded in historical essays, this volume provides context for the growing field of curriculum studies, reflecting on dominant trends in the field & sampling the best of current scholarship.

John Dewey’s My Pedagogical Creed outlined his beliefs in regard to teaching and learning. In this volume, prominent contemporary teacher educators such as Diana Hess, Geneva Gay and O.L. Davis follow in Dewey’s footsteps, articulating their own pedagogical creeds as they relate to educating about social issues. Through personal stories, each contributor reveals the major concerns, tenets, and interests behind their own teaching and research, including the experiences underlying their motivation to explore social issues via the school curriculum. Rich with biographical detail, The Importance of Teaching Social Issues combines diverse voices from curriculum theory, social studies education, science education, and critical theory, providing a unique volume relevant for today’s teachers and education scholars.

Dworkin has gathered some of Dewey's clearest and most characteristic statements on education and set them in the stream of American social and intellectual history. In addition, he has indicated some of the rich literature available to those who would probe more deeply into Dewey's ideas and the context in which they matured.