Journal of East China Normal University(Educationa ›› 2016, Vol. 34 ›› Issue (2): 68-75.doi: 10.16382/j.cnki.1000-5560.2016.02.009

• Basic theory of Education (教育基本理论) • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Three Forms of Teaching Environment and their Values:Perspective of Process Philosophy

WEI Shan-Chun   

  • Online:2016-05-20 Published:2016-07-05
  • Contact: WEI Shan-Chun
  • About author:WEI Shan-Chun

Abstract: Process philosophy is also known as a philosophy of organism or activity. It takes process and activity as the fundamental characteristics of organism, and holds the view that the whole world consists of the procedural and continually creative activity of organism. In recent years, the impact of process philosophy on education and teaching has become increasingly evident, and more and more researchers have applied the process thinking to the study of teaching process and the practical exploration of subject teaching. The purpose of this study is to apply the thinking of process philosophy to the research of teaching environment, and suggest the specific survival patterns of teaching environment and their characteristics and values. Adopting the method of philosophical introspection and the introspection of philosophy, this article argues that, in real teaching life, the relationship between teaching environment and individuals as the subject is in the state of dualism opposition, regulated and controlled. More attention has been paid to optimizing teaching environment to improve the teaching effectiveness from the technical level. By sorting and analyzing the literature about process philosophy and its thinking comprehensively, this study attempts to explore the three forms of teaching environment through process-related thinking of process philosophy. The first form is the sense and body of teacher and student .The second is the community formed between teacher and student or between student and student, such as the education community, teaching community, learning community and so on. The third is the continuity of curriculum knowledge around children’s life and experience. These teaching environments are both subjective and objective. They are not just stable, but are generated dynamically and energy flowing. These environments have the subject appeal of a moral concern which aims at their own integrity, independence and internal harmony. Also, they have the object value which enables teacher and student to be more creative and caring. This will help promote teacher and student to learn to care and develop the qualities of caring,including caring about oneself, the community, nature and the knowledge. Constructing a teaching environment based on the theoretical process philosophy does not mean creating a material, solidified and tangible environment, but a trnastormantion of concept and way of thinking. Instead of focusing on the effectiveness of teaching environment on teacher and student growth (just an instrumental value), this way of thinking focuses more on the inner good, external creativity and caring relationships in teaching environment. And it will make the teaching and education more and more human-centered, and furthermore, teaching life begins to walk out of the fence of the classroom and school and return to nature, society and ourselves.