Abstract

FERNANDES, José Pedro Matos; ARAUJO, Alberto Filipe  and  GARCIA DEL DUJO, Ángel. Democracy, intelligence and (sound) education in the perspective of John Dewey. Educ. Pesqui. [online]. 2018, vol.44, e169625.  Epub Jan 31, 2018. ISSN 1678-4634.  https://doi.org/10.1590/s1678-4634201709169625.

In this article, which has the opportunity to be included in the centennial celebration of the publication of Democracy and Education , we intend to reflect on the foundations of three core notions present throughout John Dewey’s work, especially in the aforementioned publication. We refer to the notions of democracy, intelligence and education, which seem to be in a structural relationship. The title of John Dewey’s original work does not include the term intelligence. However, it seems crucial to anchor the theory of education, based on a democratic conception, to this structural idea and include it in the author’s theory. Indeed, according to Dewey’s philosophy, education is represented as a test to the validity of the ideal of a democratic society and takes on the responsibility of creating the conditions for the implementation of such society. In Dewey’s conception democracy is much more than just a form of government. It is the opportunity for a complete fulfillment of human potential. In this context, only an ability such as intelligence can be used to act upon an always evolving and uncertain world with a tendency for constant improvement. To this end, the conception of intelligence that allows us to fulfill such ideal must therefore be clarified.

Keywords : Democracy; Intelligence; Education; Pragmatism; John Dewey.

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