EDL 830: Educational Foundations of Philosophy: Other Resources

The dialogues of Plato are analyzed in this program by world-renowned author and professor Bryan Magee and Cambridge philosophy professor Myles Burnyeat. Seeing Plato's ideas initially as extensions of those of his teacher, Socrates, Burnyeat explains the development and content of Plato's original doctrines of knowledge as virtue, the immortality and tripartite division of the soul, and the theory of forms (ideas). Plato's political philosophy is discussed within the context of the notion of the ideal state-a political utopia ruled by philosopher-kings.

Other than Freud, no psychologist has been so discussed, critiqued, and, at times, maligned as B. F. Skinner. Using both archival and newer film, this program takes a penetrating look at who Skinner was and what he really said in his 20 books. Skinner's specialized terminology is introduced in context so students will understand how it was intended to be used and the research that produced it. In addition, the video lays to rest some myths and credits Skinner with contributions not often attributed to him. Murray Sidman, a colleague of Skinner's and thoughtful practitioner of behavioral analysis, narrates.

Although John Dewey lived in a markedly different era, many of his concerns are still highly relevant to life today. This program introduces students to his philosophy and his critical studies of education, the arts, and the implications of democracy for the lives of individuals and their communities. Contemporary examples of the influence of his work include film sequences of noted educator Deborah Meier's Mission Hill School in Roxbury, Massachusetts; commentary by literature authority Louise Rosenblatt on Dewey's theories of democratic behavior; and philosopher Larry Hickman's comments on the ways technology changes how one experiences the world.