Paradigm 

• In Event: Roundtable Session 96
  In Roundtable Session: Where the Rubber Meets the Road: Curriculum, Research, Moral Education

Abstract

“Paradigm shifts” regarding what we know about teaching and learning are influencing teacher education programs and classroom practice in respect to how we ought to act. Of interest is a “marked change” in the use of scientific language and methodology in the quest for evidence of learning, the value of experiential knowledge and the predictability of human conduct. Controversial aspects of the shifts raise the question of whether paradigm shifts are beneficial to the enterprise of education. This paper examines the question using Kuhn’s (1962) analysis of “paradigms”. It examines the use of the term ‘paradigm’in areas outside the physical sciences, notes some implications for educational decisions, and makes recommendations for action on the part of philosophers of education

Author

• Shelby Lorraine Sheppard, Western Washington University