A Perspective Research On The Shift In Educational Thought

This paper explores the quality of modern education and provides two frames of reference or perspectives: the basic principle of becoming in Taoism and Whitehead's process philosophy. The main method of this research is the combination of epistemology and ontology, and that of education theory and practice. The leitmotiv of this article is the ontology of becoming. This can be found in the Taoist cosmology of becoming and by the Western becoming philosophy represented by Whitehead, Hokin's cosmic theory, the theory of evolution by successively becoming weaker, which originated in Taoism, and synergetics and catastrophe theory. This paper will mainly show how the corresponding education worldviews greatly enrich the connotation of becoming education. Then the paper explores the two education mechanisms: 1) the mechanism of self-organization as the basis of self-education theory, and 2) the concept of other-organization as the basis of an enrichment model. Process philosophy makes us believe that education is a process of becoming. Taoism helps us to think that we may promote becoming in education by following the underlying principle that process moves from opposition to mutual becoming. The philosophy of complex science inspires us that education, just like science, is moving forward constantly and full of vitality. One can find support for this thesis in Montessori's methods of infant education, John Dewey's experiential education and Lu Jie's transformation of moral education. In the end, this article summarizes the great trends and discusses the complexity of educational thought as it develops in the macroscopic structure of this paper. The epilogue discusses the nature of education. Whitehead claims that the process by which the actual entity comes into being determines its nature. Similarly, we may say that the education process determines its essential character. Just as the cosmology of becoming treats the objective world as a cosmos full of life, becoming education considers the world of education as full of vigour and becoming.The main viewpoints of this article:1 The shift of thinking modes from substance thinking to becoming thinking in education practice & study is a great trend;2 The mode of becoming thinking is more suitable to the understanding of the nature of education, being helpful to education reform in the meantime;3 It will perceive and research education deepper from the perspective of angle of ontology;4 Taoism philosophy, Whitehead philosophy and philosophy of complex science will be of much help to overlook education from more angles of vision; 5 Becoming education is a kind of laberating, democratic, sustainable and integrated one;6 Becoming education exists in order to provide a supportive surrounding for the self growing of all students, education unit such as schools and classrooms should do their utmost to change into becoming community to help students's development;7 The shift of education thinking modes is a complecated process. So not simlified thinking but whole round thinking including sustance thinking is necessary in education research.And the whole paper may be devided into five chapters:Chapter 1st: Introduction: A conspectus of the shift of education thinking modes. This chapter mainly outlines the veering of education thinking modes, including the research method and putting forward of the question the paper studies on, the background of the transformation of the two education thinking styles of sustance thinking and becoming thinking. Afterwards, the paper puts forward the hypothesis.Chapter 2nd: The 1st part of the connotation of the shift of education thinking modes: Education in the frame of reference of substance thinking. This chapter is one of the two central parts to explore education formally. It mainly explores the basic hypothesises, theoretical and practical trwits and the construction of the model of substance education.Chapter 4th: The 1st part of the extension of the shift of education thinking modes: Great trends of education thinking shift and its conclusion. This chapter mainly discusses the direction and great trends of education thinking change. then the conclusion of education thinking transformation is put forward, briefly speaking, that is, to construct human's growing envioriment into a becoming community is the final goal of education.Chaper 5th: The 2nd part of the extension of the shift of education thinking modes: The complexity of education thinkinq Shift and its related discussion, This chapter mainly explores the complexity of education thinking transformation. And in the discussion, though the manifest trends of this transformation are put forward, they two are not so antipathic, just like water and fire.At last, the Tag discusses the character of education from the angle of thinking shift. That is to say, the nature of education is full of vigour just like that of our universe, and to be decided by the life activity mechanism of the students'. It also has a foundation of science, but more of it maybe artistic. And the commitment of education is to provide conditions for students to shape themselves and to promote their growing, shift and becoming.