HUMANISTIC EDUCATION: ITS IMPACT ON PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT

The Problem.;Delimitations of the Study. In this study the focus was on a description of the social-historical context of the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s. This study dealt with: (1) a description of the social-historical context of the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s; (2) a description of the propositions concerning schooling, learning, teaching, and content proposed by selected critics of public education of the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s; (3) the response of selected humanistic psychologists to the social-historical context and to the critics of public education of the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s; (4) an attempt toward definitional constraints for humanistic education and the derivation of implications for program development.;Need for the Study. Although there have been definitional attempts, it is hypothesized that humanistic education has not been constrained. An examination of the literature reveals little or no agreement about humanistic education.;If humanistic education is to have an impact on schooling, this movement must be constrained. An attempt at definitional constraints for humanistic education will determine whether humanistic education has implications for program development. If humanistic education has implications for program development, then schooling, learning, teaching, and content must be addressed by the proponents of the movement.;Statement of the Problem. The basic problem of this study was to describe humanistic education. The principal aim of this study was to attempt definitional constraints for humanistic education and to derive implications for program development.;Stages of Research. (A) The first stage was a description of the social-historical context of the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s. (B) The second stage was a description of the propositions advanced by the critics of public education of the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s concerning schooling, learning, teaching, and content. (C) The third stage was a description of the response of selected humanistic psychologists to the social-historical context and to the critics of public education of the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s. (D) The fourth stage attempted definitional constraints for humanistic education and the derivation of implications for program development.;Implications For Program Development.;Schooling. If learning is the formulation of self-appropriated learning experiences, if teaching is the act of facilitating these learning experiences, and if content focuses upon the relationships between the self and others, then schooling, by implication, would be required to provide an infinite number of learning situations for an infinite number of students. And therefore no implications for program development may be derived.;Learning. If learning is characterized by student assistance in the formulation of self-appropriated learning experiences, then implications for program development may be derived from this criterion, but only after further study and clarification. Unless this requirement is met the formulation of self-appropriated learning experiences has no constraint and there is no implication for program development.;Teaching. If teaching is the act of facilitating the conditions of self-appropriated learning, and if facilitating conditions are the "how," "why," and "when" on student learning, then facilitating conditions must be described more precisely in order to derive implications for program development. And therefore no implications for program development may be derived.;Content. If content for schooling must be derived from situations which focus on the relationship between the self and others, then content emerges from the intra-personal and interpersonal relationships of each student. This position does not distinguish between content for schooling and content for other intra-personal and interpersonal relationships. And therefore no implications for program development may be derived.