Existentialism

            Existentialism is a philosophical concept that focuses on the meaning and significance of life and man’s subsistence in the world. The philosophy of existence was established due to the character of man to search for meaning or importance of his life in order to become one with the world and continue living for a purpose. (“What is Existentialism?,” 2008) Another definition of existentialism lies in the religious context that the Father of Existentialism, S. Kierkegaard, has established; and that is, existentialism focuses on how an individual will live a life that is meaningful and significant as based on the standards and guidelines of Christianity. (Chandra & Rajendra, 2004) In order to deeply understand the meaning of existentialism, this philosophical concept will be applied to the educational perspective. Moreover, existentialism will be used to reflect on specific concepts or aspects of education in order to establish concise significance to the following: authentic assessment, excellence in education, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002, and the purpose of education that looks into educating the whole child and the quality and design of educational programs that make a difference.

            In education, existentialism was able to introduce the importance of integrating religion and moral education in educational curricula for the reason that existentialists believe in the ability of religious and moral concepts and theories in helping learners understand the meaning of their lives and their existence. In addition, existentialism suggested that education needs to focus on motivating individuals to engage themselves in activities that will allow them to grow and develop fully as people who are leading meaningful and significant lives. Academic institutions who believe in the theory of existentialist education apply its concepts in the educational curriculum, programs, strategies, techniques, and such.

            For instance, authentic assessment, which is part of the educational strategies and techniques that educators employ, may be defined under the context of existentialism. According to Jon Mueller, authentic assessment is an assessment tool that allows the learners to relate the knowledge and skills they have obtained from learning to relevant, real-life situations. One example would be problem-solving questions presented for the learners to solve and answer that have something to do situations that they might encounter in the real world. (Mueller, 2008) Authentic assessment becomes the basis of the existentialist philosophy as applied to education since it focuses on allowing the learner to realize a meaningful existence since the knowledge and skills obtained from learning becomes a significant tool or instrument for him to live in the real world consequentially, particularly by becoming a contributive and productive individual through his education.

            It is therefore logical to define existentialist philosophy as a means of upholding excellence in education since this means that one is able to exhibit outstanding performance in education wholly. In addition, the view of existentialism suggests that in order for an individual to obtain education, he must be able to realize its importance himself through self-motivation. Self-motivation is a significant factor in contributing to excellence in education since it pushes one to focus on learning and consequently on applying learning obtained through one’s involvement in problems, issues, and concerned that may be faced and resolved through knowledge. Existentialism, which relates the role that an individual plays in the world (Deenammal, 2006), relates how self-motivation which leads to excellence in education fulfills how one will be able to knowingly become a valuable member of society by being learned and educated which in turn, gives him the reason to strive for excellence in education constituting the significance of his life.

            The No Child Left Behind Act or NCLB is the U.S. Department of Education’s response to various educational problems that learners have been experiencing during the past years. The purpose of the implementation of the NCLB was to raise the quality of education for all specific populations within the sector of education. The NCLB promotes special programs for the underprivileged, the improvement of educational plans in nationwide, in various states, and communities in order to design and implement educational programs that are responsive to learning needs and problems, the strict implementation of the need for compliance of teachers and educational professionals in the field to high standards of teaching, the improvement of reading skills through educational grants and the implementation of literacy programs, and such. (“The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001,” 2004)

            The NCLB adheres to the existentialist theory of education since it is able to look into the various problems that the educational community is facing at present, from the limited coverage of educational access, to problems of literacy which influences the quality of life by the inadequate knowledge and skills that individuals gain because of lack of education and the poor quality of education, etc. The NCLB acknowledges that for learners to succeed, the educational program should be able to provide them with quality education; thus, the regard of the need to transform education in the country was realized through the application of the standards and guidelines set in the NCLB. It was the sole purpose of the NCLB to provide the kind of education that makes a difference, in terms of how it fully educates the individual in order for him to become a knowledgeable and skilled individual who will be able to live through the world by applying his knowledge and skills for the benefit and advantage of society.

            Moreover, the structure of NCLB was designed to purposefully improve education in order to provide educational programs that will promote excellence in education. It was also based on the existentialist perspective which looks into the importance of holistic education that does not only focus on the cognitive faculties of the learner, but also on other aspects as well, such as the moral, social, psychological, emotional, and physical faculties as well. Fulfilling the learning needs of each faculty results to a well-learned man who is full-fledged and developed, displaying excellence in education that gives him the meaning of his existence. (Wain, 1987)

References

Chandra, S. S. & Rajendra, S. K. (2004). Principles of Education. New Delhi, IN: Atlantic        Publishers & Distributors.

Deenammal, O. (2006). Martin Buber: His Fundamental Philosophy and Educational      Thought, 1st Ed. Gainesville, FL: The Associated Publishers.

Mueller, J. (2008). What is Authentic Assessment?” Retrieved January 28, 2009, from

            Authentic Assessment Toolbox, North Central College. Website:             http://jonathan.mueller.faculty.noctrl.edu/toolbox/whatisit.htm

“The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.” (2004). Retrieved January 28, 2009, from The U.S.

            Department of Education. Website: http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/index.html

Wain, K. (1987). Philosophy of Lifelong Education. Oxfordshire, UK: Taylor & Francis.

“What is Existentialism?” (2008). Retrieved January 28, 2009, from

            http://media.wiley.com/product_data/excerpt/91/04702769/0470276991.pdf