John Dewey Quotes
John Dewey was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer, the most influential figure of the second generation of pragmatist philosophy and one of the most influential American thinkers of the 20th century. His philosophy of education, set out in works including Democracy and Education and Experience and Education, transformed schooling in the United States and abroad through its emphasis on learning by doing and on the school as a model of democratic life. The quotes below are attributed to John Dewey, organized by topic.
John Dewey on Knowledge
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Attributed to John Dewey:
“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.”
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Attributed to John Dewey:
“Failure is instructive. The person who really thinks learns quite as much from his failures as from his successes.”
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Attributed to John Dewey:
“We do not learn from experience; we learn from reflecting on experience.”
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Attributed to John Dewey:
“Every great advance in science has issued from a new audacity of imagination.”
John Dewey on Mind
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Attributed to John Dewey:
“The path of least resistance and least trouble is a mental rut already made. It requires troublesome work to undertake the alteration of old beliefs.”
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Attributed to John Dewey:
“To be playful and serious at the same time is possible, and it defines the ideal mental condition.”
John Dewey on Politics
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Attributed to John Dewey:
“Democracy has to be born anew every generation, and education is its midwife.”
John Dewey on Time
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Attributed to John Dewey:
“Time and memory are true artists; they remould reality nearer to the heart's desire.”