Chapter 4 - Education and Behavior

James posits that the central aim in education is to modify behavior so that the individual may participate in and advance the goals of the society. James said "Education, in short, cannot be better described than by calling it the organization of acquired habits of conduct and tendencies to behavior" (p. 15).

This vision is reminiscent of Jerome Bruner, whose Culture of Education (1996) brought, among many others, a very important similar point to light. Bruner believed that the mind exists in a climate where our way of life is shared with other members of that culture such that a shared symbolism exists. It is through this symbolism that we place value on what is important. Bruner believed that one of the purposes of education is to prepare the mind for that shared experience so that the individual may be successful and productive therein.

James goes on to explain the German educational system and how they prided themselves on preparing young minds for the natural sciences above most other pursuits. Based on my limited reading, it seems to me that what Bruner called "society's tools for organizing and understanding our words in communicable ways," James called the organization of "capacities of conduct" (p. 16). In my mind, these concepts seem very similar, if not identical.

What cultural habits do we claim to want to impart to our students? Are we doing a good job of this?

References

Bruner, J. (1996). The Culture of Education. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.