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Dewey receives Doctorate in Philosophy, beings teaching at University of Michigan
After teaching primary and secondary school for several years, Dewey realized he was unsuited for teaching at that level. He attended Johns Hopkins University for his doctorate degree in Philosophy and joined the staff of the University of Michigan, where his interests shifted from philosophy to psychology. Nickerson, C. (2022). John Dewey: Biography, Philosophy, Pragmatism & Education. Retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/John-Dewey.html -
Dewey is elected president of the American Psychological Associatation
Collaborating with several other contributors, Dewey began reevaluating approaches to psychology with the newly founded University of Chicago. He branded it "functional psychology", arguing that response to stimuli was dependent on how the person responded to it rather than assuming the same response for all. Psychology.org (2022). John Dewey. Retrieved from https://psychology.jrank.org/pages/184/John-Dewey.html -
Dewey on Democracy
Dewey criticized schools for not teaching students to be ethical, autonomous, and evaluating citizens, and to defer to authority in the structure of society. He felt as though society would benefit much more from having free thinking individuals over subjects that submit to the authoritarian state without consideration or freedom of thought.
For more on Dewey's thoughts on education: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3fm6wNzK70 -
Dewey and the NAACP
Following the Dewey commission defending Leon Trotsky of alleged crimes against Stalin, Dewey would defend the New York Teacher's Union from communist subversion. He would go on to sit on the executive board of the organization that would become the National Association for the advancement of Colored People. He was an avid supporter of women's and minorities' rights in democracy. Carle, S. (2011). John Dewey and the early NAACP. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu
