Relectura de la educación por competencias desde el pragmatismo de John Dewey

Abstract

Over the last decades, a renewed interest in pragmatism and John Dewey thought has emerged. In the field of the Education, the reference to Dewey has become a common resource as background for various proposals, including the model of learning based on competencies. Emanated from the field of professional management and training, the need to adapt education to the requirements of the society and economy, has put this approach into the heart of national and international educational policies. In this paper we attempt to show the possibilities of filiation that exist between competencybased learning and the ideas of the American philosopher and educator. First, we focused on Dewey democracy reconstruction through the appeal to a new individualism which conciliates the development of the individuality with the participation in the spirit of a community life. Then the analysis is moved to Dewey’s criticism to dualisms and the discussion around vocational training and general education. To conclude, we explore the consequences of the change from an absolutistic logic to an experimental one on this model of learning. Dewey’s philosophy of education is not necessary contrary to the competency-based model. He insisted in the necessity to connect education within society and rejected understanding vocational training as a second-class education. However, he would have been reluctant to an education built over a closed list of competencies determining the profile of the person to achieve, and obstructing the freedom and creativity of the student