Affective Education: The Responsible Way to Prepare Instructors.

Overview & Synopsis

The "Back to Basics" movement is compared with the humanistic or affective approach to education. A return to basics would set the stage for an active teacher, shaping a passive student. Affective education, in contrast, considers helping a student learn to be a person as more central and more basic than the acquisition of skills and habits. If "Back to Basics" becomes a reality, those in higher education will bear a large burden of responsibility. A specific program of studies is suggested for departments and schools of education to assist in countering a national reemphasis on basics that would exclude maximal development of the learner's unique nature. A selected bibliography on humanistic education is included. (Author/MM)