Bridge Building
John Dewey believes that it is important for the children to learn through occupations.
Dewey says, “By occupation I mean a mode of activity on the part of the
child which reproduces, or runs parallel to some form of work carried on in social
life.” An example of how an occupation will and can relate to everyday life
is the bridge building occupation. The students in this classroom will engage
themselves in an occupation that will design and create a bridge to allow parents,
students, and staff to walk from the road over a ditch onto school property.
The bridge building occupation is a significant and important occupation to everyone
in the world. We see bridges over lakes, rivers, ditches, roads, and many other
places. This does not help us understand why bridge construction is a vital occupation
to teach during a class. This occupation ties in many different subjects. We must
first be able to understand the mathematical calculations. The children must be
able to figure the amount of space that the bridge must cover. Then we must design
a layout of what the bridge will look like. The students must then also be able
to calculate the amount of materials that will be needed to construct the bridge.
The students would also be able to tie in science with this construction process.
The use of physics would be in high need because of the importance of the force
and mass the bridge will be able to hold.
The idea of occupation is important. This type of project will not teach the children
to merely skip higher education and proceed to a trade job. Dewey explains, “As
an occupation it is active or motor; it finds expression through the physical
organs-the eyes, hands, etc. But it also involves continual observation of materials,
and continual planning and reflection, in order that the practical or executive
side may be successfully carried on.” Dewey makes it clear that teaching
children through occupation is important because it teaches them how to handle
the different materials. The children must learn how to manage their resources.
The children will learn how much money it will cost to buy so many materials.
They will also learn how important it is not to waste the materials they have.
This principle of how to manage their money is important for later in life. This
is a concept that will follow them as they move from college to a real career.
The children will have to manage their money and by building a bridge it will
teach the children the same types of principles.
This type of activity is not only needed to be done in the classroom. This is
a type of activity that can help benefit the community as well. The bridge can
be built in a park where it will serve the same purpose as it would at the school.
John Dewey believes that the school and community should be interconnected. The
school should be able to benefit the community and vies versa. By building the
bridge in a location that would benefit the community it would be serving a great
purpose that Dewey finds important.
Back to the Occupations page
Back to the John Dewey's Philosophy
of Education home page | Back to the Foundations of Education Web home page