The principles underlying the selection of a course of study

Abstract

The problem of this study is to find the principles that should underlie the selection of the school curriculum. It is not a scientific investigation of the social and psychological facts upon which the course of study should be based, nor is intended to solve the problem so as to make such scientific investigations unnecessary. It is undertaken, rather, as preliminary to such investigations. It seeks to determine the field for investigation, to analyze the problem into simpler problems to the solution of which the scientific investigations are essential. It is written with the conviction that even the ultra-scientific student has a philosophy that guides him in his researches, and also that if the philosophy is to be a safe guide it must be critically examined.