Date of Award

5-2009

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Education (MSEd)

First Advisor

Dr. Salvatore Vascellaro

Abstract

Are John Dewey's and Lucy Sprague Mitchell's twentieth century hopes for classroom management realized in the early twenty-first century practices in progressive schools? The viewpoints of these two pioneers in progressive education create the backdrop for examining the execution of classroom management in present-day progressive educational settings in this study. In order to examine classroom management in practice, three classroom observations and teacher interviews were conducted in progressive schools in New York City. These observations and interviews are compared and analyzed through the lens of Dewey and Mitchell's thoughts about the functioning of a classroom. The study does not claim to arrive at definitive answers to the questions that have been raised about classroom management in progressive settings, but draws conclusions based on the brief glimpses into the workings of these classroom and the ideas of the teacher participants. This work offers an opportunity to look deeply at how Dewey's and Mitchell's ideas about classroom management might be reflected in the current practices of teachers in progressive schools.

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