Implications:
The four answers selected for each of the questions in this multiple-choice test
represent positions on educational issues being taken by hypothetical spokesmen from
the major educational philosophies heading each column-Progressivism, Perennialism,
Essentialism, and Existentialism. If in scoring your test, you find that a majority of your
choices, no matter how much doubling up of answers, falls in a single column, you are
selecting a dominant educational philosophy from among the four. For example, if you
find your totals: Progressivism (9), Perennialism (1), Essentialism (3), and Existentialism
(2); your dominant educational philosophy as determined by this test would be
Progressivism (9 out of 15 choices being a majority). If you discover yourself spread
rather evenly among several, or even all four, this scattering of answers demonstrates
an eclectic set of educational values. Indecisiveness in selecting from the four positions
could indicate other values and beliefs not contained within one of these major
educational systems.
In all formal systems of philosophy, an important measure of the system's validity is its
consistency. Your consistency in taking this test can be measured by comparing the
answer you selected for item #1 that identifies essences with your other answers. The
more of the remaining 10 responses you find in the same column as item #1, the more
consistent you should be in your educational philosophy.