Notes for the differentiation of pedagogy as a science in Herbart, Dilthey and Natorp

Abstract

The German tradition of pedagogy, which includes, among others, the works of J.F. Herbart, W. Dilthey and P. Natorp, having as its antecedent Kant´s work Über Pädagogik of 1803, in contrast to the French and Anglo-Saxon, is known as the one that establishes a strong relation between philosophy and the study of education. In addition, it is the one that is recognized for giving the scientific basis for the study carried out by pedagogy, defining it as the science of education. However, there is rarely works of the particularities that each of these authors print to their way of understanding pedagogy. Especially in this work I will highlight the way in which for Herbart and Natorp the pedagogy has to be deductive, whereas for Dilthey, has to be an inductive science, which is not far from the philosophical projects of each of these authors. This specification is important because it places with greater clarity that the autors in this tradition are far from assuming the same position in the itineraries that are marked for the pedagogical work. Mainly, the discussion between deduction and induction allows us to discern the type of relationship with philosophy which, in the mentioned authors, supports the idea of a scientific pedagogy.