John Dewey
Oil City, Venango County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
After graduation from the University of Vermont in 1879, the noted philosopher, liberal, and advocate of progressive education (1859-1952) taught for the first two years of his distinguished career at Oil City's first high school, located on this site.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Before he became one of America's most influential philosophers, John Dewey took his first job teaching at Oil City's first high school, on this site, shortly after graduating from the University of Vermont in 1879. Those early years in the classroom helped shape the ideas that would make him the leading champion of progressive education. Over a long career he transformed how Americans thought about learning, democracy, and the life of the mind.
Why it matters
Dewey's philosophy of learning by doing reshaped American schools for the 20th century, and it all began with a young teacher in a Pennsylvania oil town.
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Themes & tags
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