My Pedagogic Creed
This is an extremely rich essay in which Dewey outlines several aspects of his views on education and school.  Ultimately, Dewey believes that school and education should be rooted in the experiences of the child.  School should connect to the values of the home, to the child's interests and present life, and in developing new interests and experiences.
One of my favorite quotes is "education, therefore, is a process of living and not a preparation for future living."  So often in school we are teaching things that students will need to know when they get a job or when they go to college.  I think we should be committed to teaching the students who are in front of us right now, and if college or a job wishes them to know something, well, they will learn it then.

John Dewey Lesson Plan
 
Subject: English/ Language Arts.  High School level (grades 9-12)
Topic: Debate and persuasive speech
Objectives:
? Students will use library and technology to complete research on a current topic of interest.
? Students will learn and display persuasive rhetorical techniques.
? Students will engage in a debate with a fellow student.  Classmates sitting in the "audience" will evaluate each debater's presentation on the basis of standards set up by the class as a whole.
Procedure:
Materials: Students will need access to various research resources: periodicals, books, and online resources.  Students will also need pens, paper, and index cards.
Teacher will need debate examples as well as prepared information about rhetorical strategy, persuasion, research methods, and public speaking.   The teacher will also use classroom tools, like the blackboard.
Methods:  This lesson is more a unit of study than an individual daily lesson.  I estimate that it will take approximately three weeks of instructional time to teach this entire lesson, which includes research instruction and preparation time for the students.  This lesson is in accordance with the philosophies of John Dewey.
The teacher should introduce the topic of debate by holding a class discussion/ brainstorming session on a topic of interest for students.  For example, the teacher presents a question like, "Should students be required to wear uniforms to school?"  The teacher will draw two columns on the blackboard: one for pros and one for cons.  Many students will probably feel that uniforms should not be required, and if this is the case the teacher should encourage the students to consider the question from the point of view of a parent or school administrator.  Once there is a good list with several points in both columns the teacher should introduce the topic of argument.  Anyone who has ever worked with adolescents (or been one!) realizes that argument is part of the daily life of these students.  Many argue with parents over curfew, styles of dress, chores, etc.  Teenagers also debate with their friends on the benefits of one weekend activity over another or the merits of a magazine, rock band, or television program compared with others.  Dewey comments in his "Pedagogic Creed" that "the true center of correlation on the school subjects is not science, nor literature, nor history, nor geography, but the child's own social activities" (96).  Besides connecting with an activity the student engages in as part of her "social life," I suggest that the students choose a topic of personal interest or relevance for their individual debates.  Choosing a topic of interest means that "the child's own instincts and powers furnish the material and give the starting point for all education" (Dewey 93).  Students will pair up into debate teams, with each student arguing opposing sides of a topic.  From this point on the classes will be divided into research and teacher mini-lessons.  The students will complete research to defend their side of the argument using a variety of available sources. (It is important that teachers consider the level of these student's experience when it comes to research.  First-time library users will require more guidance and instruction than seasoned veterans will).  The teacher will offer lessons on persuasive technique and public speaking.  She can show the students examples of presidential candidate debates to demonstrate how each side takes turns answering questions and then the other side has opportunity for rebuttal.  The teacher should also teach effective persuasive techniques (emotional appeal, logic, statistics, etc.) and instruct the students to be aware of these techniques as they complete their research.  Finally, the teacher should model good public speaking.  For instance, students should speak loud enough to be heard and enunciate their words clearly.  When the teacher has finished instruction she and the class will create a rubric for the criteria they believe are important in an effective debate.  The teacher will act as moderator for the debates, setting down rules and asking questions. Fellow students and the teacher will evaluate students according to the rubric.
 This lesson articulates the philosophy of John Dewey.  Dewey believed, as I have said, should begin with the student's own social activities (in this case arguing) and the student's interest (the topic they choose to debate).  Dewey also believed that education should be life, not simply preparation for future life (95).  In this situation students are not simply completing schoolwork, they are also engaged in defining, clarifying, and defending their personal beliefs.  Establishing one's beliefs is an important part of the identity development of adolescence.  Dewey also argues that a democratic society must be educated to change.  This lesson, in part, can teach students to develop a "personal initiative" by making them consider issues that are important to them.  This lesson also teaches an ability to analyze and evaluate the arguments of others, which will allow the student's to see where and how change is occurring within their society (Dewey 105).