Both Al-Gazali’s and Al-Farabi’s are true of Islamic philosophers. Al-Ghazali’s philosophy of education focused on the high point of Islamic thinking on education, where his tendency towards reconciliation and the combination of different intellectual schools is evident. He accomplishes synthesis of legal, philosophical, and enchanted educational thinking. According to him the reason for society is to apply shari’a and the goal of man is to accomplish happiness close to God.
Whereas Al-Farabi’s view, the goal of education is to create a social phenomenon. He deals with the human soul and ensures that the individual is being prepared from an early age to become an important member of society.
Indeed al-Farabi’s view, education can be described as the acquisition of values, knowledge, and practical skills in a particular period and culture. The existence of humanity in this world is to gain happiness which is the absolute good and also the highest perfection.
In contrast, Al Ghazali described knowledge as “a way which leads to the hereafter and its happiness, and the only means whereby we come close to God. He says that the family teaches the children its language, customs, and religious traditions, whose influence they cannot escape. Therefore, the main responsibility for children’s education falls on the parents first. He suggested that the children should start attending school at the age of 6 years. At this stage, their education should focus on Quranic studies. When the children obtain mastery of the religious science and before the natural sciences will know about the religious necessities upon them and that their lives will be guided by the Islamic principles. Whereas Alfaribi’s stated that learning to start takes place firstly by teaching language. Because the children may express themselves like the people who speak that language. Without this capability, the children will not able to understand people and themselves. Therefore the learning starting should be arranged with the language, then logic, seven forms of mathematics, natural and human sciences, jurisprudence, and academic theology. He stated that the teacher should have a sound character, intellectual competence, and demonstration skill as basic components of effective teaching.
In contrast according to John Dewey philosophy of educational perspectives are different. He was one of the most influential philosophers, pragmatists, progressivists, and a social reformer. He stated that the aim of education should be developed by using social efficiency. In his view, the school should be organized in such a way that the activities of the outer world are reflected.
In his view, the main purpose of education should not revolve around the acquisition of a pr-determined set of skills, but rather the realization of one’s full potential and the ability to use those skills for the greater good. Moreover to help students to realize their full potential Dewey acknowledge the schooling and education are instrumental in creating social change and reform. He stated that students learn better by engaging in a social setting. Dewey argues that for education to be most effective, and the content must be presented in a way that allows the student to link the information to prior experience, thus depending on the connection with the new knowledge. He also stated that learning takes place step by step. Learning is a process.
