QUALITY STORYTENTS
A resource for family, early childhood and community literacy workers
In brief, humanism is a philosophy that dates back to the mid-1300s. It holds that all human beings have a potential for goodness or full humanity. Whether or not they reach their potential depends on the choices each person makes as an individual (Atherton, 2003; Hiemstra, 1994). Early humanists believed that education, whether formal or informal, was the best way to help people make effective choices.
Modern humanists agree that humans are born with a desire to learn and to become, and that the human potential for development is inherently unlimited. Humanists expect learners to be most successful when they reach for goals they themselves see as important and attainable. Therefore, humanists give information and invite learning rather than try to coerce people into doing or learning (Purkey & Stanley, 1989).
However, critical humanists, believe that individual development depends on more than individual efforts. We believe there are social, physical, mental, and temporal constraints set on each person's potential. All learning is influenced by its context. People learn and grow best in the context of a community where their needs are met. They learn best where they feel secure and valued. This is rooted in the assumption that humans have a hierarchy of needs and wants, but also in the belief that learning is a social phenomenon, as humans are social creatures (Berk & Winsler, 1995; Street, 1995; Rogers, 1961; Maslow, 1970).