John Dewey was a teacher who felt the traditional methods of teaching no longer worked and created a new system. The Dewey Method used the students' and teachers' personal experiences and self-reflection as a learning tool for intellectual growth. Many teachers and professionals now incorporate this method as a means of gauging the success of lessons or projects. The Dewey Method is commonly used in college essays.
The Dewey Method always starts with an event that has had an impact on a person's life or changed it in some manner. Since the focus of the exercise is to reflect and question, the choice of the topic is completely subjective. The event can be described in fine detail, including thoughts both before and after, or using comparisons. It should be contextualized within the growth process, such as what was learned. The conclusion needs to question future possibilities and what they could mean.
Another area the Dewey Method is used for is critical thinking in business and management studies. It's a valuable tool to measure not just a progress' success, but the individuals involved. This type of Dewey Method differs, starting out with a problem statement. The theory or structure of, for example, the business plan being analyzed is written in detail. The objectives are listed and the essay finishes with the result and hypotheses of what changes could have been made.
Essay writing isn't the only way to put the Dewey Method to use. The Teaching and Learning Initiative states that journaling is popular as a long-term reflective judgment sample for teachers. It documents a writer's changes over time. Another method that's quite common is group assessment, with groups interpreting each others' ideas. This includes comparisons and judgments of strengths and weaknesses. Feedback is also exchanged.