John Dewey discussed the dual nature of “subject-matter” in The Child and the Curriculum in 1902, where he likened subject-matter experts, such as mathematicians, to explorers who traveled through unknown lands, making new discoveries and cataloging their experiences along the way. Once they returned home, their discoveries and experiences would then be synthesized with accounts from other explorers to construct a map for everyone to use.
Unfortunately, in schools, most students have to study the subject-matter map for years before getting a chance to go anywhere. Since they never get to experience the land/subject-matter firsthand, the information contained in the map is largely meaningless to them. Even worse, they learn to see the subject-matter as a static body of knowledge, rather than the end result of generations of human inquiry.
Dewey believed that students should start by exploring the land first—and only learn to use the map later. He felt learning to read and use the map was still important because we shouldn’t be forced to re-discover everything on our own. Once we were skilled explorers, we could use the map to travel to areas of interest, eventually adding our own discoveries and experiences to a living and constantly evolving subject-matter map.
