Abstract

Jefferson tried throughout his life to establish a particular political system. As a means to insure that this political system would function correctly he tried to establish an educational system which would provide it with educated leaders, and with a population who would vote intelligently. People capable of independent thought were important to his picture, not just as leaders, but also as voters. ;Beyond this standard view of Jefferson lay the real focus and intention of his efforts. The particular political system was necessary in order to insure people the chance to pursue happiness. What was also needed for this was an educational system which would expose them to the possibilities available, and develop them into individuals who or themselves, and thereby decide, choose, what option would best fulfill could think for their own desires. It was the role of the states to provide educational opportunities by way of free schools. Information was to be made available to the people thru the of libraries and by way of the free press. But the responsibility of taking advantage of these opportunities was placed firmly on the individual's shoulders by Jefferson. ;I turn to Heidegger's thought as a source for reevaluating some of Jefferson's ideas about how one is to attempt to develop individuals who can think for themselves. Heidegger express these ideas as movement toward an authentic existence and building a ground of ones Jefferson would have us wait an individual is fully developed before exposing them to controversial ideas and allowing them to examine things critically. From a Heideggerian perspective if one is to wait for such a long time then the individual will likely be so embedded in a way of thinking, that any movement toward authenticity will be extremely difficult. ;Obviously this is but a preliminary attempt to work out the impact of a Heideggarian perspective on education. But if Jefferson's ideals stiff hold sway in our society, and I believe they do, then this is an important step to take; for Heidegger's ideas force a radically different perspective on us about some very basic concepts of education which we have long taken for granted