The educational philosophy of “Learning-Oriented Teaching” in the analects and its insights for contemporary times1

Abstract

In the study of ancient Chinese educational philosophy, some scholars believe that the main reason why traditional Chinese educational philosophy attaches importance to teaching rather than learning lies in Confucianism. This statement is unacceptable. If we take a careful and further study of the educational philosophy and practices of Confucianism, especially Confucius, the master of Confucianism, we will come to an opposite conclusion that Confucius attaches great importance to learning. It can be said that the characteristic of Confucius’s educational philosophy theory is “learning-oriented teaching”. This paper explores the manifestation of Confucius’s philosophy of both learning and teaching in the Analects, the reasons for its formation and its contemporary significance.