William Bagley

Who was William Bagley?

William Chandler Bagley, an American educator and editor, was born in Detroit, USA. He graduated in 1895 from Michigan State College, currently called Michigan State University; completed M.S., in 1898, from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1898; and was awarded Ph.D. by Cornell University in 1900.

He taught in elementary schools before becoming professor of education at the University of Illinois, where he served as the director of the School of Education from 1908 until 1917. He was professor of education at Teachers College, Columbia, from 1917 to 1940. An opponent of pragmatism and progressive education, Bagley insisted on the value of knowledge for its own sake, not merely as an instrument, and he criticized his colleagues for their failure to emphasize systematic study of academic subjects. Of his many works, Education and Emergent Man contains the clearest exposition of his educational philosophy. His other writings include:

The Educative Process.

Education and Utility.

Educational Values.

Craftsmanship in Teaching by William Chandler Bagley at Project Gutenberg.

School Discipline.