The method of well-directed freedom is the creation (by the educator) of circumstances from which a person (child) receives positive and negative reinforcements that direct his life and development in the right direction.
The method of well directed freedom was first publicly formulated by J.-J. Rousseau (treatise «Emil, or on education») and has since been widely used in the practice of free education.
«. Further see Rousseau on education,
How does S.I. Hesse, «».
Its advantages: making the educational influence hidden, it gives the child a sense of freedom, leaving the educator great opportunities to manage the life and development of the child. Disadvantages of the method:
- requires great intelligence and endurance from the educator, often expensive in terms of damage, which with this method the educator is forced to endure,
- there are moral claims to the method, since the methods of this method are a typical covert manipulation. When this method is revealed, the educator may get into trouble. See →
Place of this method
As a method of control, the method of well-directed freedom is close to the method of building a situation, as a method of teaching — learning based on one’s own experience, as a method of education — to methods of free education, as a method of learning — operant (instrumental and creative) learning.