The Educational Thought of W.E.B. DuBois: An Intellectual History

Derrick Alridge

This paper examines W.E.B. Du Bois's educational thought from 1895-1920 through his writings, speeches, and research. During these years, Du Bois's ideas of an optimal education for African Americans WERE heavily influenced by his own educational experiences at Fisk and Harvard Universities, and the University of Berlin. Du Bois also was influenced by the Victorian ideals of the time, especially notions of progress and civilizationism prevalent in early 20th century American society. The argument here is that while Du Bois developed an African American philosophy of education grounded in the social conditions of blacks, his educational ideas remained tempered by Western notions of progress and civilizationism well into the twentieth century.

About Derrick Alridge

Derrick P. Alridge is Assistant Professor of Social Foundations of Education at the University of Georgia. His areas of research include African American educational history and the history of ideas in American education. Alridge's work has been published in journals such as The Journal of Negro Education and Educational Theory. Professor Alridge is currently working on an intellectual history of W.E.B. Du Bois's educational thought.