John Dewey and the Philosophy and Practice of Hope combines philosophical theory with a study of its effects in an actual classroom. To understand how Dewey, one of the century's foremost philosophers of education, understood the concept of hope, Stephen Fishman begins with theoretical questions like: What is hope? What are its objects? How can hope foster a new understanding of democracy and social justice?

The book's second half is a classroom study that mir-rors in practice what Fishman explores in theory, as Lucille McCarthy observes Fishman's undergraduate students reading the theorists. Illustrating students' own vital engagement with the hope literature, McCarthy reveals how the discussions deepen student understandings, simultaneously showing education's power to promote hope and turn social ideals into reality.

"The study is a superb inquiry: a model for how philosophy should consider the 'problems of men' and how teaching and research should be conducted. Highly recommended."--Choice

"Those who have enjoyed Fishman and McCarthy's earlier collaborations that stir fine philosophy, serious classroom practice, and careful empirical study into a savory stew will find their latest offering to their taste. I also recommend this most recent work to those who have not yet had the pleasure."--Teachers College Record

“Reads like a conversation with someone who not only knows Dewey's thinking well but also is not afraid to experiment with these ideas.”--Education and Culture