Polish-born American educational philosopher, best known as a spokesman for the classical realist viewpoint.

Broudy immigrated to the United States from Poland as a small boy. He attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University (B.A., 1929), and Harvard (M.A., 1933; Ph.D., 1935). After receiving a doctorate in philosophy, Broudy was a supervisor for the Massachusetts Department of Education. From 1937 to 1957 he taught the philosophy and psychology of education at two Massachusetts state teachers colleges, and from 1957 to his retirement in 1974 he was professor of the philosophy of education (education, philosophy of) at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.

Broudy was the editor of Educational Forum (1964–72) and also was author or coauthor of several books, including Building a Philosophy of Education (1954), Psychology for General Education (1956), Philosophy of Education (1967), The Real World of the Public Schools (1972), and The Uses of Schooling (1988).