The Essential Uncertainty of Thinking: Education and Subject in John Dewey

In this paper, I analyse the Deweyan account of thinking and subject and discuss the educational consequences that follow from such an account. I argue that despite the grouping of thinking and reflective thought that has largely appeared in the interpretation of Deweyan work, Dewey discloses an inescapable uncertainty at the core of human thinking. This move is even more challenging given Dewey's firm faith in the power of intelligent action, and in education as the means by which human beings grow and create meaningful existence. I argue that throughout his work, Dewey dismantled the understanding of the subject as a detached and self‐assured centre of agency. In Deweyan understanding, on one hand, the subject is empowered to reflect on experience and to use this reflection to evolve new ways of acting, thus pushing experience forward. On the other hand, by acting, the subject can create new points of interaction within experience. This understanding of thinking and subject has far‐reaching consequences for education, which must be conceived not so much as the attempt to master and control experience but as the means to create new, unpredictable experience by putting new points of interactions into our relationship with the environment, changing our being‐embedded‐in‐the‐world. Dewey repositions educational, intentional agency away from control and mastery and in the direction of growth and openness.     

In Favour of Ethics Education,Against Religious Education

The questions that I address are: ‘What ought to become of Religious Education (RE)?’ and ‘To what extent do non‐religious beliefs belong in RE?’ I will argue that there are compelling reasons for studying religious and non‐religious views alongside each other, but that there are serious objections to doing this in the context of any subject called ‘religious education’ and that a new compulsory, national curriculum subject called Ethics would be an appropriate context for such study.     

Emotional journeys: young people and transitions to university

This paper offers an interpretation of the role of emotions in understanding the transitions that young people make to university. I draw on qualitative research with a group of non‐traditional students, entering elite universities, to argue that youth transitions are emotional as well instrumental affairs. I argue that choice‐making processes incorporate both trust in, and fear of, the transitions infrastructure, and that these emotions infuse more instrumental judgements about the economic benefits of higher education. I also demonstrate that emotional aspects of class – including feelings of entitlement to education and the rejection of normative student identities – constitute the experience of ‘being’ or ‘doing’ a student. A broader understanding of how young people become university students then depends not just on developing a new identity but on the complex interaction between emotion and infrastructure.     

Cultivating Sentimental Dispositions Through Aristotelian Habituation

The beliefs both that sentimental education is a vital part of moral education and that habituation is a vital part of sentimental education can be counted as being at the ‘hard core’ of the Aristotelian tradition of moral thought and action. On the basis of an explanation of the defining characteristics of Aristotelian habituation, this paper explores how and why habituation may be an effective way of cultivating the sentimental dispositions that are constitutive of the moral virtues. Taking Aristotle's explicit remarks on ethismos as a starting point, we present habituation as essentially involving (i) acting as virtue requires, (ii) both frequently and consistently, and (iii) under the supervision of a virtuous tutor. If the focus is on the first two characteristics, habituation seems to be a proper method for acquiring skills or inculcating habits, rather than an effective way of cultivating virtuous sentimental dispositions. It will be argued, however, that even if only the first two characteristics are taken into account, habituation may be an efficacious means of moderating, reducing or restricting the child's affective dispositions where these are somehow excessive. But contrary to Aristotle's view, the effectiveness of processes of habituation that are directed at strengthening, deepening or broadening the child's sentimental dispositions where these are somehow deficient seems to be a function of the third characteristic, especially of the affective responses of the virtuous tutor to the child's behaviour. At the end of the paper, this predominantly non‐cognitive account of the workings of Aristotelian habituation will be compared with Nancy Sherman's primarily cognitive view.     

From Environmental Education to Ecopolitics. Affirming Changing Agendas for Teachers1

In this paper I examine Peirce's epistemological and ontological theories and indicate their relevance to educational practice. I argue that Peirces conception of Firsts, Seconds and Thirds entails a fundamental ontological realism. I further argue that Peirce does have a theory of truth, that it is a particular non‐traditional ‘correspondence’ theory, consistent with, and implicit in, an over‐arching position of pragmatic realism. Peirce's epistemological position is subject to misinterpretation when the ontological realism on which it rests is overlooked. Finally I suggest that such a re‐consideration of Peirce's pragmatic ontology and epistemology in an educational context is needed.     

COLLEGE TESTS IN VOCATIONAL DIRECTION

Christian institutions of higher education should embrace, without embarrassment or apology, their partisan perspective. This view diverges sharply from the post‐Enlightenment, or liberal, understanding of education, which discredits dependence on tradition or authority and embraces instead the ideal of “objectivity.” This paper describes the post‐Enlightenment view, then exposes shortcomings ‐‐ its “objective” ideal is in fact impossible, its individualism overlooks the impact of communities ‐‐ that postmodern analysis has revealed. Holding to a “soft” version of postmodernism, I argue that, even though inherited frameworks for interpreting the world nullify sheer objectivity, we remain accountable intellectually: we still need to justify, and if necessary adjust, our convictions. In this light I describe and defend three features of responsible partnership for Christian higher education. It should be countercultural; it should engage the whole person; and it should address and learn from opposing points of view.     

To Be As Not To Be: In Search of an Alternative Humanism in the Light of Early Daoism and Deconstruction

Humanism and humanistic education have been recognised as an issue of the utmost importance, whether in the East or in the West. Underpinning the Eastern and Western humanism is a common belief that there is an essence or essences of humanness. In the Confucian tradition, the core of humanity lies in the idea of ‘ren’; in the Platonic tradition, ‘rationality’. For some critics, this belief may lead to violence as much as justice. One way to be aware of the danger is not to follow the line of traditional humanism without question. The strategy that the early Daoists and the contemporary philosopher Derrida use is to challenge, question, rethink, re‐examine, and reposition the meaning of self. In this article, I will first argue that the idea of non‐I (or non‐self) in early Daoism is indeed a ‘question of the self’ as well as a doubt cast upon the ‘junzi’ (君子) or sage (聖賢) in Confucian orthodoxy. Then, I explore the concept of human subject in Derrida. The consonance between the Daoist undoing of the self and Derrida's deconstructing subject sheds new light on our understanding of humanistic education.     

Stories of becoming: implications of future‐oriented theories for a vital literacy education

Drawing on a multi‐year qualitative study of immigrant and non‐immigrant youth storytelling, I describe youth's imaginative labour as they constructed and moved into one another's worlds. I argue that although multicultural literature is vital for affirming and expanding youth perspectives on their own and others' worlds, the publishing industry lags behind the immediate needs of immigrant youth to be understood and heard as fully human. Storytelling, in the form of co‐narration, creates an imaginative space of uncertainty and playfulness for inviting possible futures into mutual awareness and interpretation. Using two storytelling episodes as illustrations and drawing on contemporary sociocultural and decolonizing theories, I outline four ways future‐oriented teaching and research may be realized: (1) rename the world, by considering ‘what if’, (2) reframe narratives of damage so that narratives of desire may be foregrounded, (3) contribute to a more just and equal world rather than merely participate in existing practices and (4) reclaim childhoods for freedom and exploration, especially in our relations with Black and Brown youth who are perceived in adult terms much earlier than their White peers. I argue, overall, that we must understand and develop a contemporary theory of imagination in order to meet the challenges of future‐oriented literacy teaching and research.     

Philosophical Research and Educational Action Research

I argue here, that, ultimately and in large part, the stakes of educational action research are conditioned by the various ways of conceiving theory, research and practice, and I attempt to explore and put forward one such way that I view as potentially more helpful than others. I begin with a comparative overview of the implicit philosophical assumptions that have informed or grounded educational action research in the broadly conceived Germanic and Anglo-American contexts. I then examine the tensions around theory and practice and the role such tensions play in educational action research. In my interpretation, the polemics surrounding this topic have significantly shaped the course educational action research has taken. Examining such polemics, then, might be useful in the effort to approach risks, prospects and visions and to develop the perspective of a recuperated, enhanced but modest philosophical intervention in educational action research.     

Doctoring the knowledge worker

In this paper I examine the impact of the new ‘knowledge economy’ on contemporary doctoral education. I argue that the knowledge economy promotes a view of knowledge and knowledge workers that fundamentally challenges the idea of a university as a community of autonomous scholars transmitting and adding to society's ‘stock of knowledge’. The paper examines and then dismisses the proposition that professional doctorates are the principal vehicle through which ‘working knowledge’ is incorporated into doctoral education. While professional doctorates may have been tactically useful for universities, there are broader transformations in doctoral education that transcend the professional doctorate/Ph.D. distinction. I argue that as doctoral education adopts the practices of ‘self’ pertinent to the knowledge economy, the ‘subject’ of doctoral education shifts from that of the ‘autonomous student’ to that of the ‘enterprising self’.     

Putting emotion into the self: a response to the 2008 Journal of Moral Education Special Issue on moral functioning

This paper takes as its starting point the Journal of Moral Education Special Issue (September, 2008, 37[3]) ‘Towards an integrated model of moral reasoning’. Although explicitly post‐Kohlbergian, the authors in this Special Issue do not, I argue, depart far enough from Kohlberg’s impoverished notion of the role of the affective in moral life—or when they do so depart, they incorporate emotions as mere intuitive thrusts in an essentially polarised two‐system view of the moral self. Prior to that complaint, I sketch an account of two contrasting self‐paradigms: a ‘dominant’ cognitive, anti‐realist (constructivist) paradigm and an ‘alternative’ realist and emotion‐based one. I explore the implications of the latter paradigm, which I endorse, for our understanding of the ‘emotional self’: a self imbued with and constituted by (potentially rationally grounded) emotions. I finally contrast that understanding with the one permeating the Special Issue and elicit some educational implications of the alternative paradigm.     

Disrupting Continuities – Re‐thinking Conceptions of ‘Growth’ in English Teaching

In this piece I explore the concept of ‘growth’ in English teaching. Starting with John Dixon's ‘growth’ model, I argue that, by re‐imagining his ideas in current contexts, practitioners might re‐focus and re‐invigorate the priorities of English teaching. Dominant conceptions of ‘growth’ are explored, along with their influence on teacher working cultures and the speech genres they draw on. I argue that, by critically challenging dominant discourses and cultural perspectives, it is possible to generate new narratives and open up new possibilities for the subject.     

Digital Media and Education: cognitive impact of information visualization

In this article I argue that, like other technological innovations, the rise of the digital information age is contributing to shape people's mode of cognition. I review the use of computers in teaching and learning in terms of their impact on our ability to (1) process parallel data, (2) access information in a non‐linear order, and (3) visualize information. I analyse some implications for education stressing the importance of focusing on the meaning and interpretation of information rather than on gathering or memorizing data. In addition, I contend that although hypertextuality is perceived to be dynamic for its engagement with multiple dimensions, it is also a highly mediated form of accessing information. The most significant innovation of the computer, however, is the return to a visually based representation of reality. Paradoxically, the digital visualization of information aids the understanding of abstract concepts while simultaneously increasing conceptual abstraction.     

To Work or Play? Junior Age Non‐fiction as Objects of Design

This paper examines change and variation in the design of non‐fiction texts which have a junior‐age readership. Using a multimodal analysis, which draws from Kress and Van Leeuwen’s work, it argues that different forms of presentation of non‐fiction offer different ways of reading non‐fiction texts, which as yet are neither fully described nor recognised. Using the contrasts between linear and non‐linear design, the paper suggests that non‐fiction texts can be more or less firmly orientated towards reading as work or reading as play, contrasts which readers’ own choices in different contexts of use make apparent. From this point of view, the eclecticism of the National Literacy Strategy’s references to non‐fiction texts provides a starting point for renewed exploration of what non‐fiction is and how it really works for its readers.     

Education and Empty Relationality: Thoughts on Education and the Kyoto School of Philosophy

This article builds on the growing literature on the Kyoto School of Philosophy and its influences on the field of Education. First, I argue that the influence of the Kyoto School of Philosophy is historically significant in Japan, and that the connection between this philosophical school and the philosophy of education is by no means superficial. Second, I suggest that this school contributes a unique view of ‘negative education’ founded in the philosophical idea of ‘nothingness’. I examine how this negative education is manifest both in religious cultivation and in more general views of education, and I develop these ideas through the models of self‐negation proposed by Nishitani Keiji and Hisamatsu Shin'ichi. Third, taking up the Herbartian idea of ‘pedagogical tact’, I analyse the characteristics of the I‐Thou relationship, in the vector of nothingness, implicit in the above‐mentioned view of education. I examine two approaches to this relationship—one of ‘sharing in nothingness’ as found in Nishitani and Hisamatsu, and one that goes beyond the idea of ‘sharing’ and accommodates alterity, as found in Nishida Kitarô and Nishihira Tadashi. By threshing out these three points, I hope to highlight the continued pedagogical relevance of the philosophical ideas of the Kyoto School.     

Infant temperament and subject loss in a habituation procedure

It has been assumed that subject loss in habituation procedures is most likely due to random factors such as the behavioral state of the infant during testing. This study explored the possibility that infant temperament might contribute to subject loss. 114 infants at 3 age levels (11, 18, and 28 weeks) were rated by their mothers on a temperament questionnaire and then subjected to a habituation procedure. Analyses showed that female infants who were unable to complete the habituation task were reported as being more fussy and unadaptable. Female infants were less likely to complete at least part of the procedure than were male infants. The results suggest that subject loss in habituation studies may be the result of nonrandom individual difference factors and not just the result of temporary fluctuations in state.     

Putting Measurement First: Understanding ‘Grit’ in Educational Policy and Practice

Non‐cognitive dispositions have recently become psychological constructs of interest in the education, economics, philosophy, sociology, and psychology literature. In this article, I draw the distinction between property‐first and measurement‐first approaches to understanding the meaning of a particular non‐cognitive disposition theoretical term, ‘grit’, as well as the relationship between this term and its corresponding measurement procedure. I argue that, depending on which approach one takes, one is confronted with different norms for judging the success of any disposition‐measurement procedure pair, meaning that the difference in philosophical approaches may have practical import. I argue that the measurement‐first approach is the one educators and educational policy‐makers ought to adopt towards grit as it is less likely to lead to over‐valuing grit in situations where a gritty disposition may be harmful, better respects scientific virtues and values, and provides a clearer understanding of grit than the property‐first approach.     

Sport and Friendship

My aim in this paper is to make the case for encouraging friendship in sport. First, I argue that sport is especially conducive to friendship. Second, I argue that since friendship is life‐enhancing then to participate in sport and not to have made friends is to have failed to take a life‐enhancing opportunity. Third, I argue that there are sporting benefits to be had from sporting friendships. Finally, I say something about the role of friendship in sport achieving its broad political aim of helping ‘to build a better and more peaceful world’.     

Research and practice in science education: a response to Traianou and Hammersley

A reader of Traianou and Hammersley’s article (in this issue), which discusses at some length the work we undertook in the Evidence‐based Practice in Science Education (EPSE) Research Network, might attribute to us views that are rather different from those which we in fact hold, and which we have sought to present in our own accounts of this work. We highlight several points on which their interpretation of our work and views differs markedly from ours. The aim of the EPSE Network was to explore the practical implications of ‘evidence‐based practice’ in the context of a mainstream curriculum subject such as science, not to advocate any particular interpretation of that term. We would encourage readers interested in the relationship between research and practice in the teaching of specific subjects to base their view of our work, and the perspectives underpinning it, on our own account.     

Finding Educational Insights in Psychoanalytic Theory with Marcuse and Adorno

This article seeks to clarify the potential that Herbert Marcuse's and Theodor W. Adorno's psychoanalytic accounts may have with respect to the philosophy of education today. Marcuse and Adorno both share the view that psychoanalytic theory enables a deeper understanding of the social and biological dynamics of consciousness. For both thinkers, psychoanalytic theory provides conceptual tools for thinking through contradictions between the needs of an individual and those of the governing entity. In fleshing this out, I first explore Marcuse's radical account of sublimation which seeks to demonstrate how the revision of instinctual energy makes it possible to establish a subjectivity which utilises the human potentiality to its fullest. I then turn to Adorno who emphasises the importance of understanding that exterior conditions transform our instinctual energies. After recapitulating Adorno's conception of natural, instinctual impulses and his use of psychoanalytic theory, I will explore the possibility of a critical rationality through a critique of rationality's current mode. From the perspective of Adorno's and Marcuse's theories, both rationality and sensuous desire play their respective roles in enabling critical rationality. In conclusion, the article reflects the different advantage points of Marcuse's and Adorno's accounts from the perspective of philosophy of education. Thus, education should provide individuals with the ability to recognise the subtle and invisible ways through which the calculating mode of rationality operates in late‐capitalist society. Regarding education, Adorno's conception of non‐identity could be developed in the direction of promoting ways of experiencing non‐conformity within such a society.