Course description

This course is a practical approach to philosophy & education. It draws on philosophical methods of inquiry to address questions regarding education, as both formal educational provisions and teaching practices, and as learning which comes from social experience. Topics include: epistemology and pedagogy, active citizenship, knowledge construction, and moral development. The course also analyses the purpose, process, nature and ideals of education and the kinds of educational arrangements required to support democratic ways of life. Using as a starting point the idea of Socratic dialogue or philosophical inquiry as an educational process, the approach will be multi-disciplinary. The works of Charles Peirce, William James, John Dewey, Mathew Lipman, Lev Vygotsky, Paulo Freire, Nel Noddings, and Amy Gutmann will be discussed.

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