ERIC Number: EJ1089529
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0013-1857
EISSN: N/A
Intentionality and Thinking as "Hearing". A Response to Biesta's Agenda
d'Agnese, Vasco
Educational Philosophy and Theory, v48 n3 p251-266 2016
In his 2012 article "Philosophy of Education for the Public Good: Five Challenges and an Agenda", Gert Biesta identifies five substantial issues about the future of education and the work required to address these issues. This article employs a Heideggerian reading of education to evaluate "Biesta's truth". I argue that Biesta's point of view (a) underestimates knowledge's predominance and relativism; (b) frames intentionality in pre-Heideggerian terms, which--although not a problem in itself because an individual is free to choose a particular perspective on the concept--raises the issue of consistency in Biesta's theoretical framework; and (c) a final criticism concerns Biesta's choice of tools for engaging with the identified challenges: The primary tools Biesta uses are intrinsic to the perspective he challenges. The use of a "first person perspective" to frame pedagogy that focuses on the subject and "subjectification" reaffirms the fundamental Western gesture that makes human beings subjects who "stand-over-and-against" the world. I argue that it is possible to penetrate Plato's "theoretical gaze" and find a "weak" alternative to an all-encompassing point of view of education through a Heideggerian approach that regards intentionality and thinking as "hearing".
Descriptors: Educational Philosophy, Educational Trends, Futures (of Society), Ethics, Intention, Criticism, Teaching Methods, Western Civilization
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A