ERIC Number: EJ1116664
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1076-0180
EISSN: N/A
Turning from the Shadows: Meno, the Cave, and the Service-Learning Classroom
Blosser, Joe
Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, v20 n2 p79-89 Spr 2014
Reading Plato's "Meno" and the "Republic's" allegory of the cave in the context of a service-learning classroom involves students in a drama urging them to become self-conscious participants in the active pedagogy of the class. The "Meno" illustrates two competing philosophies of education as it invites students and teachers to reject traditional sophistical education and embrace a progressive Socratic education. If students can be helped to overhear and internalize Socrates's prodding of "Meno,' the dialogue can show them their traditional educational defaults and prepare them for a different kind of learning. And if taught in a dialectical manner, the act of teaching the "Meno" alongside the allegory of the cave can push teachers out of their comfort zones as well. Like "Meno," not every student will be transformed, but Plato--though often perceived as an opponent of service-learning--does in fact provide pedagogical and philosophical resources in the form of engaging dialogues promoting an active service-learning pedagogy.
Descriptors: Service Learning, Questioning Techniques, Teaching Methods, Educational Philosophy, College Students, College Faculty
Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning, University of Michigan. 1024 Hill Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-3310. Tel: 734-647-7402; Fax: 734-647-7464; Web site: http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/mjcsl
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: North Carolina
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A