Dialectic in Education
Elena A Savina (esavina who-is-at usd.edu)
Sun, 22 Nov 1998 23:17:00 -0600 (CST)
Hi Cary, I answer you question about how to apply dialectic in education.
I think the very important question is what approach a teacher
shares when constructs a subject matter: empirical or theoretical. If
empirical, the subject matter will be repsesented by set of facts and
concepts which have external systematization. You know, this approach to
some degree is a very attractive - plenty of facts makes illusion that
education is oriented on practice and deals with practice.Also
people often think that empirical concepts are mastered easier. This is
illusion as well. I think the goal of education ( I mean, professional
education) is highly integrated knowledge and intellectual skills. It is
possible, when students become co-pasticipants of theretical knowledge
construction. To nave scientific concept means to know how it has been
constructed and what is his place in conceptual system. For exapmle, how
to introduce the concept of activity? We may say students, that this
concept has derived from the German philosophy and it was attempt to
integrate Marx's ideas into Soviet Psychology. It is correct but in this
case the logical origin of concept "activity" is not clear for students.
This concept was proposed by Rubinshtein in order to resolve contradiction
between Wundt's psychology and behaviorism. Thus the concept of activity
can be conceived as dialectical mediation of oppositions:consciousness
and behaviorism.
Inside the concept of activity, the new oppositions are possible to
identify: subject and object. Then activity is considered as a mediator
between subject and object, more generally, between person and the world.
So the subject matter is constructed by invariable dialectical strategies:
transformation of one concept to the opposite one, establishment of
contradiction into concept, medialion opposite concept by the new one.
Student applying these strategies may reconstruct historical development
of concepts or generate new ones. The process of conceptual development
becomes clear and predictible for students. Such dialectical strategies
were used very successfully by Vygotsky. All of concepts in his theory
are result of dialectical transformation. For example, the fundamental
contradiction of psychology is contradiction between object and subject
(variations:person and society, image and material object and so on). The
Vygotskian concepts of "cultural tool" or "sign" is mediation of
opposition "person and culture", "peregivanie" is mediation of oppositions
"child and social surrounding". Finally, the concept of "verbal meaning"
is unity of speach and thinking. So knowledge is constructed such a way
that the same structures are repeated on the different material. Students
may organize scientific concepts as a well-structured system and they can
do it themselves.
Best wishes, Elena (esavina who-is-at usd.edu)