In Which Sense, If Any, Is Educational Theory ‘Political’? A Pragmatist Perspective
This paper tackles the question of in which sense, if any, educational theory should be considered as ‘political’. From a pragmatist perspective it evaluates three meanings of the term: first, the political as an exception, such as Rancière’s interruption of the existing order, and second, the polit...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Teoría de la Educación: Revista Interuniversitaria |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://revistas.usal.es/tres/index.php/1130-3743/article/view/31083 |
| _version_ | 1797201651058081792 |
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| author | Kai Wortmann |
| author_facet | Kai Wortmann |
| author_sort | Kai Wortmann |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper tackles the question of in which sense, if any, educational theory should be considered as ‘political’. From a pragmatist perspective it evaluates three meanings of the term: first, the political as an exception, such as Rancière’s interruption of the existing order, and second, the political as something that is always already given, such as in Derrida’s concept of iteration. Third, the paper turns towards Rorty’s plea for understanding philosophy as cultural politics, i.e., as intervention into the ongoing public discourse. It is argued that this third meaning of the term is better suited for understanding the political of educational theory as it is realistically modest and enables to analyze the political effectiveness of educational theory. These considerations are framed by both a reflection on the very possibility of drawing distinctions between theory and politics as well as an outlook on possible consequences following from an understanding of educational theory as cultural politics. In the outlook, the paper asks why we can hardly see any publicly relevant educational theory and provides suggestions for a “caring critique”, a careful attitude towards our own researching practices, situations, and assemblies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T07:50:55Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-391871d189b04a6981d4a2c95f1f7855 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1130-3743 2386-5660 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T07:50:55Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Teoría de la Educación: Revista Interuniversitaria |
| spelling | doaj.art-391871d189b04a6981d4a2c95f1f78552024-04-18T11:58:42ZengEdiciones Universidad de SalamancaTeoría de la Educación: Revista Interuniversitaria1130-37432386-56602023-06-0135212010.14201/teri.3108336552In Which Sense, If Any, Is Educational Theory ‘Political’? A Pragmatist PerspectiveKai Wortmann0University of JenaThis paper tackles the question of in which sense, if any, educational theory should be considered as ‘political’. From a pragmatist perspective it evaluates three meanings of the term: first, the political as an exception, such as Rancière’s interruption of the existing order, and second, the political as something that is always already given, such as in Derrida’s concept of iteration. Third, the paper turns towards Rorty’s plea for understanding philosophy as cultural politics, i.e., as intervention into the ongoing public discourse. It is argued that this third meaning of the term is better suited for understanding the political of educational theory as it is realistically modest and enables to analyze the political effectiveness of educational theory. These considerations are framed by both a reflection on the very possibility of drawing distinctions between theory and politics as well as an outlook on possible consequences following from an understanding of educational theory as cultural politics. In the outlook, the paper asks why we can hardly see any publicly relevant educational theory and provides suggestions for a “caring critique”, a careful attitude towards our own researching practices, situations, and assemblies.https://revistas.usal.es/tres/index.php/1130-3743/article/view/31083educational theory the politicalmetatheorypragmatismrichard rorty jacques rancièrejacques derrida |
| spellingShingle | Kai Wortmann In Which Sense, If Any, Is Educational Theory ‘Political’? A Pragmatist Perspective Teoría de la Educación: Revista Interuniversitaria educational theory the political metatheory pragmatism richard rorty jacques rancière jacques derrida |
| title | In Which Sense, If Any, Is Educational Theory ‘Political’? A Pragmatist Perspective |
| title_full | In Which Sense, If Any, Is Educational Theory ‘Political’? A Pragmatist Perspective |
| title_fullStr | In Which Sense, If Any, Is Educational Theory ‘Political’? A Pragmatist Perspective |
| title_full_unstemmed | In Which Sense, If Any, Is Educational Theory ‘Political’? A Pragmatist Perspective |
| title_short | In Which Sense, If Any, Is Educational Theory ‘Political’? A Pragmatist Perspective |
| title_sort | in which sense if any is educational theory political a pragmatist perspective |
| topic | educational theory the political metatheory pragmatism richard rorty jacques rancière jacques derrida |
| url | https://revistas.usal.es/tres/index.php/1130-3743/article/view/31083 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT kaiwortmann inwhichsenseifanyiseducationaltheorypoliticalapragmatistperspective |