University as Knowledge Scenario : Bildung and Sustainability

• Sustainable development in a pedagogical sense aims at sustainable learning. The knowledge to be learnt is then always related to the ability of connecting and applying it to the challenges at hand. However, one should not miss that, first of all, in order to focus on sustainability it must be possible to see the world as a meaningful and liveable organic whole. Insights into the different cultural and social contexts as well as the awareness of the vital significance of species and things, forms of living and actions can only be gained within forms of close and emotionally positive interaction. Comprehensive learning can only develop in a situation of pedagogical attention, providing for and supporting experiences, imaginations, exploration and insights. In short, sustainable knowledge is connected to the personally framed experiences and understandings of one’s own position in concrete situations that provide for certain possibilities to act in a sustainable way. To develop such knowledge presupposes the feeling of self-efficiacy. To help the individual to perceive her/him as self-efficient means to make her/him see what s/he later is able to show her-/himself. Such education aims at developing the emancipatory potentials of the responses of each individual to the different questions of life (Waldenfels in Friesen 2014). Responses can be all kind of actions, reactions, or interpretations. The individual is able to see and to face the challenges in diverse areas of responsibility, if s/he knows about, is aware or becomes aware of a wide range of possible responses. These options are to be reflected in terms of effecting a situation at hand for the best reachable benefit for others, a social community, society and environment, as well as for his/her own good. One has thus to face and to learn how to deal with the manifold conflicts of different norms and to develop shared modes to come to a decision on common aims and problem-solutions. The ethical approach to acting not least presupposes the contact and confrontation with the activities of others. There must be a possibility to follow up long-term aims and to build up solidary relations under a long-term perspective. This is not least true for sustainable pedagogical relations. Interpersonal relationships thus also form the core of a university seen as as a space of “living with ideas” (Gadamer 1992, 48).

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Utbildningsvetenskap (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Educational Sciences (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Pedagogics and Educational Sciences

Pedagogik och Utbildningsvetenskap

Publikations- och innehållstyp

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