Educational Philosophy As Explored Through The Eastern Perspective.doc (original) (raw)

CONFUCIANISM AND EDUCATION (Special issue of Asian Studies, Vol. 5, No. 2)

Asian studies, 5(2), 2017

Since Immanuel Kant’s seminal essay “What is Enlightenment?”, independent, autonomous and critical thinking has stood at the forefront of any “progressive” (and even any reasonable) theory of education. In today’s neo-liberal and globalized world, the common trend of making everything a marketable commodity has also affected this, notwithstanding the fact that the ability to establish one’s critical and independent judgement remains the very basis of becoming an autonomous individual, and represents a central pillar of democracy. As such, critical thinking has become a product that can be bought, sold or even stolen––just like its traditional breeding ground, namely institutionalized education. It may thus be time to mourn the loss of the critical mind, and so mark the sad end of a certain kind of education, one which gave a key place to the humanities. However, instead of grieving for such losses and memorializing the end of the European subject, who has obviously lost his free will in the whirlwind of the all-embracing market economy, and sadly died in front of the barbed-wire fences defending his homeland from thousands of unarmed, weakened, starving and freezing refugees, we are searching for alternatives. As such, we present in this issue another kind of education. Admittedly, the values Confucian education aimed to foster did not include much absolute independence, but it still laid emphasis on autonomous critical thinking and genuine humaneness. While many believe that Confucianism is incompatible with the critical mind and personal autonomy, this issue aims to show that this wide-spread prejudice is rooted in a lack of knowledge. The most common image of Confucianism is that it was advocating a strict, rigid and hierarchically structured society based on the absolute obedience of those at the subordinate levels of the system, and, analogously, on absolute power of their superiors. However, we would like to present another Picture of Confucian education, one that is more academically justified and closer to the truth. It is important to recall that this model was originally, and especially in the classical Confucian teachings, rooted in the principles of complementarity and reciprocal responsibility. Moreover, while the autocratic model of hierarchy, by which the ruler’s authority was absolute and their responsibility towards their subordinates reduced to a mere formalism or symbolism, has undeniably held sway in Chinese history, we must also bear in mind that Confucianism in its role as the state doctrine represented the interests of the ruling class, and as such was defined by legalistic elements that are not found in original Confucianism. We must not forget that hierarchic structures are also present in Western democratic systems, and most importantly, authority based on experience, knowledge and abilities is not necessarily a negative ideal, or a threat to individual autonomy. The Confucian classics stress the important role of ideational and axiological elements, like rituality, relational ethics, the virtues of humaneness and justice, and the crucial role of education as a basic means of cultivating and thus improving (inborn) humaneness in order to achieve progress and social development. While they also lay stress on the so-called “Six Arts”—ritual, music, archery, chariot-riding, calligraphy, and computation—it is clear that the Confucian classics see morality as the most important subject. Confucian didactic methods are rather remarkable. Like Confucius, a Confucian teacher never lectures at length on a subject. Instead, he or she poses questions, quotes passages from the classical works, or applies fitting analogies, and then waits for the students to find the right answers “independently”––by themselves. According to the Analects, Confucius pointed out that thinking without learning is blind, and learning without thinking dangerous. Besides, he also asserted that attacking the views of others is harmful. This tolerance is based on a notion of moral autonomy, which is typical for the Confucian ideal personality, and implicit in most of the Confucian discourses. As such, promoting education is one of the most important Confucian values, and it is better to educate one’s children than to give them wealth. However, education is not only the wealth of a person, but also that of the cultures and societies he or she lives within. It is the most valuable inheritance we can give future generations. Moreover, in today’s globalized world, in which different traditions can interact and learn from each other, this kind of inheritance can be exchanged, combined, synthesized and thus enriched. Therefore, this special issue wishes to present different approaches to achieving and preserving this, in the West, at least, hidden treasure. It also aims to raise awareness regarding a particular, culturally and historically conditioned model of institutions, didactic structures and axiological priorities, which differs profoundly from traditional Euro-American educational models.

The last 15 Years of Wester Studies on Chinese Education - A Reseach Note

The Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies

The Last 15 Years of Western Studies on Chinese Education-A Research Note A new epoch in Western studies on Chinese education commenced, as it happened in many other fields of research on China, with the implementation of momentous reforms in 1978. The Chinese educational system which had deteriorated during the "Cultural Revolution" changed dramatically following important statements made by Deng Xiaoping in the late 1970s.' Structural reorganization of the entire educational system as well as revisions of curriculum and teachings methods were undertaken thereby also converting the focus of Western research to novel fields of Chinese education. Moreover, the openness that accompanied the reform era made new resource materials available enabling Western scholars to produce more sound scholarship and stimulating new research approaches2 The last 15 years of studies on Chinese education have thus included various new aspects of the educational system in China. However, large research fields are still uncovered, leaving us with only a partial impression and understanding of Chinese education and its importance for contemporary Chinese society. Western studies on Chinese education from the early years of the People's Republic until the mid-1970s all relied heavily on official policy documents as their main source. In this period the Chinese political situation prohibited the presence of European or American researchers, making it impossible to observe the educational process from the inside or to supplement official sources with participants' contributions. The dogmatic nature of the available source material evidently restricted research to a basic theoretical understanding of the intended socialist educational policy and school structure. Not unexpectedly, Western publications in this period are characterized

Philosophical influences on education in China: different schools of thought on self-cultivation

Journal of Contemporary Educational Research, 2018

This essay takes a holistic look at the philosophy of education in China from the antiquity to the present time, with an emphasis on the notion of self-cultivation in different schools of thought. The purpose of the study is to draw out the positive aspects of Chinese philosophy for newer generations to carry forward the cultural heritage for a healthy development of their mind, body, and spirit in the 21st century and beyond. The study is meaningful since the Chinese civilization can be traced back at least 5,000 years, and perhaps even further. Its endurance, intellectual and cultural contributions to the world civilization, and China’s current rise as a world leading political and economic superpower, makes it especially worth examination. The paper is structured around four key themes: the quest for harmony, the pursuit of happiness, the search for health, and the action for healing. The article concludes with a suggestion of an integrated educational philosophy for contemporary Chinese educational practice. The study may have global implications as Confucius Institutes and Classrooms have been established worldwide since 2004 to teach Chinese language and culture. The localization and smooth integration of Chinese philosophy with Western ideologies in these countries is the key to bringing world peace and harmony.