Abstract
In this paper, I address the question of how a philosophically enriched view of method might inform both educational theory and educational research. The first part of the paper elaborates recent discussions on “philosophical method” in the educational–philosophical discourse. These discussions point toward the importance of analyzing the conceptual or categorical frameworks of educational processes. The second part of the paper discusses Martin Heidegger’s work Being and Time to capture fully the challenges that a philosophical method faces in investigations of subjectivity: The focus lies on Heidegger’s strategy to situate his philosophical work as a descriptive undertaking and simultaneously as a categorical outline of human existentiality (“Dasein”). This work serves to reflect a philosophical as well as empirical attitude or conduct in the final part of the paper, which briefly introduces “categorical research” with some examples.
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Notes
Simons et al. speak mostly of “critical research.” However, this form of research is seen in the line of a philosophical endeavor, particularly treated in the ascetic tradition (Foucault 2005).
This text appeared in a special issue of “Journal of Philosophy of Education” on “The Question of Method in Philosophy of Education” with Claudia Ruitenberg as guest editor.
“Deconstruction” is not something that can simply be determined or defined; it relates, according to Derrida, to the difficulty of determining something on the grounds of a metaphysical foundation or presence (God, subject, Being, etc.). Deconstruction “is” precisely about this: that there is no presence without absence and about the subject’s inability of knowing or determining the relationship between presence and absence.
Certainly these categories constitute the specific social, historical, cultural, etc. conditions of our existence (Thompson 2005).
Literally translated, the German term “Dasein” means “being there.”
Certainly, there are many more accounts that engage with the complexity and challenges of the practice of teaching (see, e.g., very recently, Higgins 2010). For Higgins, however, the focus is not to work with empirical materials but to give a philosophical account of teaching.
One may say that the English translation of the text is a “problem” for qualitative research. Nevertheless, I will use this translation because my aim here is to develop a certain research attitude (and not give a far-reaching discursive analysis of the text).
There are many issues “uncertain” for teachers. One could even argue that uncertainty lies at the basis of education because of the difficult relationship of educational theory and practice (see, e.g., Carr 1987).
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Thompson, C. Theorizing Education and Educational Research. Stud Philos Educ 31, 239–250 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11217-012-9290-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11217-012-9290-y