Philosophy of Educational Knowledge : An Introduction to the Foundations of Science of Education, Philosophy of Education and Practical Pedagogics

For two reasons, we are particularly proud to include Wolfgang Brezinka's Philosophy of Educational Knowledge in this series of books on Philosophy of Education. Thefirst is the philosophicalinterestoftheworkitself-its remarkablescholarship and the importance ofthe philosophical positionswill beobvious to allreaders. The secondisthat it brings to the English-speaking world a wonderful example ofeducational philosophy as now being practiced in the German-speaking world. All too often philosophers in the Anglo-American tradition have not seen the sort of perspective on educational thinking that infuses this work. And since this book has been widely read in its original version, it has had a considerable impactupon philosophy ofeducational research and science in the German-speaking countries. An understanding of this may help in the development of evenmore cooperativerelations amongstudentsofeducationin all countries. C. 1. B. Macmillan D. C. Phillips PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH EDmON '1 am not unmindful how little can be done... in a mere treatise on Logic, or howvague and unsatisfactory all precepts of Method must necessarily appear, when not practically exemplified in the establishment of a body of doctrine. Doubtless, the most effectual mode of showing how the sciences... maybe constructed,would be to construct them". JOHNSTUARTMILL (1843)1 Parents have a duty to educate their children, teachers to educate their pupils. For this reason there is widespread interest in education. Knowledge of education has long beenoffered under names like"pedagogics", "pedagogy"or"educational theory". Originally this meant practical knowledge based on common sense. Since the Enlightenment, however, attempts have been made to acquire scientific knowledge of education.

Introduction: Pedagogics, Science and Metatheory.- Lack of Agreement on the Scientific Character of Pedagogics Critique of the Present State of Pedagogics 2; Doubts about the Possibility of a Scientific Pedagogics 3; Scientific and Practical Theories of Education 4; Pedagogics as a Mixed Normative-Descriptive Discipline 5; Pedagogics as a Philosophical Discipline 5; Gradual Transition to Ideological Pedagogics 6, Pedagogics as a Pure Empirical Science 7; Numerous Schools of Thought 8; Reasons for the Lack of Agreement 9.- The Origins of Pedagogics in Practical Theories of Education Education as an Art 11; Educational Theories as Prescriptions for the Art of Educating 12; Informing and Inspiring Educators 13; Dominance of the Normative Standpoint 14; Elements of Traditional Pedagogics 14; Dissatisfaction and Critique 15; The Modern Concept of Science as a Standard for Pedagogics 16.- The Dependency of Pedagogics on Value Judgements, Norms and Weltanschauung The Indispensability of a Philosophy of Life in Practical Theories of Education 18; The Misinterpretation of Practical Theory as Scientific Theory 19; Ideology and Pedagogics 20; Ideology and Empirical Theory 22.- Reasons for Distinguishing between Types of Pedagogical Knowledge. The Deficiencies of Mixed Pedagogics 23; Division of Labor and Specialization 24; Three Classes of Educational Theories. Educational Science, Philosophy of Education, Practical Pedagogics 24; Terminological Problems 26; Practical Importance of Agreement on Usage 26; Differentiation of Pedagogical Statement Systems rather than the Classification of Educationists 27; Truth and Social Utility of Statement Systems 28.- Concepts of Science and Methodological Rules as Stipulations Science as a System of Statements and as an Activity 28; The Ideal of Science 29; Basic Epistemological Positions 29; Knowledge as the Goal of Scientific Activity 30; The Epistemology of Analytic Philosophy 31.- The Tasks of a Metatheory of Education The Concept of Metatheory 33; Analysis, Critique and Standardization of Educational Theories 33; Relationships among Education, Educational Theories and Metatheory of Education 35.- I. Science of Education.- The Concept of Education Social Action 38; Psychic Dispositions 39; Purposes, Aims and Ideals 40; Definition of the Concept of Education 40.- The Variety of Educational Phenomena Different Aims of Education 43; Differences among Educands 45; Differences Among Educators 46; Different Situations 46; Different Forms of Education 47.- The Subject Matter of Science of Education. Education as Fact 48; Educational Situations, Educational Fields 49; Principal Topics 49; Material Object and Formal Object 49; Formulation of Questions 50; Description and Explanation of Psychic Objectivations 51; Ends-Means Relationships 53; Educational Science as a Teleological Causal-Analytic Science 53; Different Names for the Same Problems 57.- Science of Education as an Empirical Social Science Difficulties in Classifying Sciences 58; Human Sciences 59; Behavioral Sciences 60; Sciences of Actions 61; Cultural Sciences 61; Social Sciences 63; Relationships to Psychology and Sociology 63; Practical Grounds for an Autonomous Science of Education 63.- Demarcating Science of Education from the Pseudo-Science of Ideological Pedagogics. Confessional Pedagogics 65; Political Pedagogics 66; Marxist Pedagogics 66; “Critical” Social Science 67; “Critical” or “Emancipatory Pedagogics” 67; Misuse of Science for Propaganda Purposes 68; Value-Neutrality as a Distinguishing Feature 69.- Requirements for the Language of Science of Education Descriptive, Prescriptive and Emotive Use of Language 70; Clarity 72; Ambiguity and Vagueness 72; Concepts and Their Clarification 73; Normative and Emotive Connotations 75; “Socialization” as an Example 76; Theoretical Concepts 77; Hypothetical Constructs 78; Informational Content 78; Comprehensibility 79; Objective Language and Meta-Language 82.- The Meaning and Limits of the Requirement of Value-Neutrality Educating and Valuating 82; Value Experience, Valuating, Value Bearer 83; Value 83; Value Judgements 83; Norms 85; Valuative Basis of Science 86; Moral Problems in Disseminating and Applying Scientific Knowledge 88; Valuations and Norms as Subjects or Educational Science 88; Explanation of the Norm of Value-Neutrality 89.- Questions about Particulars and Questions about the Universal in the Past and the Present Individual Phenomena and Nomothetical Knowledge 93; Historiography of Education 95; Nomothetical or Theoretical Educational Science 96.- Ia. The Nomothetical Field of Study in Science of Education.- Problems and Hypotheses as Points of Departure Observation and Prior Knowledge 101; Descriptive Pedagogics 102; Critique of Naive Empiricism 102.- Scientific Theories as the Goal of Research Meanings of the Word “Theory” 103; The Concept of Justification 104; The Call for Intersubjective Testability 104; Nomological Statements 106; Nomological Statements of a Lower and Higher Order 111; Theory as a System of Nomological Statements 111.- On the Difference between Producing and Justifying Scientific Statement Systems Tolerance in the Context of Discovery 113; Rigorousness in the Context of Justification 114; Meaning and the Limits of “Sympathetic Understanding” (Verstehen) 114.- Testing, Justifying and Rejecting Hypotheses and Theories Logical and Empirical Testing Procedures 116; The Problem of Induction 117; Falsification 119; Reasonable Rejection 120; Confirmation 120; Theory and Experience 121.- Laws and Theories in the Social Sciences The Lack of Universal Nomological Statements 123; Subject-Matter-Related Differences between the Natural and Social Sciences 124; Inaccessibility of others’ Consciousness and the Necessity of Interpreting 124; Complexity 125; Uniqueness and Changeability 125; Complex Totalities of Experience instead of Elements 126; Possibility and Indispensability of Nomological Knowledge 126.- The Construction and Application of Theories in Science of Education The Interest of Educators in Problems of Application 127; Primary Importance of Theory Construction 128.- The Role of the Determination of Facts in Constructing Theories of Educational Science Description 129; Exploratory Field Studies 130; Case Studies 131; Experimentation 132; “ex post facto” Studies 133; Hypothesis-Testing Field Studies 133; Multivariate Studies and their Limitations 134; Incompleteness and Openness of Educational Science Theories 135.- The Application of Theories in Explanation The Model of Scientific Explanation 137; Deductive-Nomological Explanation 138; Inductive-Statistical Explanation 138; Incompleteness of Explanations 139; Partial Explanation 140; Explanatory Outlines 140.- The Application of Theories in Prediction Similarities in the Structure of Explanation and Prediction 142; Differences 142; Uncertainty in Particular Cases 143.- The Application of Theories in Solving Technological Problems of Education On the Logic of Technology 144; Ends and Value Judgements 145; Relationships between Nomothetical Hypotheses and Technological Statements 146; Difficulties of a Theoretically Based Technology of Education 147.- Ib. Historiography of Education.- Various Terms for the Historical Subdiscipline of Educational Science Historiography of Education and Pedagogics 150.- Differing Views on the Tasks of Historiography of Education Increasing Factual Knowledge 151; Finding, Justifying and Supporting Norms 152; Technical Norms for Education 152; Ideological and Moral Norms 152; Normative Tasks of Historiography of Education in Pedagogics as a “Historico-Systematic” Discipline 153; in Hermeneutical Pedagogics 154; in Marxist-Leninist Pedagogics 156; in Neo-Marxist Pedagogics 156.- The Epistemology of Historiography Questions about Changes Taking Place in the Course of Time 159; Methodological Difficulties 159; Research Methods 160; Sympathetic Understanding (Verstehen) and Value-Neutrality 160.- Subject Matter of an Historiography of Education History of Education and History of Pedagogical Thought 162; The Special Role of the History of Educational Science 163; Multiplicity and Interdependence of Past Educational Phenomena 163; Danger of Expanding into Historical Socialization Research 164; Action-Concept of Education as a Guideline 164; Indirect Education 165; Demythifying the Historiography of Schools 165; History of Pedagogical Superstition 165.- II. Philosophy of Education.- Various Concepts of Philosophy Philosophy as a Universal Science, Weltanschauung, Wisdom and Epistemology 168; Scienticity as a Distinguishing Feature? 169; Analytic or Epistemological Philosophy 171; World-view or Metaphysical Philosophy 171; Normative Philosophy 173.- Views on the Philosophy of Education Rational-Empirical Statement System with Insignificant Normative Additions 173; Pansophic Philosophy of Education 175; Practical Pedagogics under the Guise of Philosophy 175; Historiography of Ideas 176; Interpretation of Philosophical Texts from a Pedagogical Perspective 176; Analytic-Epistemological Philosophy of Pedagogical Statement Systems 176; Ideological Philosophy of Education 177; Normative Philosophy of Education 178.- Normative Shortcomings of Traditional Normative-Descriptive Pedagogics Lack of Concrete Normative Content 183; Educational Aims Inadequately Justified and Lacking in Content 183; Inadequate Moral Norms for Educational Action 185; Inappropriate Abstention from Evaluative Acts 186.- Valuations and Norms as an Empirical, Normative and Epistemological Problem Valuation Phenomena and Norms as Psychic and Social Facts 187; Giving Meaning, Valuating and Setting Norms 189; Epistemological Critique of Value Judgements, Norms and their Justification 190.- The Tasks and Problems of a Normative Philosophy of Education Decline of Institutionalized Normative Aids to Orientation for Educators 191; Perplexity, Fear of Valuating, Dependency on Fashions 192; Setting Norms through Rationally Grounded Decisions 193; Classification According to Educational Ends and Means 194.- The Normative Philosophy of Educational Aims and its Metatheory Selecting and Setting Educational Aims 195; Norm Content and Interpretation 196; Epistemological Views Concerning Norms 196; Types of Norm Justifications 198; Logical Justification 199; Fallacious Deductions from Is to Ought 200; Illusions about Deriving Substantively Rich from Substantively Poor Educational Aims 200; Formal or “Procedural” Legitimation 201; Material-Evaluative Justification 202.- Normative Ethics for Educators and the Normative Philosophy of Teaching Content and Educational Organization Theory of Virtues for Educators 203; Theory of Duties for Educators 204; Normative Philosophy of Teaching Content 206; Normative Philosophy of Educational Organization 206.- III. Practical Pedagogics.- Practical Pedagogics and Science of Education Indispensability of Practical Pedagogics 209; Relationships to Educational Science According to WILLMANN 209; According to DURKHEIM 210; According to LOCHNER 212; Dependency of Practical Pedagogics on Weltanschauung 214.- The Demarcation and Designation of Practical Pedagogics Definition of Practical Pedagogics 215; Its Demarcation from the Normative Philosophy of Education 216; “Normative Pedagogics” 217; “Applied Pedagogics” 217; “Practical Pedagogics” 217; “Pragmatic Pedagogics” 218; “Praxiological Pedagogics” 218.- Hermeneutical Pedagogics as Practical Pedagogics DILTHEY 219; LITT 220; WILHELM FLITNER 222; Socially-Critical Pedagogics 223.- The Elements of Practical Pedagogics The Situation-Analytical Element 224; The Teleological Element 225; The Methodical Element 227; The Ethical-Motivational Element 229.- Objections to Practical Pedagogics From the Standpoint of a Different Concept of Science 231; The Inadequate Norm-Critique Argument 234; Refutation 234; Norm-Critical Consciousness as Highest Good? 235; Reminder and Justification 236; From the Standpoint of Analytic Philosophy and its Concept of Science 237; Limitations of Educational Technology 237.- Basic Requirements for Practical Pedagogics. The Ideal of a “Practical Canon” 239; Seven Minimal Requirements 239.- Conclusion: On the Variety and Unity of Pedagogical Knowledge.- Name Index.