Bildung-Centred Non-Affirmative School Didactics

This chapter contributes with a novel analysis of how non-affirmative theory of education and Bildung contribute to the development of a second generation of school didactics (Uljens, School didactics and learning. Psychology Press, Hove, 1997). Despite differences in terminology, non-affirmative general pedagogy and school didactics have similarities. First, inspired by the early reception Hegel-influenced education theorizing in Finland (J. V. Snellman, Z. J. Cleve), school didactics (SD) focuse the relational teaching-studying-learning process, which resembles the constitutive principles of summoning and Bildsamkeit. Second, both are Bildung-centred regarding the centrality and the educative treatment of teaching contents from the learner’s perspective. Third, despite one is centered on general pedagogy (‘Allgemeine Pädagogik’) and the other on didactics, both focus the school as an educative institution. Fourth, both focus how societal interests transform into and influence pedagogical interaction. Fifth, both accept a non-teleological view of societal development. Sixth, both positions accept critical citizenship (Mündigkeit) and democracy as central for public education. Yet, the chapter shows how the principles put forth in non-affirmative general pedagogy significantly deepens many themes in the early version of school didactics. The present version of school didactics makes a contribution by identifying three related pairs of subjectivity and intersubjectivity, and explains the transition between these by the principles of summoning to self-activity and Bildsamkeit. Non-affirmative SD also reminds that educational leadership is necessary for understanding school teaching.