Tudásgyár vagy egyetem – hermeneutikai megfontolások a tudományos képzésről –
Knowledge factory or university; hermeneutic considerations of the higher education

Summary/Abstract: Tibor Schwendtner’s study Knowledge factory or university; hermeneutic considerations of the higher education starts from the observation that behind opinions expressed in current debates about university policy there are frequently unspoken philosophical assumptions. One characteristic viewpoint is that the university is nothing but a large knowledge-creating factory, with the almost exclusive objective of trickling down into students’ heads specialist knowledge that can be applied to clearly delineated fields of work. The article attempts to show that this position is based on a positivist philosophical concept, according to which knowledge operates on the basis of abstract logic and value-free facts. Against this, however, the antipositive philosophy – first associated with Thomas Kuhn – and the hermeneutics of knowledge linked with this, paints a picture of knowledge as first and foremost a transformation of habits brought about by an academic course. The habits formed by academic preparation which, besides the important abilities of critical thought and creativity is also characterised by the ability to move and translate between the various traditions, perspectives and discourse styles, do not just make it possible for participants to be active in their narrow field of specialisation, but also to feel at home in widely differing fields of work and aspects of life. If we conceive of universities not as knowledge factories, but as the kind of institutions which create traditional knowledge habits, then we must also rethink the tasks related to the reform and improvement in the mass expansion of the universities.

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