Instruction in Humanities vs. Formal Education: Disentangling the Paradox
Instruction in Humanities vs. Formal Education: Disentangling the Paradox

Summary/Abstract: This paper shows that instruction in humanities requires special tackling with, as it revolves around the inculcation of a critical attitude towards the conceptual and methodical resources that scholars in humanities make use of. Consequently, what constitutes the “unfolding” of the humanities (and, more specifically, philosophy) is that they constantly turn towards their very conceptual and methodological foundations, in a perpetual attempt to rethink and renew them. Foundational change in the humanities is therefore higher in frequency than it is in formal sciences, which consequently renders the latter more adequate for what the educational systems in all modern societies call “formal education.” Still, is there any hope left for instruction in humanities within formal education? The following paper accounts for a few attempts to answer this question positively. We focus mainly on post-secondary and graduate education, from which we draw the core research and examples presented in the paper.

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