Abstract
- The ethical aspects of education
The thesis centers around three main themes, ethics, identity and formation of character. The aim is to take a holistic approach where these themes are discussed in relation to one another, as well as in connection with the philosophy of Martha Nussbaum and Charles Taylor. In doing so we are not aiming for comparison or to identify what sets these two theorists apart but rather to discuss two different perspectives in relation to self-efficacy develo…
Read moreAbstract
- The ethical aspects of education
The thesis centers around three main themes, ethics, identity and formation of character. The aim is to take a holistic approach where these themes are discussed in relation to one another, as well as in connection with the philosophy of Martha Nussbaum and Charles Taylor. In doing so we are not aiming for comparison or to identify what sets these two theorists apart but rather to discuss two different perspectives in relation to self-efficacy development and how their ideas have influenced the debate of modern “education theory”. On the basis of these discussions we present an identity ideal where the person brings together his or her ethics and horizons of significance. This is done in the light of Nussbaum’s capabilities approach and Taylor’s horizons of significance.
The central argument of the thesis is that the benchmark for formation involves an interrelation between the development of good characteristics, the person’s own responsibility and ethics that have many different social aspects. The ethics can be both the person’s personal ethics as well as a collective view on the good life in relation to horizons of significance. We take a critical stance on the modern view of identity and argue that it undermines the social aspects of a person’s self-efficacy development, that are in our view influenced by external benchmarks as well as the individuals understanding and interpretation. In our criticism we put forward a broader concept, character formation, that in our view better captures what identity formation involves. We argue the importance of developing and extending the existing concepts to allow for a more holistic understanding of its complexity, involving both personal and collective dimensions. It is from these two standpoints, the individual and social, that the concept of character formation is developed, with focus on the process of constant development and perfecting of the character in mind.
These are in our view the optimal conditions for a constant development. Therefore, we argue that the moment we take an ethical stance we are creating a unity between the individual and the societal based on the person’s own ethical benchmarks, bringing it all together within the concept of character formation.