Learning outcomes

General formative aim
The general formative aim of educational philosophy, related to the degree of “Science of Education”, consists on making students understanding the whole meaning and the particular importance of a philosophical approach to the educational practice and to the pedagogical reflection. The educator does not only need a series of knowledge, competence, ability of methodological, pedagogical, psychological sociological and anthropological type: every educational problem and pedagogical related debate, contain themes and concepts that require – to be understood - philosophical knowledge specifically studied from a pedagogic point of view.
The general formative aim is of an essential cognitive and reflexive nature, which is not directly referred to the educational practice or to its planning, but it is meant to build the cognitive introduction in order to approach the educational experience with more awareness and capacity of comprehension.

Educational objectives
Based on this general formative aim, here are some specific formative objectives. They are expressed as results of what has been learnt.

- First formative objective: knowledge of the principal educational themes with a philosophical dimension inside. At the end of the course the student will be able to “recognize” the philosophic element within the educational practice and the pedagogical reflection.
- Second formative objective: comprehension of the reasons that justify the relation: education –pedagogical reflection – philosophical theorization. At the end of the course the student will be able to “explain” the reasons that justify this complex connection.
- Third formative objective: application of the theoretical knowledge to a particular educational problem or a pedagogical theme by a philosophical point of view too. At the end of the course the student will be able to “interpret” a specific educational problem both in pedagogical and philosophical terms.
- Forth formative objective: awareness of the importance of communicative ability and of autonomous judgement, through the gradual acquisition of theoretical language and of critical thought. At the end of the course the student will be able to use the philosophical language in a pedagogical context and to express his/her own thought on what has learnt.

Program

Principal contents of the “general” part of the course:
- From the educational experience to philosophical problems, that is: the philosophic dimension of the educational problems.
- Educational themes and problems and their philosophical comprehension: education as “experience”, educating the “person”, the sincere, ethic and aesthetic dimension of every educational experience.
- Identity and role of the “philosophy of education” among the pedagogical sciences.
- Philosophy of education: authors and trends of thought.
- Some elements to introduce the relation between the philosophical experience and children reality.

Principal contents of the “monographic” part of the course:
- The dimension of “time” in education
- Educating “slowly"

Texts for the exam
For the general part, the following text is mandatory for everybody:
- D. Loro, Problemi educativi e pensare filosofico. Introduzione alla filosofia dell’educazione. Lecture notes 2013-2014 (The “dispensa” will be available at the end of the course by the cartoleria Ateneo, Lungadige Porta Vittoria, 37 . www.ateneovr.it ).

For the “monographic” part, the following text is mandatory for everybody:
- J. D. Francesch, Elogio dell’educazione lenta, Brescia, ed. La Scuola, 2011.

Teaching methods
Lessons will be frontal in the main, with the possibility to intervene with questions and short debates related to the themes of the day.

Examination Methods

The exam consists of a three-hour written text. It consists of 6 open questions, of different types: : descriptive (to show the knowledge of the contents), argumentative (to show the capacity of reflection and associating concepts),applicable (to show the ability of concrete and active thinking on the theoretical contents).
The capacity of efficient communication will be also evaluated by the quality of the written task, which must be correct both grammatically and graphically.
Students enrolled in previous years must prepare their exam on the programme of the current academic year, except for those who previously communicate to the teacher their serious reasons for not doing so.
This is scientifically and didactically correct for some reasons:
- To assure the link between the programme of the exam and the academic year in which the student takes the exam;
- It is required by the “diploma supplement”;
- Each year the programme of the course is deepened and updated in its contents with regard to those of the previous years.