川上英明
A Philosophical Study on Evidence-based Education and “Subjectification”
Exploring a New Conception of Citizenship Education in an Age of Measurement
Hideaki Kawakami, So Fujieda, Naoki Tanabe, Hiromu Higuchi, and Yu Iwase
April, 2019
Abstract
Recently, in educational theory, criticism of Evidence-based Education (EBE) by Gert Biesta has been accepted academically as an important caution highlighting a specific risk that could exclude educational practices with non-EBE styles. This notion is based on idea of ‘evidence’ in education, that it should inevitably limit the width and depth of educational practices and lead to immobilization of inherent education potential. Thus, in this article, we explore the limits of EBE from the perspective of philosophy. We particularly focus on the educational philosopher Gert Biesta’s concept of “subjectification” and his critique of EBE.
Accordingly, our article consists of three parts. First, we briefly summarize the conceptual history of subjectivity and locate the Biesta’s thoughts on subjectification in the related history. Second, Biesta’s argument on the measurability of subjectification, which includes his implication of subjectification in citizenship education, is examined and clarified. Finally, we consider how Biesta’s conception of subjectification can be practical.
