The Philosophy of Distance Education

Gustavo Luiz Gava

  Open Access OPEN ACCESS  Peer Reviewed PEER-REVIEWED

The Philosophy of Distance Education

Gustavo Luiz Gava

Core Human Formation, Positivo University Online, Curitiba, Brazil

Abstract

It is understood that the digital era is one of the major transitions to situate philosophy and other disciplines, in the virtual world: online teaching. Moreover, from there, enabling the student to include himself in his worldly field: cognitive virtual to the actual goal. A reverse engineering knowledge.

Cite this article:

  • Gava, Gustavo Luiz. "The Philosophy of Distance Education." American Journal of Educational Research 2.12C (2014): 1-3.
  • Gava, G. L. (2014). The Philosophy of Distance Education. American Journal of Educational Research, 2(12C), 1-3.
  • Gava, Gustavo Luiz. "The Philosophy of Distance Education." American Journal of Educational Research 2, no. 12C (2014): 1-3.

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1. Introduction

Not enough general challenges that involve the universe of distance education, for example, a technological ontology, is faced with the following peculiar question: how viable the discipline of philosophy away. According to Deleuze and Guattari (2003), "philosophy is the discipline of creating concepts." According to philosophers, philosophy enables such ingenuity as it is creative in the strict sense. And not only free to think and reflect on things unraveled in the world.

This is a widespread reputation that made much of the ideas and/or concepts related to classroom discipline philosophy also categorizassem it as airtight discipline in distance education model. Seen as a framework of content without practical experience to those who like their outsider discipline courses contextualization. Routinely, you will hear considerable number of students indagarem: "what philosophy has to do with my degree?"; "What is the application of philosophy in everyday life?"; or "what serves the philosophy?" It is here, a barrier: the current limit pedagogical discipline.

2. Boundaries of the Discipline of Philosophy

How can you overcome this limit forward to the digital age. First, by a reverse engineer knowledge. Second, through a strict translation as way of life. Considering that the very digital age presents itself through this intense chaos of information. Philosophy in the digital era should serve to give order to this infinite speed of unbridled information, not only to stop the gaps in curricular menus. Therefore, "nothing is more painful, more distressing than a thought that escapes itself, fleeing ideas that disappear just outlined, already eroded by forgetfulness or jump on others who also do not control" (Deleuze, Guattari, 2003).

2.1. Challenges in Distance Education

To break this limit, it is understood that virtual platforms should encourage the presentation of the discipline of philosophy online so that students can create and apply coparticipar/expand knowledge of philosophical basis. Reversing the pedagogical structure. Thus enabling the philosophical laboratory, philosophizing. As Deleuze & Guatari (2003) says, "[...] so that there is agreement between things and thought, we need to reproduce the sensation, as collateral or the testimony of his agreement"

It is noticed that there are varied in distance education platforms of Brazilian institutions, considerable advances in aesthetic layouts, punctual and lofty methodological improvements, intuitive ordering and functional operation they enjoy, pedagogically, the best ICT systems. However, there is a paradox mainly quanro the discipline of philosophy: the contents are sealed and liabilities. It is a virtual cultural-shock.

The content of philosophy is too analytical and historical. It is, here, a critical meeting because we know that this discipline, there proficient analytical and historians of philosophy. However, this passive way to understand the philosophy of the concrete (classroom) to virtual (online platform), the doors of the Millennium III, the Byzantine even retains the pedagogical process. The expulsion of students.

Digital natives, homo zappiens, as well as the digital age, and noetic revolution, are part of a very complex system. These social actors - students - at all times maintain active relations, is related to various applications and social networks. At any moment are actively creating. These people "grew up in a world where information and communication are available to almost everyone and can be used in an active way" (Veen, Vrakking, 2006).

Why modulations analytical passive and static not captivate this audience. Precisely "because it is not complex can be reduced by analyzing a set of components" (Havély, 2010). The current challenge for the discipline of philosophy would enable the creation of online platform situational, active and coparticipativa.

2.2. Support Student of Philosophy

In 2012, the author of this research has developed along with the students of the course (classroom style) philosophy and ethics of Positivo University project entitled "Laboratory Philosophical: the company's future." This project was a finalist in the event and the University Positive Ideas Factory project (FIP 2012). This is the Project responsible for capturing ideas and engage their employees, faculty and students to undertake service improvements, or product management at Grupo Positivo directly or indirectly.

The "Philosophical Laboratory: a company of the future" project consisted of presenting subjects/ philosophical knowledge and its possible application/ translation in contemporary management personnel of the XXI century. Aimed at addressing philosophical questions with students Positivo University, as well as contributing to the same routine in the same social actors, through a personal management philosophy. Thus, the idea was to investigate the potential application of existential into a new business model, focused on the management of related philosophical knowledge base. This initial pilot project lasted about one semester. The central idea was to develop support for learners in an active manner, and promote philosophical issues, philosophically. Fostering co-participation and learning by creating.

Currently investigating the possibility of developing this same design, prototype model, and its viability in an online platform. The consider reverse engineering knowledge to the discipline of philosophy. Doing philosophy, philosophizing distance. Some of the content - with proper teaching co-participation - would be developed by the students themselves, as well as the choice of topics for the classes (schedule) and the exchange of experiences among the entrepreneurial class (group). Its practical application and grating with content developed. Besides the focus on non-traditional students (Palloff, Pratt, 2003), this proposal aims at the creation and application of content. To change this, we need to stimulate the cognitive environment: "Either our minds are changed because we ourselves want to change em or because something happens in our mental life que warrants a change" (Gardner, 2008).

3. Digital Natives and Reverse Engineering of Knowledge

Since the mid-1980s, considered the decade of the digital era, and the 1990s, regarded as the decade of the brain, there was the advent of neuroscience, computer science, experimental psychology, artificial intelligence (considering studies on networks neural), among others, as recurrent pedagogical/philosophical discussions concerning human cognition, specifically in regard to the relation of mind-brain learning, returning to the field of discussion. Besides the contribution of the digital era, there is also the synergy that contribution establishes for the Third Millennium. This phenomenon is termed by the physicist, philosopher and scientist complexity, Frenchman Marc Halevy, by noetic revolution.

According to the author, this revolution is not only the speed at which the world finds itself at the level of technological development. But in a leap of sociosphere for terrestrial noosphere. That is, syntagmatic. This passage "was finally made possible by the sudden and explosive emergence of information and communication technologies' (Halévy, 2010).

To Halévy, this human jump is not political or economical. Does not belong to this sphere. This is a conceptual information revolution as a whole. Syntagmatically are required philosophical, ethical and metaphysical insights. A weltanschauung that (already) is present for the social actors of the era of knowledge/ digital age. In order not to lose time, talent and or money, urges a reverse engineering knowledge. However, not enough to reverse. But yes, be aware of and respects the need for such a reversal (Halevy, 2010).

So think: if we reversed the school, we would need a reverse cognitive pedagogy for virtual spaces and media. One realizes that we are still rooted in a mechanistic model in XVII-XIX centuries. Industrial scale. Ie, focus on services, products (platforms, products, etc.) and laws - from the bottom up. Almost an insult to those who glimpsed the distance education only as product-service. According to Halévy (2010) noetic revolution reverses this process from the top down, for the man is that is at the service of the spirit. And for lack of such a weltanschauung, you can currently find behaviorist and physicalist theories to serve as mapping and pedagogical support to the world of distance education. Standard format.

4. Conclusions

This article focuses on the current philosophy’s epistemological scope, the digital era. It intends to facilitate the comprehension of the world we live in, and mostly, it aims to make a logical, metalinguistic (metaphysical) and psychological mapping to understand the first generation of Digital Era Natives. Philosophy itself is inserted beyond a propedeutic category, as Aristotle has classified it. We know the world requires a peculiar comprehension of life itself. In addition, this is the very reason we have an urgency to think about a new ontology.

Is it a technological ontology? It certainly will be a total emancipation of the Native Digital generation, those who were born in the transition of noetic’s revolution in the XXI century. With better understanding of it, we need to apply innovations and other emergent possibilities that are hatching from the new information and communication technologies.

Digital natives are increasingly turning to global industry, politics and education. We realize that the industrial and political, especially the first, scales are being targeted and driven by digital natives. However, the question is: education follows the same pace? It would be pretty open to the pressures of these actors to the peculiar changes. How to keep the attention of digital natives, the homo zappiens in the digital age? Rather, how to educate in the digital age? How to meet new demand and instrumental teaching methods to this generation? (Veen, Vrakking, 2006).

Sometimes, intellectually perceives a retrograde attitude between those who try to think the "new" model of education. The distance education. Therefore are recurring changes in instrumental levels. But do not think for a new ontology. The ontology technology. Because it is the Brazilian reality, one should take into account that still moves in order to witness the very web 2.0. Moreover, pedagogically, in the distance, you can still find confusion between the idea of paradigm shift, in effect, kaizen. Since kaizen effect is instrumental, it is praxis; and the paradigm is already inflated, saturated and terminologically, in full mess.

Although evident the many achievements and accomplishments (bottom to top) of distance education, compared to globally pioneer, is it not time to think (top to bottom) via a reverse engineering.

That is, before creating theories and equip online tools, investigate two crucial points to think about distance education:

In act, which bias in understanding the concept of information;

How to enable the student fosters instrumental application (content available on virtual platforms) through its own noetic priori. Should be a meeting, one syntagmatic recognition by reversing.

If we reversed the school, we would need a reverse cognitive pedagogy for virtual spaces and media. One realizes that we are still rooted in a mechanistic model in XVII-XIX centuries and industrial scale. Ie, focus on services, products (platforms, products, etc.) and laws - from the bottom up. Almost an insult to those who glimpsed the distance education only as product-service.

Philosophy cannot be seen and understood only as a framework of content without practical experience to those who like their outsider discipline courses contextualization. The discipline of philosophy in distance education should be part of the technological reality of today's students. She cannot find unfastened reality.

References

[1]  Deleuze, G, Guattari, F, What is philosophy? Columbia University Press, New York, 2003.
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[2]  Gardner, H,. Changing minds: the art and science of changing our own and other people’s minds. Harvard Business School Press, Boston, 2008.
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[3]  Halévy, M, A era do conhecimento: princípios e reflexões sobre a revolução noética no século XXI. Editora Unesp, São Paulo, 2010.
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[4]  Palloff, R, Pratt, K, The virtual student: a profile and guide to working with online learners. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, 2003.
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[5]  Veen, W, Vrakking, B, Homo zappiens: growing up in a digital age. Network Continuum Education, London, 2006.
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