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  • © 2022

Pedagogy of Entanglement

A Response to the Complex Societal Challenges that Permeate our Lives

Authors:

  1. Koen Rens Wessels

    1. Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands

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  • Explores the role of education in a world of wicked problems and complex challenges that all interact with each other

  • Explains the relational ontological premise of "entanglement" in the context of pedagogical theory

  • Ties pedagogical theory to concrete teaching practice

Part of the book series: Sustainable Development Goals Series (SDGS)

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  • ISBN: 978-3-031-15787-5
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Table of contents (7 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xii
    PDF

  3. The Entangled Student

    • Koen Rens Wessels
    Pages 15-25

  4. Diffractions

    • Koen Rens Wessels
    Pages 27-45

  5. On Relational Ontology and the Good Life

    • Koen Rens Wessels
    Pages 47-59

  6. On Teaching the Entangled Student

    • Koen Rens Wessels
    Pages 61-75

  7. Living the Question of Integrity

    • Koen Rens Wessels
    Pages 77-84

  8. In Conclusion: Pedagogy of Entanglement

    • Koen Rens Wessels
    Pages 85-93
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About this book

In this hyperconnected, dynamic world we live in, permeated by profound challenges and transformations, the awareness of complexity is unequivocally on the rise. This monograph argues that it is high time that our educational institutions and pedagogical approaches come to mirror this growing awareness, to assist and inspire humanity to embrace complexity, to learn to move within it with increasing sensitivity and wisdom. Doing so is necessary, for if there is one thing that the years behind us bear witness of, it is that the tendency and attempt to simplify, separate, control, and indeed exploit has – as the dark side of the advancements of modern life – brought upon us unprecedented ecological and humanitarian crises. 

Schools, notably, are not closed spaces separated from society but open places within society, and as such they are inevitably complicit in the (re)shaping of our shared world. This book, therefore, proposes an ambitious pedagogical agenda. Specifically, it explores the relational ontological premise of entanglement in the context of pedagogical theory, raising the question of how, as teachers, we might meaningfully and responsibly engage with the myriad ways in which students are simultaneously shaped-by and shapers-of contemporary societal challenges. In close collaboration with twelve teachers as co-researchers, the book offers six ''helpful perspectives'' for teachers seeking to embrace such complexity in their own practices, referred to as: (1) entanglement-orientedness, (2) entanglement-awareness, (3) hopeful action, (4) inquiry within entangled phenomena, (5) practicing perceptiveness, and (6) practicing integrity.


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Keywords

  • Education for complexity
  • SDG 4
  • Quality Education
  • Pedagogical theory
  • Axiology
  • Praxeology
  • Complex societal challenges
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Authors and Affiliations

  • Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Koen Rens Wessels

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About the author

Koen Wessels is an emerging scholar working at the intersection of pedagogy, complexity, and sustainability. The central theme in his work is the ontological move from individuality to relationality and the pedagogical implications this might have in a world permeated by complex societal challenges. He is currently based as a postdoctoral researcher at The Urban Futures Studio at Utrecht University, where he is working on an action research project called ‘Academy of Hope’. In the years leading up to the present book, Koen co-founded ‘The Bildung Academy’; an innovative educational hub in Amsterdam organizing higher education programs and consultancy aimed at fostering a meaningful connection between students’ personal development and their engagement with contemporary societal challenges.
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Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Pedagogy of Entanglement

  • Book Subtitle: A Response to the Complex Societal Challenges that Permeate our Lives

  • Authors: Koen Rens Wessels

  • Series Title: Sustainable Development Goals Series

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-15787-5

  • Publisher: Springer Cham

  • eBook Packages: Education, Education (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-031-15786-8Published: 29 October 2022

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-031-15789-9Due: 12 November 2023

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-031-15787-5Published: 28 October 2022

  • Series ISSN: 2523-3084

  • Series E-ISSN: 2523-3092

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XII, 93

  • Number of Illustrations: 2 b/w illustrations, 3 illustrations in colour

  • Topics: Education, Sustainability, Philosophy

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Access via your institution
eBook USD 119.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • ISBN: 978-3-031-15787-5
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
Hardcover Book USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
Learn about institutional subscriptions