Teaching Philosophy: An Optimization-Liquidation or a New Start?

In the article, I analyze the current situation in the field of teaching philosophy and also other social sciences and humanities. The point is that in higher school, under various pretexts, many departments and philosophy councils are closed, hours for teaching philosophical courses and seminars are reduced. Teachers of philosophy and other disciplines in higher education, in addition to being overwhelmed, have to spend a lot of time on unnecessary reporting, which for the most part does not reflect the essence of the matter. The policy of education officials and their belief in the need for such reporting and reduction of hours are critically reviewed. I show that in addition to the well-known functions of philosophy, teaching philosophy is of crucial importance today is due to three important circumstances: we live, firstly, in a period of double transition (of the whole civilization and of Russia) and, secondly, in a period of an anthropological crisis and a crisis of reality, thirdly, due to a crisis of morality and ethics. Only philosophy, based on the methodology, as well as the humanities and social sciences can comprehend modern conditions. The question is about a new start to the practice of teaching philosophy. I propose to introduce a temporary moratorium on the compilation of new teaching programs and start a broad discussion in the philosophical and pedagogical community of the goals and content of the teaching of philosophy. In this regard, I offer my own understanding of the problems and the essence of the teaching of philosophy. I also share my personal experience in teaching philosophy, which includes lecturing and organizing the creative work of small groups of students.

philosophy, science, methodology, discipline, crisis, school, pedagogy, thinking, practice, situation

1. Budaev A. (2018) Philosophy Teaching at School: Pro & Contra. The Social Network of Education Workers. Retrieved from https://nsportal.ru/shkola/materialy-metodicheskikh-obedinenii/library/2018/02/24/prepoda-vanie-filosofii-v-shkole-pro (in Russian).

2. Hadot P. (1995) Qu’est-ce que laphilosophie antique? (Russian translation: Moscow: Izdatel’stvo gumanitarnoy literatury, 1999).

3. Inozemtsev V. (2019) Dangerous delusion. Echo of Moscow. January 6, 2019 (in Russian).

4. Instructions to the Director of Kazan University on January 17, 1820 (1875). In: Collection of resolutions on the Ministry of Public Education. Vol. 1. The reign of Alexander I. 1802-1825. (2nd ed.). Saint Petersburg (in Russian).

5. Kanke V.A. (1997) Philosophy. Historical and Systematic Course. Moscow: Logos (in Russian).

6. Kutyrev V.A. (2018) The Owl of Minerva Flies at Dusk (Selected Philosophical Texts of the 21st Century). Saint Petersburg: Aletheia (in Russian).

7. Lobazova O.F. (2016) Philosophy Teaching in Russia: Retrospective Features. Education and society. 2016. No. 1, pp. 17-20. Retrieved from http://filos-club.ru/autor/lobazova/prepodovanie-filosofii-v-rossii-retros-pektivnye-osobennosyti/ (in Russian).

8. Minakov A.Y. (2007) “Anti-Philosophical” Position of the Russian Con-servatives of the First Quarter of the Century. On the History of Attempts to Abolish the Teaching of Philosophy in Imperial Russia. Bulletin of the Voronezh State University. Series: History. Political science. Sociology. 2007. No. 1, p. 152-154 (in Russian).

9. Rozin V.M. (2006) Penetration of Thinking. The Story of a Study by Mark Vadimov. Moscow: KomKniga (in Russian).

10. Rozin V.M. (2008) Conversations about Reality and Dreams of Mark Vadimov. Moscow: LKI (in Russian).

11. Rozin V.M. (Ed. & Comp.) (2009) Introduction to Philosophy. New Teaching Experience. Moscow: Librokom (in Russian).

12. Rozin V.M. (2010) Traditional and Modern Philosophy. Moscow: Librokom (in Russian).

13. Rozin V.M. (2017) Discourses and Types of the Future. Epistemology and Philosophy of Science. Vol. 52, no. 2, pp. 137-152 (in Russian).

14. Tokareva S.B. (2017) Philosophy in the Educational Space: Its Past and Future. Context. 2017. No. 1 (in Russian).