1st Edition

Education and the Pursuit of Wisdom The Aims of Education Revisited

By Jānis (John) Ozoliņš Copyright 2019
    248 Pages
    by Routledge

    248 Pages
    by Routledge

    Education and the Pursuit of Wisdom examines the ways in which the timeless human search for wisdom relates to current educational practices. This book challenges the current approach of an economically-driven system preparing students solely for the workplace, and instead discusses the importance of teaching wisdom in order to enrich all aspects of the lives of students. Ozoliņš discusses how teaching young people how to make decisions will not only benefit them in everyday life, but will benefit society as a whole.





    Drawing on religious and classical texts such as Benedictine and Confucian works, Ozoliņš’ book assesses and re-evaluates the central aim of education, and moves toward developing a robust understanding of the value of wisdom and its implications. Alternative approaches to education and the ways in which educators can establish agency in this process are also carefully considered.





    Detailed, well-researched, and with an international scope, Education and the Pursuit of Wisdom is an ideal reference work for researchers, lecturers and postgraduate students of education, and in particular the philosophy of education and the concept of wisdom.

    Contents





    Acknowledgements





    Preface





    About the Author





    Introduction





    Chapter One: The Concept of Wisdom





    Chapter Two: Augustine on wisdom and education





    Chapter Three: Bonaventure’s conception of wisdom





    Chapter Four: Wisdom as aim of education in East and West





    Chapter Five: Aquinas and wisdom as the aim of education





    Chapter Six: Confucian heritage culture, education and wisdom





    Chapter Seven: Cultivating the virtues in Mencius and Aquinas: East and West compared





    Chapter Eight: Newman and the idea of a university





    Chapter Nine: Liberal arts, generic skills and the aims of education





    Chapter Ten: A. D. Sertillanges on wisdom and the intellectual life





    Chapter Eleven: Conclusion: Final thoughts





    Index

    Biography

    Jānis (John) Tālivaldis Ozoliņš is Professor, College of Philosophy and Theology, University of Notre Dame Australia, former Professor of Philosophy at Australian Catholic University, Australia, and permanent Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology, University of Latvia. He is Reviews Editor for Educational Philosophy and Theory.