Subject knowledge: the ‘knowledge-rich’ agenda, Buber and the importance of the knowing subject in Religious Education

Knowledge is a key concern at the moment in schools. Advocates of so-called ‘knowledge-rich’ schooling claim that constructivist models of mind, and a focus on skills education has meant that students are leaving school without core knowledge. Extending this to Religious Education (RE), there are so...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Jarmy, Clare (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: [publisher not identified] 2021
In: British Journal of religious education
Year: 2021, Volume: 43, Issue: 2, Pages: 140-149
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Buber, Martin 1878-1965, Ich und Du / Religious education / Knowledge
RelBib Classification:AH Religious education
ZF Education
Further subjects:B Dialogue
B Buber
B Powerful knowledge
B Knowledge
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
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Summary:Knowledge is a key concern at the moment in schools. Advocates of so-called ‘knowledge-rich’ schooling claim that constructivist models of mind, and a focus on skills education has meant that students are leaving school without core knowledge. Extending this to Religious Education (RE), there are some that have defined the need for a robust knowledge-base as the defining challenge for its future. This way of talking about knowledge, namely in the sense of a ‘body of knowledge’, is common in educational circles. When used in this sense, knowledge is conceived of as exterior to the knowing subject, and prior to any subject coming to know it. Yet, this is not how knowledge is spoken of in the field of epistemology, where even the most minimally defined position concerns what is known and the knowing subject. I argue that the knowing subject is key to the knowledge acquired in RE, that knowledge of religion cannot be easily conceived of without taking the knowing subject into account. Employing Buber's notion of the I–Thou relation, I characterise knowledge in RE as the result of an engagement with the other.
ISSN:1740-7931
Contains:Enthalten in: British Journal of religious education
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/01416200.2019.1595525