Transcript The Need for Transdisciplinarity in Higher Education
THE NEED FOR TRANSDISCIPLINARITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION Istanbul, May 28, 2011 Basarab NICOLESCU CNRS, Paris, France University Babes-Bolyai, Cluj, Romania Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Studies (STIAS), South Africa
Knowledge in the era of globalization
Transdisciplinary approach – realistic and even necessary for survival of universities Crucial condition: what is reality?
Wolfgang Pauli: « the formulation of a new idea of reality is the most important and most difficult task od our time.
»
REALITY IS PLASTIC
The only ground of Reality : the ordered overall movement We are part of this ordered movement: in this sense, Reality depends on us – THE REALITY IS PLASTIC
OUR RESPONSIBILITY
Our freedom : enter into the movement or perturb it.
Respond to the movement or impose our will of power and domination.
Our responsibility : built sustainable futures in agreement with the overall movement.
WHY TRANSDISCIPLINARITY IS TODAY NOT ONLY REALISTIC BUT ALSO NECESSARY?
1st reason
: unprecedented increase of knowledge Number of disciplines 1300: 1950: 7 54 1975: 2011: 1845 > 8000
National Register of Scientific and Technical Personnel, National Science Foundation (NSF) archives, USA
2011: > 8000 disciplines EXPERT – 1 discipline IGNORANT - > 7999 disciplines How can decision?
we take a realistic
2
nd
reason
Fast changes UNEMPLOYMENT Change jobs once or even several times during human beings’ lifetime
3rd reason
Advances in neurophysiology Decisions in complex situations – dominated by Emotions and feelings Analytic mind too slow as compared with intelligence of feelings Harmony between inner being and outer knowledge
4th reason
Globalization Enormous flux of population – from countries of one culture, religion, spirituality to another culture, religion, spirituality New education – cultivate the dialogue
5th reason
Rapid advances in means of communication Increased complexity in an interconnected world The new education has to invent new methods of teaching – new logics
6th reason
Globalization Real world solving problems forces university to interact with society, industry, banks, ecology, which are obviously « trans » - they are beyond academic disciplinaes.
University can become a major force in building sustainable futures.
MULTIDISCIPLINARITY: studying a research topic not in just one discipline but in several at the same time INTERDISCIPLINARITY: transfering of methods from one discipline to another TRANSDISCIPLINARITY: studying that which is at once between the disciplines, across the different disciplines, and beyond all disciplines
Goal : understanding the present world UNDERSTANDING = KNOWLEDGE+BEING Finality : unity of knowledge No opposition between disciplinarity and transdisciplinarity: TD is not indisciplinarity TD
study of the interaction of Object and Subject
new knowledge
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« Transdisciplinarity »
word introduced in 1970 by Jean Piaget
DISCIPLINARY EDUCATION
IN VITRO
(
DE)
One level of Reality
TRANSDISCIPLINARY EDUCATION
(
TE)
IN VIVO Several levels of Reality
Correspondence between External world - Object Accumulation of knowledge Analytic intelligence External world (Object) and Internal world (Subject) Understanding New type of intelligence harmony between mind, Oriented towards power and possession Binary logic Exclusion of values feelings and body Oriented towards astonishment and sharing Included middle logic Inclusion of values
METHODOLOGY OF TRANSDISCIPLINARITY 3 axioms 1.
The ontological axiom 2.
The logical axiom 3.
The epistemological axiom
Rigourous definition of TD
THE ONTOLOGICAL AXIOM OF TRANSDISCIPLINARITY There are different levels of Reality of the Object and, correspondingly, different levels of Reality of the Subject
REALITY That which resists
• • • • •
our experiences our representations our descriptions our images our mathematical formulations
REALITY that which resists - accessible to our knowledge + trans-subjective dimension REAL that which is - veiled for ever
LEVEL OF REALITY Set of systems invariant under certain general laws (natural systems) or under certain general norms and rules (social systems) There is discontinuity between levels
Levels of Reality of the Object + Zone of non resistance Restores
the continuity
between levels
Levels of Reality of the Subject + Zone of non-resistance
HIDDEN THIRD
Knowledge is nether exterior nor interior
Examples
Natural systems: •
quantum level
•
macrophysical (classical) level
•
cyber-space-time level
•
superstring level
Social systems: •
individual level
•
geographical and historical community level (family, nation)
•
cyber-space-time community level
•
the planetary level
THE LOGICAL AXIOM The passage from one level of Reality to another is insured by the logic of the included middle
Included middle There exists a third term T which is at the same time A Non-A T A Non-A
NR1 NR2
Symbolic representation of the action of included middle logic
THE EPISTEMOLOGICAL AXIOM The structure of the totality of levels of reality and perception is a complex structure: Every level is what it is because all the levels exist at the same time
TRANS-REALITY
• • •
Levels of Reality of the Object Levels of Reality of the Subject The Hidden Third
• • •
organization structuring integration
• • •
objectivity subjectivity complexity
• • •
confusion language representation/ interpretation
• • •
knowledge understanding being
• • •
ignorance intelligence contemplation Levels of Contextualization
• • •
materiality spirituality non-duality
A new Principle of Relativity
No level of Reality constitutes a priviledged place from which one is able to understand all the other levels of Reality Every level - incompletness Knowledge is forever open
TD OBJECT TRANS-REALITY TD SUBJECT Planetary Cosmic Economic A 3 A 2 Environment A 1 (natural and artificial
: Quantum Macrophysical Cyber-Space-Time
T 3 T 2 non-A 3 HIDDEN THIRD X non-A 2 A 3 A 2 T 2 T 3 non-A 3 Political non-A 2 Social Historical Individual non-A 1 non-A 1 Religions Spiritualities Cultures A 1
CONCLUSIONS
-The exceptional role of emotions and feelings in education - Integral education of the human being – mind, feelings, body - PhD programs in TD (Romania, South Africa) - TD curricula - Emergence of continually connected beings - Transcultural vision - New TD knowledge – multidimensional opening – civil society, cybers-space-time, universality, values
Wolfgang Pauli (1900-1958)
Facing the rigurous division, from the 17th century, of human spirit in isolated disciplines, I consider the aim of transgressing their opposition […] as the explicit myth of our present times”
MINIMAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
Basarab Nicolescu,
Manifesto of Transdisciplinarity
, New York, SUNY Press, 2002 Basarab Nicolescu (ed.),
Transdisciplinarity – Theory and practice
, Hampton Press, Cresskill, New Jersey, USA, 2008
Antonio R. Damasio , Looking for Spinoza:
Joy, Sorrow, and the Feeling Brain
, San Diego, Harcourt, 2003.
Internet site of the International Center for Transdisciplinary Research (CIRET) http://basarab.nicolescu.perso.sfr.fr/ciret/