Is Discussing Controversial Issues in RE a Magic Bullet to Promote Social Cohesion? Mapping Opportunities and Challenges Based on Previous Research

IF 1.4 0 RELIGION Journal of Empirical Theology Pub Date : 2023-08-29 DOI:10.1163/15709256-20231147
Jan-Hendrik Herbst
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Abstract

In the public debate, it is often argued that RE is important because it promotes social cohesion. In the academic debate, however, this position is controversial because, firstly, this goal is associated with a politicization of RE and, secondly, empirical evidence on whether or how RE causes this effect seems to be lacking. In this article, I argue first that cohesion is an adequate subgoal of RE, assuming a social rather than a state-political understanding of cohesion. Second, I refer to international studies on teaching controversial issues (CIs), which show that students can learn participation, tolerance, and common good orientation through high-quality exploration of CIs in class. However, due to methodological difficulties and negative side effects, the discussion of CIs in RE cannot be assumed to be a magic bullet for achieving cohesion. For instance, uncertainties and ambiguities accompany forms of dissent in the classroom, which may lead to authoritarian dispositions and political intolerance. In addition, there are particular challenges for inclusive and especially denominational RE in terms of teachers, issues, students, and external factors.
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讨论RE中的争议问题是促进社会凝聚力的灵丹妙药吗?基于以往研究的机遇与挑战映射
在公开辩论中,人们经常认为可再生能源很重要,因为它能促进社会凝聚力。然而,在学术辩论中,这一立场是有争议的,因为首先,这一目标与可再生能源的政治化有关,其次,似乎缺乏关于可再生能源是否或如何造成这种影响的经验证据。在这篇文章中,我首先认为,凝聚力是RE的一个适当的子目标,假设对凝聚力的社会而非国家政治理解。其次,我参考了国际上关于教学争议问题(CI)的研究,这些研究表明,学生可以通过在课堂上高质量地探索CI来学习参与、宽容和共同的良好导向。然而,由于方法上的困难和负面副作用,不能认为RE中对CI的讨论是实现凝聚力的灵丹妙药。例如,不确定性和模糊性伴随着课堂上各种形式的异议,这可能导致独裁倾向和政治不容忍。此外,在教师、问题、学生和外部因素方面,包容性特别是教派RE面临着特殊的挑战。
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CiteScore
1.00
自引率
25.00%
发文量
7
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