Complexity Theory and Educational Issues

Author: (French) Edgar Morin (Morin/E.) / Chen Yizhuang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-09-01
Features: This book collects two educational treatises by Edgar Morin, "Seven Kinds of Knowledge Necessary for Future Education" and "A Well-Structured Mind." In the first treatise, Morin, at the invitation of UNESCO, comprehensively presents his philosophy of future education, connecting it with his suggestions for "thought reform." It addresses the central or fundamental issues that he believes are neglected or forgotten in contemporary education, aiming to provoke reflection and discussion among educators worldwide. The central idea of the second treatise is that reforming thought and reforming education are inseparable and mutually reinforcing. They require moving beyond simplified, fragmented understanding, which fails to see the interaction between the whole and the parts, reduces complexity to simplicity, obscures fundamental issues, and leads to the tragic division between scientific and humanistic thought. Reforming thought concerns improving our ability to organize knowledge and bridging the two separated cultures. The goal of education should not be to create minds filled with knowledge, but rather to create minds that are well-structured.