Toward an ecological view of learning: Cultivating learners in a data-driven society

Abstract

Although modern education is expected to solve social problems, it has brought about new problems. While theoretical critiques of education have not always been successful, with the transition to a data-driven society, education as a historical product is actually losing its efficacy. However, this does not mean that acquisition of knowledge and skills is becoming unnecessary. Prompted by the need to change the purpose of public education, we are forced to rethink the nature of education boldly. Competency-based education, as advocated by the OECD, appears to have led to such rethinking; however, it is widely accepted as a revised version of modern education. If this trend continues, the contradiction between education and society will deepen further. To overcome this contradiction, we must change our view of education. With education and learning having an asymmetrical relationship to begin with, the clue to changing our view of education lies in re-examining our view of learning. A more comprehensive way of learning that has accompanied human history is attracting the attention of various disciplines. I present a redefined framework for learning that is inherent to humans, which I call the ecological view of learning, and explore an alternative to modern education, learning from the Japanese thought on ‘Manabi (learning).’

Keywords:

• Learning
• modern education
• data-driven society
• competencies
• ecology
• reflection
• Manabi

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP15K04216.

Notes on contributors

Ryohei Matsushita

Ryohei Matsushita is a professor of Mukogawa Women’s University, Nishinomiya, Japan. He is a former president of History of Educational Thought Society, Japan, and a former editor-in-chief of Studies in the Philosophy of Education, The Philosophy of Education Society of Japan. He is interested in the reconsidering of key concepts on learning, education, and moral education. e-mail: [email protected].