Can the Paideia Ideal Form Part of a Christian Pedagogical Aim in the 21st Century?

Abstract

According to literature, the classic paideia ideal, that is, the ideal of the well-rounded, fully educated, rational human being, has survived to this day, despite many historical and socio-cultural influences that impacted on it through the millennia. In the process, it has to a considerable extent retained its rationalistic bias, but toward the end of the nineteenth century, it began showing a Janus-like face in that it seemed to assume a more irrationalistic character as well. The key question examined in the study reported in this paper was whether the paideia ideal could be harnessed to complement a Christian pedagogical aim. Investigation revealed that the term paideia occurs only six times in the Bible, and is used in a variety of meanings, ranging from positive education of the young person to taking corrective measures. The authors conclude that rationalistic manifestations of the paideia ideal are not fully compatible with a biblical view of education. Its more recent irrationalistic manifestation seems to be more compatible with a biblical view, but also requires a few fundamental changes. However, the general meaning of the paideia ideal, namely the education of the human being to become a well-rounded and fully equipped human being seems to chime with a biblical pedagogical aim.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Johannes L. van der Walt

Johannes L. van der Walt is a Professor (Emeritus) of Philosophy and History of Education, and past Dean of the Faculty of Education at the former Potchefstroom University in South Africa. He now works at the North West University, South Africa, as Research Fellow responsible for research and academic capacity building. These programmes, occasionally also offered nation-wide, include seminars on the art of writing scholarly articles, mostly in the field of Education, but also in other scholarly disciplines. He also presents courses on Philosophy of Science and of Education. He has authored 212 articles in accredited journals on issues related to philosophy of education, history of education, comparative and international education and religion, citizenship and education.

Izak J. Oosthuizen

Izak J. Oosthuizen served for 18 years as a high school teacher in Pretoria, South Africa, and subsequently as a lecturer at the College for Further Education. In 1988, he became Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education of the former PU for CHE, and in 1999 was promoted to a full professorship in Education Law. In 2011, he was appointed as Research Professor and later as Extraordinary Professor in the Faculty of Education of the North-West University. He currently serves as a research fellow in this Faculty. He has been the editor, coeditor and author of more than 45 books and of 75 scholarly articles. 42 Master’s and Doctor’s degree students completed their studies under his guidance.