Philosophy of Education Terminology_Philosophy Education in French Secondary Schools

In France, philosophy is a compulsory subject for high school students and the first subject in the baccalaureate, but the purpose of philosophical education in French secondary schools is not to create philosophers or to enable the French to master philosophy, but to train citizens.　　■Bar Mitzvah for Young French People

Many years ago, in a French composition class, I heard a foreign teacher talk about her philosophical composition training in a preparatory class for a high school teacher in Paris. I remember one of the several essay questions she listed. The question stuck with me because it had only two French words, "Moi, je......", both meaning "I", the latter being the subject and the former emphasizing the latter's The former is a cognate that emphasizes the latter. "I, I ......", I was muttering in my heart, asking young people who have just graduated from high school to spend four hours doing some philosophical play on "I", probably only this has produced "The first thing that you need to do is to get your hands on some of the most popular products and services that you can find in the market.

This kind of philosophical training is not intended for the elite of high school graduates who are able to enter the preparatory course for high school, which until 2011 was mandatory for all seniors in general high schools (divided into humanities, economic and social studies, and sciences) and in technical high schools (designed to help students advance to the next level of schooling), but which the French Ministry of Education has mandated to be taught from the first year of high school on. Moreover, philosophy is the first subject in the baccalaureate, the only way for all high school students to graduate and qualify for university. In the half-joking words of a French journalist, the philosophy baccalaureate seems to have become a rite of passage for French young people. It is unique in French secondary education that philosophy is a compulsory subject in high school and in the baccalaureate. The other two great philosophical nations of Europe, England and Germany, do not hold secondary school philosophy education in such high esteem. In Germany, philosophy is only an elective subject for secondary school students; in England, it is more of a comparative religion or logic class. In Europe, apart from France, only Portugal, Spain and Italy make philosophy a compulsory subject for high school students. In France, philosophy classes are organized according to philosophical concepts and themes, and students are trained to engage in preliminary philosophical thinking about some fundamental issues concerning life, society, and politics.

Why does France require its citizens to start thinking about these questions at a young age, when they have been the subject of debate among the greatest philosophers? Indeed, in France, the purpose of philosophy education in secondary schools is not to create philosophers or to equip the French with philosophy, but to train citizens. This explains why secondary school students in the economic and social sciences, in the sciences and even in technical subjects are required to study philosophy. Philosophy education in secondary schools is essentially a civic education, since it is thought to contribute to the formation of "enlightened citizens" who are free-spirited, critically aware and politically responsible.

■Study of Philosophy as a Civic Right

The idea of education as a means of shaping citizens can be traced back to the Enlightenment in the 18th century. And during the French Revolution, revolutionaries tried to create a new educational system to forge the rational citizenry that the new France needed. Lacanard, who had been a philosophy teacher in a Catholic religious order before the Revolution, was actively involved in the reform of national education after he entered the National Congregation in 1793. He believed that the right to think freely and to develop critical reason belonged to every citizen. Obviously, philosophy was crucial to the development of free thinking and critical reason. Thus, from the logic of the Revolutionary philosophy of education, the study of philosophy was the right of the citizens of the **** and the nation.

Philosophy education was not able to be practiced in the chaotic and turbulent Revolution, but was incorporated into the French public **** education system by Napoleon, who ended the Revolution. And at this time philosophy for Napoleon, just to the state education tool.

Philosophy education in secondary schools did not end with the fall of Napoleon, but was allowed to evolve. During the conservative liberal July dynasty, the philosopher Cousin, who became Minister of Public **** Education in 1840, strengthened the place of philosophy education in secondary schools and introduced the essay form to foster philosophical thinking and expression among secondary school students.

During the period of the Third **** and State, the struggle between the **** and State and the Catholic Church finally ended with the establishment of the principle of the separation of Church and State, and the **** and State thus gained complete dominion in politics and education. The ****wakoku, which was anti-clerical and anti-old system, endeavored to inculcate in the nation the ****wakoku spirit of liberty, equality, and fraternity through primary and secondary education, and secondary school philosophical education, which was regarded as an important means of learning about liberty through reflection, was the culmination and completion of the civic education that the ****wakoku unfolded through its schools. Thus, the study of philosophy is not only a right of citizens, but also becomes their duty.

Is the individual who has gained full rights and dignity in the modern world capable of utilizing their freedom? This requires them to have the ability to think about some of the most basic and important issues of life and society. Philosophy education consciously directs the attention of young boys and girls on the verge of adulthood to philosophical issues, so it is not surprising that questions such as "Does freedom mean that one does not encounter obstacles?" and "Is it absurd to desire the impossible?" appear on the exam.

At the same time, the ability of citizens to understand and assume their social and political responsibilities in freedom and to respect and cooperate with each other is indispensable for the good functioning of **** and the State. Philosophy education therefore also often centers on issues that are essential to political and public life, such as the authority of the state, the value of work, and the rights and duties of the individual.

■Philosophy Education Also Often Meets Failure

Of course, philosophy education, like education in other disciplines, often meets with failure, and probably at a higher rate. I have a French friend who received his Ph.D. in philosophy with a dissertation on Rousseau and has been teaching philosophy in a high school ever since. Once he showed me a student's exam paper, and the question was to analyze a passage from Pascal. He was very upset with some of the students and criticized them for not knowing anything and for not reading. He showed me two exam papers that were almost blank and could only score one or two marks (out of 20). In fact, the average score in the Philosophy Club Exam was just about 10.

The purpose of philosophy education is first and foremost to make students realize that some of the fundamental problems of mankind are closely related to them as well. This enlightenment and discovery will affect them for the rest of their lives, not because they will become philosophers or scholars, but because they realize that the meaning of their lives and careers depends on their being able to give answers to these questions that satisfy them, and that they should, with their own lives and careers, try to make sense of these questions and explore their answers.

More importantly, secondary philosophy education is a preparation for political life. What secondary school pupils of seventeen or eighteen years of age learn and think in philosophy classes about justice, liberty, equality, the state, work, etc., is in fact a preparation for them to become citizens. At about the same time, they gain the right to vote, become legally full citizens, and will understand the political and moral duties of citizenship firsthand in their lives. People can only learn to master freedom in its application, and civic education can only be accomplished in political life. Young Frenchmen are able to test and understand the path to citizenship imparted to them by their philosophical education in the context of political participation.

In the last two decades, certain Eastern European and Latin American countries have also introduced philosophy education in secondary schools to help young people understand the value of freedom through free thinking. Philosophy education has become an important component of democratization. The beneficial association of philosophy with democracy depends on whether philosophical obsession and democratic zeal can be incarnated in politics as sound public *** spirit and civic virtue. Only then can we share the conviction expressed in the 1995 Paris Declaration on Philosophy that "the development of philosophical reflection in teaching and in cultural life, through the exercise of civic judgment, the essential element of all democracy contributes actively to the shaping of citizenship."

■Philosophy test questions for the 2012 French Baccalaureate

On Monday, June 18, 2012, at 8 a.m., the 334,464 students who applied for the Baccalaureate exam in the general category across France began their examination in the first subject, philosophy. Each candidate can choose any of three topics and the exam lasts four hours.

Test questions for humanities candidates

Topic 1: What do we gain through work?

Topic 2: Do all beliefs go against reason?

Topic 3: Explain an excerpted passage from Spinoza's Theological Politics.

Science (Science) Candidate Questions

Title 1: Do we have a duty to seek the truth?

Title 2: Would we be freer without the state?

Topic 3: Explain an excerpted passage from Rousseau's émile.

Economic and Social Sciences Candidate Questions

Title 1: Do natural desires exist?

Title 2: Is work, merely to be useful?

Topic 3: Explain an excerpted passage from George Berkeley's On Passive Obedience.

From South Weekend, July 5, 2012