Subject: [IFETS-DISCUSSION:1439] Re: Emotions and Learning
From: Muhammad Betz (Betz@netcommander.com)
Date: Thu 29 Mar 2001 - 04:46:54 MEST
From: "Muhammad Betz" <Betz@netcommander.com> Subject: [IFETS-DISCUSSION:1439] Re: Emotions and Learning Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 20:46:54 -0600
Greetings:
I read with interest Barry Kort's posting on Emotions and Learning. In the
paper linked in his message to IFETS, I siezed upon this quote:
"In an attempt to reengineer the state of educational pedagogy, we should
first look to expert teachers who are very adept at recognizing the
emotional state of learners and, based upon their observation, taking
appropriate action that positively influences learning.
The term that I question in the above is "emotional state," despite the
popularity of the emotional I.Q. literature. I am reluctant to view
children's emotional states in seclusion from their total personality. To
me, the premise of focusing on children's emotional state, is faulty.
First, this premise assumes that the teacher really knows what he or she is
looking for, that he or she actually can pinpoint an emotional state. I
don't think so. It is too common to misattribute a perceived "emotional
state." Who does not remember being tagged as "angry" or "in love" or
"confused" when one was not really experiencing those emotions?
Having read Barry Kort's posting inspired me to consult my "out-of-date"
guru, Jean-Paul Sartre. In his essay, "Existentialism and Human Emotions"
(see http://www.anselm.edu/homepage/dbanach/exist.htm) Sartre says the
following, "What they [the existentialists] have in common is that they
think that existence precedes essence, or, if you prefer, that subjectivity
must be the starting point." The existentialist suggests that we view the
child as a subjective being, and this distinction implies a great deal more
than an emotional state. The subjective being is an entity with an
indentity that is more complex than an emotional typology would imply.
As an existenialist, I would accuse the "emotional state" label of
portending an 'essence preceding existence' motif, which is the opposite of
Sartre's motif of 'existence preceding essence.'
Regards,
Muhammad
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