GroundWorks

Cara Furman, University of Maine Farmington, Editor

Call for Papers: Talk as a Means to Bridge Perspectives: What Can (and Cannot) be Accomplished

The theme of the 2020 Philosophy and Education Annual Meeting asks philosophers of education to consider Philosophy of Education as Bridge. This year’s GroundWorks theme takes up a common trope, the characterization of talk as a bridge. We live in a moment in which it is often noted that people struggle to talk with those who have a different perspective. For example, political talk is often characterized as polarized with political groups adhering to extremist perspectives. Likewise, talk between those with different perspective is often presented as a panacea: a necessary and often missing way to bridge divides (cultural, racial, political, spousal etc.). On the opposite extreme, talk is also regularly reduced to an ineffective and meaningless way of addressing difference. These pressures weigh on schools. For example, teachers are urged at times to facilitate talk. At other times to silence it. Students are tasked with participating in conversations that ask them to speak out and listen. School leaders are often expected to create dialogues between families as well as staff.

For this year’s GroundWorks theme we invite papers that consider the power, pressures, and limitations on talk as a means of bridging divides between people and/or groups of people within the context of education.

Papers might address but are not limited to discussion of:

the philosophical implications of different kinds of talk (such as dialogue, discussion,
conversation, deliberation, debate among others)
how one’s ability to hear is enhanced or limited by particular ways of speaking or the
identities of particular speakers and listeners
the potentially silencing nature and/or empowering capacity of talk between people from
different backgrounds
relationships between talk and action
a philosopher’s work on this topic
how different mediums influence talk (for example how is talk influenced by facebook,
around the dinner table, when speakers are sitting in a circle?)
the potential for intellectual growth or change facilitated in talk
the varying goals of talk such as persuasion, compromise, denial
a philosophical look at programs designed to facilitate talk such as Restorative Justice,
Seeds of Peace, or Responsive Classroom (to name just a few)

Submission Details

Author(s) should submit working papers as a word document or PDF (no more than 1000 words) to groundworkspes@gmail.com by November 1st, 2019. In your email please include:

Contact Information: Name, Institutional Affiliation, Postal Address, Email Address, and Phone Number of the Author(s)
The title of the paper in the submission and no identifying information
The working paper should include a connection to the theme, arguments, and methodology

Papers will undergo double-blind review. Those invited to contribute a full paper will be notified by the end of November, 2019. Papers must be completed by January, 2020 in anticipation of being shared online and in person (details to come) at PES 2020. Full papers will be up to 3,000 words including citations and use Chicago style following the same format as the Philosophy of Education Society Yearbook. Authors should consult: Philosophy of Education Society Yearbook Sample Endnotes. Accepted authors can expect to work with the editor to ensure prose is legible and avoids philosophical jargon.