Dialogic Space and Religious Education

Abstract

This review hopes to present an alternative model to confessional religious education and the kind of role religion can have in teaching and education. It is framed by the conceptualization of education as simultaneously being and becoming (van Manen 1991, 67). This dichotomous description underlines the challenging tension of balancing present realities with future anticipations, a tension which is perhaps the defining feature of education. In theoretical terms this review draws on sociocultural and dialogic educational research, particularly Rupert Wegerif’s notion of “dialogic space” (Wegerif 2007, 4), and a “Global Education: World Religions” -course recently run as part of the Summer School for Human Sciences at the University of Jyväskylä. The review opens by introducing the pedagogic orientation for the course and a simple cultural model developed within the course. Following this, the guidelines for the development of “dialogic space” are introduced with possible implications for Religious Education concluding the paper.

Keywords

• confessional religious education
• alternative model
• dialogic space