Page 9 - Šolsko polje, XXX, 2019, št. 5-6: Civic, citizenship and rhetorical education in a rapidly changing world, eds. Janja Žmavc and Plamen Mirazchiyski
P. 9
j. žmavc in p. mirazchiyski ■ civic, citizenship and rhetorical education ...
and literary composition. As a complex discipline, rhetoric should primar-
ily be understood in the classical Greco-Roman social perspective, that is
as a civic competence, which is crucial for an individual’s successful active
social engagement. With its clear inscription of the relation of language
and power in a specific cultural moment, rhetoric thus represents an im-
portant, yet controversial topic of education. For example, despite the ide-
al general orientation of rhetorical education to shape all citizens for pub-
lic participation (which for the most part of history represented men of
the upper class who were trained for public leadership positions), the ques-
tion of “who should receive rhetorical education, in what form, and for
what purpose” even nowadays makes it a slippery concept in terms of a
theory or a practical application (Glenn, 2004, p. viii).
It should not come as a surprise, that modern theories of rhetoric
and rhetorical education see rhetorical education as one of the key ele-
ments of modern citizenship education and they advocate for a systemat-
ic teaching of rhetoric, which includes modern conceptualizations of (ac-
tive) citizenship, democracy, interculturality, etc. (Danisch, 2015; Ferry,
2017; Kock and Villadsen, 2012, 2017). On the other hand, any modern
rhetorical education that is firmly grounded on the classical perspective
provides a support for the humanities paradigm, which opposes the cur-
rent profit-oriented education (Nussbaum, 2012) and places arts and hu-
manities (and rhetoric along with them) at the centre of modern education
for democracy. Consequently, as it has been known to happen many times
before in the history of education (Conely, 1994), the role and importance
of rhetoric as an educational topic is again being deliberated in the con-
text of various education systems in Europe, either at the level of integra-
tion of rhetoric in the National Curricula as a part of existing subjects
(Aczel, 2019, Bakken, 2019; Kjeldsen and Grue, 2011), or designing (new)
educational content or programmes (Dainville and Sans, 2016; Žagar Ž.
et al., 1999/2004; Žmavc et al., 2018) or at the level of raising awareness
of the importance of mastering rhetoric as a part of 21st century compe-
tence and skills (Holmes–Henderson, 2016). However, rhetorical educa-
tion can hardly be reduced solely to the traditional composition perspec-
tive or its current social and civic aspects. There is also the “interactive”
perspective of rhetoric, which originates in the well-known classical con-
ceptions of public persuasion as a communicative act between the speaker,
the audience and the speech. Thus, as a communication practice, rhetoric
in the context of education should be seen (also) as transversal, a transfera-
ble skill that is relevant in different school and learning situations. Its role,
within the pedagogical process, is particularly important since mastering
rhetorical and argumentation principles influences especially the success
7
and literary composition. As a complex discipline, rhetoric should primar-
ily be understood in the classical Greco-Roman social perspective, that is
as a civic competence, which is crucial for an individual’s successful active
social engagement. With its clear inscription of the relation of language
and power in a specific cultural moment, rhetoric thus represents an im-
portant, yet controversial topic of education. For example, despite the ide-
al general orientation of rhetorical education to shape all citizens for pub-
lic participation (which for the most part of history represented men of
the upper class who were trained for public leadership positions), the ques-
tion of “who should receive rhetorical education, in what form, and for
what purpose” even nowadays makes it a slippery concept in terms of a
theory or a practical application (Glenn, 2004, p. viii).
It should not come as a surprise, that modern theories of rhetoric
and rhetorical education see rhetorical education as one of the key ele-
ments of modern citizenship education and they advocate for a systemat-
ic teaching of rhetoric, which includes modern conceptualizations of (ac-
tive) citizenship, democracy, interculturality, etc. (Danisch, 2015; Ferry,
2017; Kock and Villadsen, 2012, 2017). On the other hand, any modern
rhetorical education that is firmly grounded on the classical perspective
provides a support for the humanities paradigm, which opposes the cur-
rent profit-oriented education (Nussbaum, 2012) and places arts and hu-
manities (and rhetoric along with them) at the centre of modern education
for democracy. Consequently, as it has been known to happen many times
before in the history of education (Conely, 1994), the role and importance
of rhetoric as an educational topic is again being deliberated in the con-
text of various education systems in Europe, either at the level of integra-
tion of rhetoric in the National Curricula as a part of existing subjects
(Aczel, 2019, Bakken, 2019; Kjeldsen and Grue, 2011), or designing (new)
educational content or programmes (Dainville and Sans, 2016; Žagar Ž.
et al., 1999/2004; Žmavc et al., 2018) or at the level of raising awareness
of the importance of mastering rhetoric as a part of 21st century compe-
tence and skills (Holmes–Henderson, 2016). However, rhetorical educa-
tion can hardly be reduced solely to the traditional composition perspec-
tive or its current social and civic aspects. There is also the “interactive”
perspective of rhetoric, which originates in the well-known classical con-
ceptions of public persuasion as a communicative act between the speaker,
the audience and the speech. Thus, as a communication practice, rhetoric
in the context of education should be seen (also) as transversal, a transfera-
ble skill that is relevant in different school and learning situations. Its role,
within the pedagogical process, is particularly important since mastering
rhetorical and argumentation principles influences especially the success
7
