Christoph Solstreif-Pirker

2.48 Encounters with the Critical Zone: Five Art Forms (and Possibly more) for Unfolding the Unknown Present (Paper)

Christoph Solstreif-Pirker – University College of Teacher Education Styria, Graz, Austria

Viktoria Taucher – University College of Teacher Education Styria, Graz, Austria

Abstract:

From day to day, people are confronted with the challenge of dealing with unexpected territories – a task increasingly perceived as overwhelming, making the growing escape from the present reality understandable yet alarming. We now ask which practices and competencies can be identified that do not negate the present but allow one to take part in it, perhaps even awakening curiosity about its unknown realms. Given their diverse methodologies, artistic subjects seem predestined for formulating such affirmative forms of thought and action. Introducing children and young adults to their inherent potentials can be ideally achieved through individual artistic (re-)search and exploration. Providing such a space for unfolding the unknown and capturing the unique experiences of such exploratory processes is a crucial attitude for future art educators. It equips them with the openness and responsibility necessary in their professional field and gives students a specific sensibility to all critical aspects of the present and future. Particularly, this exploratory attitude is expressed in the following five art forms, which we will discuss in more detail within this lecture: Mindfulness – the art of experiencing the present without judgment, being attentive to the self and the world, and perceiving, accepting, and interpreting potentials in both; Concern – the art of being touched by the unknown, staying with it, and investigating the relation between the aesthetic and the ethical beyond intentionality; Fragility – the art of understanding one’s boundaries as permeable and expandable, questioning the predominance of one’s self, and demonstrating vulnerability rather than power; Resilience – the art of facing problems with an open outcome, adapting to changing conditions, and emerging from challenges more vital than before; Appreciation – the art of recognizing and respectfully accepting individual perspectives, forms of expression and achievements, and encountering diversity and the other with an open mind and considering she/he/them as enrichment.

6.33 Appreciative Ecologies: Towards Person-Centred Forms of Space and Encounter to Prevent Early School Leaving (Paper)

Christoph Solstreif-Pirker – University College of Teacher Education Styria, Graz, Austria

Abstract:

“Appreciative Ecologies” is a transdisciplinary research project that attempts to realize collective, cooperative, and copoietic territories in everyday teaching situations.  Building on person-centred psychotherapy, the philosophy of alterity, and spatial anthropology, the project is specifically interested in Carl Rogers’ concept of Unconditional Positive Regard – an empathetic and non-judgmental way of meeting others. How can this appreciating form of encounter be realized in the classroom? How does the architectural setting positively influence such a form of encounter? With the hypothesis that positively regarding each other in the classroom can counteract phenomena such as early school leaving, the project returns to the concrete communication procedures within, and spatial conditions of, the classroom. This shift of focus from the abstract macro- to the concrete micro-level allows teaching’s potential for personal development and growth to be (re)discovered, both on the part of students and teachers. The project claims that the interpersonal and materialized application of person-centred unconditional positive regard can transform the classroom into a heterarchical territory where early school leaving occurs to a far reduced degree. By interweaving different disciplines (pedagogy, psychology, psychotherapy, sociology, philosophy, art, and architecture), the project opens up a broad and open framework for discussing and integrating person-centred appreciation in teaching. The research and formulation of a person-centred learning environment for the classroom is to be regarded as new scientific territory, the first horizons of which are presented and discussed in this presentation.