The soul of philosophy in a soulless age

In its original Greek conception, philosophy was intended to promote both wisdom and virtue among society; in this sense, the teaching, or presenting, of philosophy is central to its essence. Socrates and Plato famously grappled with the question of how to impart wisdom and virtue to the learner, with mixed results. One of the standard methods—reading and writing—was argued to be misleading and even deceptive, because it deals with static, ‘dead’ words and ideas rather than with the “living discourse” of one person speaking directly to another. This general critique of certain ‘technologies’ of learning is even more relevant today, in our technological age, where the presenting of philosophy often involves computers, laptops, and the Internet. Such things come to function as addictive drugs—much like the pharmakon that Plato warned of. Philosophy would thus be better served by less use of mediating technologies and by a return to live, interactive, living dialogue between student and teacher.

‘Localitis’ in State Diplomacy: A Study on Cultural Immersion and its Effects on the Indian Foreign Service

Literature in Diplomatic Studies often reference a phenomenon where diplomats sent for too long to another country develop an affinity for their assigned country, sometimes to the detriment of their home country. This has profound implications when we examine diplomatic agents as personalities in their own right and their ability to perform as state agents. This article investigates the basis of such a claim by examining the Indian diplomatic corps as a case study to verify its validity and enlist the factors that influence this phenomenon. This article relies on interviews given by former diplomats of the Indian Foreign Service to highlight the structures that influence behaviour of diplomatic agents and the implications it may have on training for future diplomats and preparing them for the evolution of diplomacy in the technological age.

Smart University: A University In the Technological Age

All universities have changed their visions because of developments in the advancement of education and other disciplines which are generally legitimately linked to global education reforms. The learning arena is gradually influenced by technological advances such as e-learning, IoT etc. which are rapidly and absolutely changing the way educators provide instruction and teach students. A Smart University is a university that uses technological innovation within its organization to accomplish its mission. This research focuses on the concept of a Smart University that incorporates within it the concept of big data and elearning, while showing its impact on teachers, learners and the educational institute in general.

Transfer of Print-Based Academic Reading Strategies to On-Screen Reading

This article contributes to the existing body of research on academic reading practices in the 21st century, by focusing on on-screen reading in the technological age. The study offers an insight into the nature of on-screen reading and reflects the authentic on-screen academic reading experiences of international postgraduate readers in the UK educational context. This was achieved by investigating participants’ reading comprehension strategies while reading on-screen academic research articles, compared with those employed when engaged in print-based reading. This study also scrutinizes L2 readers’ use of digital affordances and their use of e-resources while comprehending on-screen texts. Case study and interpretive qualitative approaches have been adopted in the present research study. Thematic and content analysis and a constant comparative method (CCM) have been applied to analyze the data. Although new on-screen reading strategies emerged from the data, the results reveal a transfer of print-based reading techniques to on-screen reading. This demonstrates a move from a traditional literacy to a digital one in which readers manipulate the strategies that they are already aware of, and are capable of, in order to read a text on-screen. Surprisingly, readers were much more effective: and employed more strategies and interacted more deeply with the printed text than with the on-screen text. The results from this study have led to the proposal of suggested models for interpreting on-screen L2 academic reading interactions. A number of pedagogical practices are suggested and recommended for preparing L2 readers for further academic study which could be equally applicable and useful for L1 academic reading instructions in the 21st century, including the reshaping of reading skills textbooks to accommodate and meet the needs of reading comprehension practices in the technological age and promoting learners’ digital academic literacy. These practices may be useful to teachers when teaching on-screen reading strategies for specific academic purposes in digital universities.

CURRÍCULO E RELAÇÕES DE GÊNERO: DESAFIOS DA EDUCAÇÃO SUPERIOR NA ERA TECNOLÓGICACURRICULUM AND GENDER RELATIONS: CHALLENGES OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE TECHNOLOGICAL AGE

A educação superior no Brasil segue, de maneira geral, tendência patriarcal nos currículos dos cursos de nível superior por fatores de toda ordem, sobretudo, cultural, à exceção de cursos tendencialmente demandados pelo público feminino. Assim, o objetivo deste artigo é lançar questionamentos acerca da relação entre gênero e currículo, com foco no ensino superior no Brasil, e as perspectivas de mudança à luz das ferramentas tecnológicas. Esse tema é justificável, haja vista a infinidade de debates que nunca esgotam o tema, mas que trazem à luz aspectos sensíveis da desigualdade. A metodologia consiste na análise qualitativa de artigos científicos que articulam ideias com o objetivo aqui delineado, cujos resultados (ou a expectativa) são discutidos no plano de ações de melhoria ao problema curricular da educação superior no Brasil. Nesse sentido, o presente artigo está dividido em quatro partes: a) a primeira expõe a questão pedagógica sob dois prismas, o da adoção de práticas pedagógicas ultrapassadas e a escravização dos sujeitos receptivos a essas práticas; b) currículo e gênero; c) os desafios da educação superior; e d) a sociedade da informação e a educação superior.