visual & philosophical pedagogy

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visual and Philosophical PedagogiesRobert Farrow

Visual Learning: Communication-Cognition-CurriculumBudapest, December 7-8th 2012

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Background & Method• My background as philosopher and educational technologist• Exploring possibilities to support access to philosophical

education through technology • Methodology: approximately 1 year spent searching for

relevant images which were archived to a Pinterest gallery; PHILOS-L query; researching data visualization techniques, accessibility software and pedagogical research

• http://pinterest.com/philosopher1978/philosophy-visualizations/

ci.olnet.org / http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oo3xPyoiwYg

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Philosophical Pedagogy• Obviously there is no single pedagogy for philosophy• Typically based on collective, discussion of texts & ideas• May be synchronous or asynchronous• Some research suggests that traditional approaches may not

suit some learning styles (AEL, 2003; Pashler et al, 2008)• Massively Open Online Courses (MOOC) and the pedagogies

of the future

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Digital Philosophy• Explosion in visual and media literacy in the computer age• More sites, databases and repositories dedicated to

philosophy than ever before• These tend to replicate rather than replace traditional model

• E.g. Library database -> Philosophers Index• Archiving of journal paper proofs• Lecture hall -> Video lectures, podcasts

• Need for new pedagogies which reflect the new ways in which we share and communicate through technology

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Rationale• Many students find the emphasis on the written word to be a

barrier to learning philosophy• Most online resources supporting philosophy simply digitize

and scale up offline resources • Prospect of new pedagogies in philosophy:

• New techniques for recording & visualizing information• New technologies allow novel ways to access data

Visualizing Philosophy• Some examples in print…

• … and videos on YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/user/QualiaSoup

http://www.youtube.com/user/clmps2011 /

http://www.youtube.com/user/CollegeBinary?feature=watch

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizing Philosophy• Such examples are often accessible but typically thought

reductive – and perhaps even unhelpful – by professional philosophers

• Conversely, the allegorical tradition in art uses rich visual metaphors to convey complex philosophical ideas but can often be hard to decipher

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Paolo Uccello, Annunciazione

(c.1425)

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Ambrogio Lorenzetti, Allegoria ed effetti del Buono e del Cattivo Governo (1338-9)

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

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Holbein The Younger, Double Portrait of Jean de Dinteville

and Georges de Selve (‘The Ambassadors’) (1533)

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualization• “A visualization method is a systematic, rule-based,

external, permanent, and graphic representation that depicts information in a way that is conducive to acquiring insights, developing an elaborate understanding, or communicating experiences.”

(Lenger & Eppler, 2007:83)

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizing Philosophy: Issues• Accessibility without excessive dilution• Inertia within academic culture• What is to be visualized? Abstract concepts/ideas rather than

empirical ‘data’• How to be non-reductive?

• Visualization to support insight• Visualization as ‘distraction’

• The need to support & foster critical thinking

Visualizations

Visualizations: Timeline• Timelines can show the history of an idea, or the way in which

different philosophers have influenced each other• Some might argue that this information is not really relevant

to philosophical reflection(n.b. Heidegger’s remarks on Aristotle)

• However, many secondary philosophy books take a broadly historical approach and contextualise philosophical ideas

• Augmentation of existing resources

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizations: Timeline• Timeline

http://media-cache-ec6.pinterest.com/upload/50102614575124563_QbO4RpiM.jpg

400 BC

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1635

http://people.cohums.ohio-state.edu/scharp1/Sociology%20of%20Philosophy%20(Western)%203.1%20%20(part%202).jpg

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizations: Mnemonics

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizations: Representation• Graphical depiction of complex or abstract ideas• ‘Invisibility’ (analogy with HCI)• Can we explain philosophical theories simply through shape

and colour?• The possibility of an ‘iconic language’ (Neurath; 1936; Yadani

& Barker, 2000; Nyiri, 2003)

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizations: Network Diagrams• Network Diagrams depict connections between nodes (as in a

communication network)• Used to represent levels of granularity within a network

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

http://people.cohums.ohio-state.edu/scharp1/Begriffsschrift.html

Frege’s Begriffsschrift

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technologyhttp://people.cohums.ohio-state.edu/scharp1/Hofstadter.html

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technologyhttp://ollieglass.com/tumblr/img/phil_exp_2_1.jpg

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizations: Organizational Framework• Hierarchical arrangement of information• Shows categorization, systematic dependencies and relations

of influence

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Alfred H. Barr Jr. (1936) designed the original version of this organizational chart which shows the historical developments and fashions within modern art by hand.

He reworked it several times and never produced a final version (although the cover image of the catalogue for Cubism and Abstract Art remains iconic).

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technologyhttp:

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

http://www.academia.edu/189874/A_Diagram_of_Kants_Critique_of_Pure_Reason

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizations: Mindmaps• Used to outline information visually• Major categories radiate from a central node, and lesser

categories are sub-branches of larger branches• Long history in brainstorming & problem solving• Non-linear• Can be connected to make concept maps• Well supported in terms of software

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Comparative diagrams of selected bibliographies of philosophy from 1498 to 1905http://jitp.commons.gc.cuny.edu/philosophy-through-the-macroscope-technologies-representations-and-the-history-of-the-profession/

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Visualizations: Flow Charts• Diagrammatic reasoning• Pathways into ideas (logic gates)• Reduced possibilities for criticism, reflection or asking

questions? Maybe not more so than a lecture…• Again, well supported by software intended for dyslexic

students

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The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Possibilities for Innovation• New forms of pedagogical support• New ways to navigate data: bibliographies, databases, etc.• Curriculum & Learning Design• Access:

–Accommodating learning styles–Delivery through ubiquitous technologies–Pathways into the subject–Connectivity & ‘Openness’

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

New (?) Pedagogies• Collective creation of new kinds of digital artefacts• New forms of collective activity in curriculum design• Student work which is not based in writing or discussion• Iconic languages for facilitating philosophical

reflection/understanding• Opening the subject up to non-specialists/interdisciplinarity

The Open University's Institute of Educational Technology

Critique• Philosophy is simply not about retaining information• Philosophy, reflection and ‘facts’• Reification and the need for participatory culture• None of this is particularly unique to philosophy… though

perhaps this indicates a breadth of opportunity• Should the visual approach be limited to introductory

materials? If not, we need to build new tools and digital artifacts

r.j.farrow@open.ac.ukInstitute of Educational TechnologyThe Open UniversityWalton HallMilton KeynesMK7 6AAwww.open.ac.uk/iet

philosopher1978