The phenomenology of gestures and the pedagogy of exercise and drill

1. The phenomenology of gestures and the pedagogy of exercise and drill Joris Vlieghe LaboratoryforEducation and Society University of Leuven (Belgium)

2. General goal: to develop a new perspective on the role of corporeality for understanding educational phenomena (teaching and learning) • The perspective I develop could be called phenomenological • At the same time I criticize the main stream phenomenological approach to the issue of the body and education • I will focus on a specific pedagogical practice: exercise/drill (German: ‘Üben’; Dutch: ‘oefenen’)

3. Overview • Mainstream view : phenomenology of the meaning-generating body (Merleau-Ponty) and itssucccesses in pedagogy (2) Critique of thismainstream view (3) Alternativeapproach: phenomenology of gestures (VilémFlusser)

4. Mainstream view • This view shouldbeunderstood as a reaction to firmlyrootedprejudices in educationaltheory and practiceregarding the body, viz. intellectualist and dualist accounts These accounts regardcorporeality - either as a nuissance/danger - or as a dimensionthat has at most a secondaryrelevance • Although in practice these prejudices are stillfartooprevalent, in theory intellectualist/dualist accounts have lost lot of theircedibility As a result of: - societaland culturalevolutions - scientificdiscoveries (e.g. mirror neurons) - input fromphilosophy (Dewey, Ryle, MERLEAU-PONTY)

5. Mainstream view • Merleau-Pontyshowsthat [1] whatis so called‘intellectual‘ is in realitydependent upon theway in whichweareasbodiessituated in theworld [2] manythingswelearnare in realitynocognitive, but practicallyembodiedskills [3] thebodyitselfis a sourceandcarrierofmeaning (ithasitsownintentionality)

6. Mainstream view • In thewakeoftheseinsights, manyeducationalistshavearguedfor a more body-centeredpedagogy: itis high time torecognizethatthebodyis a neglectedresourceweshouldputatwork in order establish relevant educationalgoals, moreefficientlyand/or in a waythatismorerespectfultothewhole human being • E.g.: testingknowledgeofscientificconcepts; dealingwithxenophobia; physicallitteracy; laughter • Atthe same time: a pleatoabolish obsolete practiceslikeexercisingand drill (whichmerelydisciplineandsubjectthebody) in favourofpracticesthatappeal to the meaning-creative potentials inherent to the body

7. Critique of the mainstream view • Threefundamentallines of criticism (I willonly deal with the firsttwo in thispresentation) : [1] the body is actuallyturnedintoan instrument forobtaining goals that have nothing to do with the body [2] the body is taken seriously indeed, butonlyinsofaritcan do the samethingsthatused to bereserved to the solemnrealm of the mind (intentionality, meaning-creation): body = mind in disguise [3] thistheoreticalreappraisal of the body doesn’tconvincinglyexplainwhy in practicethere has been (and still is) such a hostility vis-à-vis the body in education

8. Analternativeapproach • A view which takes the idea far more seriouslythateducation is a corporealaffair • I turn to the work of VilémFlusser (1920-1991), anauthorwho is notoftendiscussedandwhofocussed his attention amongotherthings on new media – and more specifically on the differencesbetweenwritingand digital forms of communication Does Writing Have a Future? (2011) Into the Universe of Technical Images (2011) • Attempttodevelop ‘a phenomenology of gestures’

9. Phenomenologyof ‘gestures’ Gestures are … • embodiedpractices, oftenrelatedto concrete materialobjects/tools, • the sense of whichshould NOT beunderstood in view of analreadygivenideaaboutthispracticefrom a mind-focusedperspective (i.e. what we spontaneously think and feel when we perform a certain activity) • BUT, the sense of whichshouldbeunderstoodfrommaterial-technologicaldispositionsthatconstitutethispractice

10. Phenomenology of ‘gestures’ • For example: the gesture of writing “what does it means to put very material letters upon the surface of a very material sheet of paper?” • We should NOT approach it in the first place as a medium (instrument) forexpressingmeaning • BUT as anactivitythatfollows a specific logic of itsown, andwhichshapesourpotentialtoexpressmeaning in the first place

11. Difference between ideographic/numerical ‘writing’ and alphabetic writing: whilst alphabetic writing is linked to the one-dimensional logic of the ear, numerical/ideographic writing mirrors the two-dimensional logic of the eye • As such different forms of writing correspond to different ways of thinking: alphabetization as a precondition for the possibility to think in a manner that is rational, causal and historical (Cf. McLuhan, Ong, Stiegler) • Flusser's interest in this evolution stems from his concern what a shift towards digital literacy would imply (gesturologically spoken it concerns a completely different way to relate the world, implying a fundamental transformation in our self-experience)

12. Rather than exploring further what the (near) future might bring, I'll focus on the more 'traditional' practice of alphabetization, i.e. learning writen languge by repeating (collectively and repetitively) the basic elements of this language (a, b, c, ...) • mostly this is seen as an obsolete practice or as something that has no intrinsically educational value (merely a preparation for the truly meaningful activities) (cf. Merleau-Ponty) • However, taking Flusser's point of view seriously, it might be argued that this kind of exercise/drill constitutes the essence of (school) education

13. The obsession with meaning (Merleau-Ponty) precludes the possibility to come to terms with the role of corporeal dimensions of education that are precisely disposed of meaning • Seen as gesture, repetitive and collective exercise are heavily embodied practices that imply a very specific (and unusual) way to relate to a subject matter (here: written language). • The basic idea then is that these corporeal dimensions do matter: learning alone or together, with or without repetition makes a difference.

14. Exercise and drill make us relate to the basic dimensions of a subject matter, NOT as individuals with our own interests and motivation, BUT as a collective of bodies. • Precisely this can account for the educational significance of exercise/drill : their specific ‘gestural’ quality grants the possibility of real transformation, i.e. a suspension of the usual way in which our individual and collective lives are ordered • This kind of analysis can be used to elucidate the sense of all kinds of school practices (learning to count, declination of verbs, basic callisthenics, singing in group, etc.)