School as the place of non-encounter

Abstract

School, understood as an institutional implementation of certain pedagogical ideas, appears in modern Europe as the result of the centuries-old tradition of thinking about the nature of intellectual and moral human development. School used to be thought of as one of the main cultural instruments of transmitting values and heritage. It becomes evident, however, that the contemporary school only superficially fulfils this function. This is also true of many other roles the school is supposed to play. The fact that the situation of contemporary school is admittedly difficult and the multiplicity and complexity of the phenomena influencing the shape and the place of education in the contemporary culture, can indicate that the aims and functions of school should be reformulated. The article points to several factors justifying the need to redefine the essential functions of the school: the dynamic character of cultural changes, the outdated teaching model that has its roots in Enlightenment, and the change in the direction of cultural transfer.