This master's thesis examines the subjectification potential of peer mediation, following the assumption of school as a living space where children are daily placed in numerous situations that represent an opportunity to establish the child as an ethical, responsible and autonomous subject. Understanding school as a living space, therefore, introduces a moment of freedom and uncertainty into the educational activity, which means that schools are faced with the challenge of how to satisfy the elements of education as subjectification and at the same time endure the risks that come with it. It is because of this that we turn to the autopoietic approach to education and school activities, in which qualification, socialization and subjectification are intertwined. It is only in the intertwining of all three domains of education that opportunities for reflection and decisions on how one lives and acts in the world can be formed. This is underlined by the analysis of cases of subjectification, which clearly show that the emergence of a subject is necessary but not sufficient for the development of an ethical subject. That is why we explore ways to complement the concept of education as subjectification and manage the uncertain connection between subjectified decisions and moral action. Because of this, we turn to the analysis of peer mediation as an educational approach that leads to subjectification. Peer mediation emphasizes the importance of conflict situations as a first–person experience, enabling the child to enter into dialogical relationships with others, establishing symmetrical communication and reminding them that they can be and act as ethical subjects. After all, symmetrical communication brings an ethical dimension into the discourse of subjectification and represents a »safeguard« against possible harmful behaviour of an individual. Based on this, we also reflect on the current implications for creating safe and stimulating learning environments and encourage discourse on the educational role of schools through the prism of the autopoietic system theory and subjectification.
|