EPS Seminar on May 28, 2020 (The Question of Universalism)

The seminar organized by the Education-Politics-Society research cluster on the morning of May 28 will focus on the issue of universalism. Two presentations are scheduled:

Tommy Terraz, an associate member of the laboratory and a researcher in the philosophy of education, sets out to(re)examine the concept of the universal in educationthrough the lens of the Anthropocene.

“The growing number of crises facing humanity (pandemics, climate change, etc.) is making us realize, more than ever, that humanity is one, interdependent, and interconnected. Yet the universal itself also seems to be in crisis, caught between the twin traps of nihilistic relativism on the one hand (a lack of differentiation that can lead to violence) and dogmatism on the other (identity-based isolationism that can lead to violence). Since the etymology of the word “crisis”—from the Greek “krisis”—means judgment or decision, it is important to make choices and to have “universalizable” reference points (Drouin-Hans, 2004) for education. Not to mention that education—a vital and necessary human relationship—cannot do without conditions, but also values and goals, which must be continually posited and reexamined. This proposal will therefore consist of exploring together, starting from a radical inquiry in the philosophy of education, the concept of the universal in education. Why should we continue to question educational universals time and again? And how can we go about doing so? We will also seek to dispel certain confusions and explore paradoxes and points of tension: between universality and singularity, as well as among republican principles (liberty, equality, fraternity, secularism, respect for diversity, etc.).
A preliminary bibliographic reference: Alain Policar, *The Disturbing Familiarity of Race*, *Decolonialism, Intersectionality, and Universalism*, published by Le bord de l’eau, *Whispers*https://www.editionsbdl.com/produit/linquietante-familiarite-de-la-race-decolonialisme-intersectionnalite-et-universalisme/”

Geneviève Zoïa, from the CEPEL Laboratory and the Faculty of Education, will provide empirical insights into the issue of universalism in educational research. She will presentthe book *Education and Diversity*, edited by Françoise Lorcerie, and her contribution to that volume on the relationship between diversity and universalism (http://www.pur-editions.fr/couvertures/1611134525_doc.pdf)