<高等教育の動向>異質さと共創するための大学教育 : ヴィゴツキーの言語論から越境の意義を考える

Abstract

The present study investigated the potential of university education from the perspective of Vygotsky's semiotics. Following Vygotsky's theory, this study defined "partial understanding" as rote learning that enables learners to use what is learned in only one social context, and defined the ability to generalize the application of such knowledge beyond that contexts as "boundary crossing" (Engeström, 2001; Engeström, Engeström & Kärkkäinen, 1995; Wenger, 1998). Thus, boundary crossing can be considered the ability to connect, during dialogic interactions, knowledge that has been nurtured in different social contexts. However, engagement in co-creative communication with others from heterogeneous social backgrounds is not easy; some students achieve only partial understanding, even in interactions that require each speaker to engage in boundary crossing. In examining the effects of recent interventions by universities to promote students' ability to engage in boundary crossing and move beyond partial understanding, I identified those characteristics of university teachers that render them especially well-suited to facilitate this kind of growth in their students.