Reflective Q

Identity, Community, Responsibility and Bodies of Knowledge

From “A New Agenda for Higher Education: Shaping a Life of the Mind for Practice.” 2008. William M. Sullivan and Matthew S. Rosin. The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

For purposes of the ORGL seminars, you will be particularly interested in understanding the highlighted concepts

on page 94 of the following excerpt. “The academy” refers to institutions of higher education.

INSTRUCTOR COMMENTS on Sullivan & Rosin… Chapter IV, pgs. 93 – 95. Sullivan & Rosin describe four guiding principles that relate to how students learn:

I. Identity II. Community

III. Responsibility IV. Bodies of Knowledge

These elements also relate to the different approaches of the three ORGL seminars. In ORGL 3000, emphasis is on the Self - or your personal identity – and how you learn.

Sullivan and Rosin define IDENTITY: Identity is “the reflective and formative…ways in which persons are formed, through institutional and social engagement, as they participate in evolving traditions of knowing” (Sullivan & Rosin Part I of IV, 2008, p. 94)

In ORGL 3050, we concentrate on Self in Context referring to those things around us which influence how our identities develop and how we interact with others:

Self in Context relates to Sullivan and Rosin’s Parts II and III: COMMUNITY is “Participation with others populates the imagination with models of what it means to engage the natural, social, and contextual contexts of action.” RESPONSIBILITY—“the person lives up to her responsibility for others and the values of the community… Only by keeping faith with the trust of others does the professional achieve legitimacy and meaning.” (Sullivan & Rosin, 2008, p. 94)

In ORGL 4000, the focus is on how the Self Transforms, being able to appreciate multiple perspectives or bodies of knowledge, being self-aware and being able to transform our behaviors.

In Sullivan and Rosen’s Part IV of IV, BODIES OF KNOWLEDGE are defined as — disciplinary (and multidisciplinary) frameworks for ‘arguing and knowing.’ (Sullivan & Rosin, 2008, p. 94)

Sullivan & Rosin’s Practical Reasoning The four principles above comprise the foundation of “practical reasoning,” proposed by Sullivan and Rosin. In their view undergraduate education must move beyond "critical thinking" to the idea of "practical reasoning" integrating teaching practices from the liberal arts—which develop students' ability to assume responsibility for their purposes and identity— with those from professional education, which stress competence and practice. Practical reasoning offers a repertoire of skills and habits of mind that can help adults figure out what to do when navigating the challenges of contemporary adult life. READ THE FOLLOWING PAGES 93-95 FROM SULLIVAN & ROSIN.