I. TOWARDS A CONCEPT OF LEARNING TO LIVE TOGETHER
The search for harmony is an old aspiration. Sometimes, it is fulfilled, but the history of humanity shows how difficult it is to satisfy this desire for any length of time or to any extent. It is not possible to conclude that this difficulty is only due to shortcomings in education. Yet, it is possible to state that it has a role to play in helping to overcome it.
At the start of the twenty-first century, there seems to be general agreement on the fact that learning to live together also entails “ wishing and knowing how to live together ”.
Wishing and knowing how to live together entails knowledge, as intolerance and rejection are often borne of fear which in turn feeds on ignorance on the one hand, and on untolerable injustices in terms of access to human rights and development, on the other hand.
It is therefore necessary to learn to discover and get to know other peoples, generations, genders, social classes and groups of people, their cultures, needs, aspirations, sufferings, religions, traditions and motivations. To be able to do so also requires learning to know oneself better: acknowledging our own strengths and weaknesses.
One must also have and experience the right to information, knowledge and methodologies to learn throughout life and in the context of all of life's experiences. This involves a basic education which guarantees both skills, in terms of the systems of codes, communication and research, organization and analysis of information on the environment, technologies, society, as well as spiritual expressions in all their forms.
But the intellectual dimension is not enough in itself. The possibilities and difficulties of learning to live together also have an effect on affectivity and the emotional life.
Wishing and knowing how to live together involves affectivity and the emotions which, combined with relevant knowledge, can build values, attitudes, behaviours which we know are not part of an individual's natural baggage. In this way, one must learn self-respect and self-esteem which are at the root of any possible acceptance of others, of respect and empathy for them to be capable of solidarity. It is self-respect and self-esteem which bring about listening, dialogue, the non-violent resolution of conflicts and cooperation rather than confrontation.
Learning to live together is part of the “ construction of meaning ” for the type of education which children and teenagers feel they need. Wishing and knowing how to live together is both a personal and social challenge which needs to be developed by, including the renewal of the idea of the general good, the rules of life in society, the rights and responsibilities of all. Wishing and knowing how to live together involves the ability to “ work together ”, to carry out joint projects to improve day-to-day existence and build a better future together.
But the very idea of living together itself changes with time and in different cultures, as does the learning required to be capable of doing so and necessary forms of education for its promotion. Consequently, the question being raised at the start of the twenty-first century is to know what are the specifities of the current environment in the face of the challenge of learning to live together, to what extent is current education able to meet its task and in which directions are ongoing changes moving and which are desirable for the future.
Over recent decades, for example, there have been major changes in the perception we have of the right to education (3). Whereas the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to education, The Declaration adopted at the World Conference on Education for All at Jomtien (1990) states that every person - child, youth and adult - shall be able to benefit from a basic education which meets their basic learning needs. Ten years on, the Dakar Forum stressed the challenge of developing “ quality education for all ”. What are the basic learning needs for learning to live together at the start of the twenty-first century? What kind of education will meet these needs? What are we doing to improve them?
3. UNESCO, World Education Report 2000. The right to education: towards education for all throughout life, Paris, UNESCO Publishing, 2000. (Back)
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Last update: 29-07-2002