The problem of contemplation and contemplative practicies in education

Introduction. The relevance of the article is explained by modern education policy and education practices determined by it, which are aimed at fixed learning outcomes. It leads to the problem of losing interest in learning processes. Therefore, the aim of the article is to problematize the procedural aspect in education and study contemplative educational practices as process-focused ones. The research objectives are to outline contemplative trends in modern education, to summarize and analyze them in the light of the philosophy of education. Materials and Methods. The basis of the research is phenomenological methodology. The author applies general methods of the philosophy of education and adopted phenomenological, socio-phenomenological, and cross-cultural approaches. Furthermore, the research methodology comprises socio-philosophical criticism in the analysis of modern educational reality and educational policy; historical genetic and historical comparative methods in the analysis of educational trends and practices in different countries in different historical periods; methods of typology and generalization of common trends; and etymological and semantic analysis of concepts. The research materials include international and Russian publications on practical and theoretical aspects of education and philosophy. The author also employs personal experience of participant observation when carrying out specific practices. Results. Section 1 of the article presents the research problem which is fixation on learning outcomes and examines the experiences of coping with it in education with examples of educational practices. The necessity to pay more attention to process has been problematized and the issue of contemplation in education has been justified. The most important aspects of the experiences under discussion (“slowing down”; “stopping”, “silence”) were identified and analyzed. In a broader perspective, an analysis of the contemplative movement in education, as a whole, has been conducted. Section 2 is devoted to the phenomenon of contemplation as such and presents its well-known interpretations along with author's analysis of its nature as a special phenomenon, primarily from the point of view of the philosophy of subjectivity. On this basis, the essence of contemplative practices and such meanings as the discovery of another, of the Other, the development of empathy are clarified. Section 3 focuses on research results, clarifies the meaning and place of contemplation in modern education and, moreover, suggests some ideas for further use of contemplative practices. Conclusions. In conclusion, the author summarizes research results about the issues of contemplation and contemplative practices in modern education.