Recent in

Pedagogy

Volume 9-Issue 1: June 2015

The construction of a Maltese pedagogical grammar: a study of the noun

This paper discusses the construction of a pedagogical grammar for the teaching of Maltese to native speakers. It illustrates some of the issues that arise in the process of syllabus design by focusing on the noun, and reviews the literature to illustrate differences between traditional and modern linguistics. Starting by taking a critical approach to the syllabus and textbooks of Maltese, it continues by reviewing the literature dealing with the noun as a part of speech. It explores how teaching the ‘noun’ can be made relevant to learners at a secondary level. This short study proposes a syllabus for the noun with a ‘spiral format construction’ for the first four years of Secondary level education. This study can act as a guide to teachers who wish to plan lessons taking into consideration scientifically sound linguistic criteria.
Volume 17-Issue 1: June 2023

The Pedagogical Role of Philosophy in a Community of Inquiry

This paper explores the role philosophy has in pedagogy when practised in a community of inquiry. Apart from alluding to contemporary research on the philosophy of education, this paper presents a philosophy-based project named EPIX (Exploring Pupils’ Inquires on eXistential themes) that was launched in two Maltese secondary schools. This project introduced five existential themes to secondary school students, creating a community of inquiry through its pedagogical use of philosophy. After discussing the EPIX project, this paper highlights what the community of inquiry entails, and philosophy’s function in such a community. Next, this paper discusses how philosophy can encourage the community’s imagination, examining imagination’s importance in fostering social critique. Lastly, we investigate the educational role of philosophy in the Ethics Education community, a subject being taught in Maltese primary and secondary schools. Together, these parts underline the pedagogical role that philosophy has in the community of inquiry, to be nurtured pedagogically by current and prospective educators.
Volume 19-Issue 1: June 2025

Systems of Knowledge: A Pedagogy of the Privileged or of the Oppressed?

Fuelled by the hegemonic neoliberal agenda, education policy in Malta is progressively becoming subservient to the needs of capital, leading to the further commodification of learning in an increasingly credential society. At the same time, the conventional pedagogical discourse of education policy is that learning should serve as an inclusive liberating force for creativity, innovation, critical thinking and problem solving. This dichotomy between theory and praxis in education policy is particularly evident in the pedagogy of Systems of Knowledge, as its revolutionary potential as a progressive force for social change is appropriated by the commodification of learning, accreditation and market forces. The superficial and inapt application of critical praxis in terms of both pedagogical content and processes, infer the subordination of progressive and liberal ideals to neoliberal policies, demeaning Systems of Knowledge into another commodified tool of the privileged over an emancipatory vehicle for liberation and social justice. In this context, the paper questions; is Systems of Knowledge truly a pedagogy of the oppressed or another oppressive apparatus for the privileged?