This article outlines the main principles and methods of the implementation of the original author’s methodology for activation of students image thinking and heuristic abilities during the studies of philosophy and history of philosophy. This methodology improves the creativity thinking by enabling to find the image analogies to the abstract ideas. As an addition to the traditional methods of studying philosophy, it reveals the new possibilities for the fruitful and creative assimilation of the lectures by the students.
There are several reasons why the problem of knowledge visualization becomes extremely significant in modern pedagogy. First, the major part of the information a human being obtains via vision. Second, modern youth, getting upbringing by overwhelming influence of mass media and Internet, can be invariably named a videogeneration. This is why oral information (a lecture, for example) that is accompanied by a visual material is accessed much better than the one without it. Third, modern students possess concrete(object) thinking, rather then abstract one, which they have still undeveloped. Philosophy is an abstract science. So there appears the necessity of adaptation of abstract philosophical ideas to the understanding level of an average student. How? One of the effective ways is the search for the image equivalent, translation of the verbal knowledge into visual form, associative comparison.
Studies of the philosophy course traditionally start with the historical-philosophical introduction. The problem is that during a relatively short period (1 semester) the students need to master a voluminous material to be acquainted with numerous philosophical trends, schools and persons. A new additional verified methodology is introduced for the optimization of the studying process. The students are offered to bring to philosophy seminars drawing accessorizes. While listening to the reports that last from 8 to 15 minutes, they perform a task of drawing the image of that particular philosophy they are being introduced to. From the beginning this task seems too obscure as everything new, yet it arises interest. Task specification: «Do not draw a philosopher portrait. Just underline by means of an image form the essentials of his worldview, draw what differs him from the others. Do not subscribe a philosopher name – the image itself must give the right clue for the recognition. Separate key words may be written, yet they must be a few and quite readable (in big letters)». After such an instruction the students start performing the task.
After the first report the students together with a lecturer analyze the first set of drawings revealing the essentials that must be invariably reflected in the images. In the case a reporter underlined the essentials and the students draw them, then the drawing becomes readable in every competent audience. After the initial analysis the lecturer offers the students the previous most successful drawings on the theme. It’s very important to show the previous generation drawings not before, but after their own experience in order not to get just copies of the available patterns and to activate the personal creativity of the students. Every next drawing enlarges students experience in the activity performance. They listen to the reporter more attentively, start to differentiate the main and the minor, search for adequate images to graphic embodiment of the various philosophical ideas. On every subsequent drawing analysis the lecturer draws students attention at the archetypical images that are seen on the numerous drawings. In such a way the most important ideas of a particular school or a philosopher are being secured. The lecturer marks and withdraws the most successful drawings into his collection of the methodical material, while the rest of them leaves with the authors to remind them about the ideas they fixed. These drawings can be used not only during the preparation to the exam or an assessment, but even during the exam as an image prompt giving key understanding to a person that worked a lot, but suddenly forgot or mixed the details. Those who want to detail their drawings, can do it at home. Besides, the students can use this method during their own preparation to a seminar. They like this creative work that eases them understanding of the abstract philosophical theories, because not only logic and the rational thinking left hemisphere of the brain are used, but the image thinking is being enabled. This methodology is particularly helpful to the students with difficulties in adjusting their way of thinking to the purely abstract ideas. They get additional (image) support to the rightful understanding and remembrance. Not only the product(drawings) is important, but the process of drawing itself, due to the activation of a student creative potential. That’s why the most valuable is not the artist perfection and excellence of the drawing but the very process of transforming the philosophical ideas into the image equivalent, which every student must perform by his own means. A student obtains the possibility to show his creativity, his possibility to construct something new, and even, in some cases, to demonstrate his artistic talent. With the accumulation of the image drawings the lecturer obtains additional possibilities to secure the studied material and to examine the students.
The work was submitted to the International Scientific Conference «Science and education in contemporary Russia», Moscow, November, 13-15, 2013, сame to the editorial office on 18.11.2013.