Importance and possibility of aesthetic education in contemporary pedagogy

Abstract

A manifold and versatile personality of the individual is the fundamental notion of pedagogy,reflecting about the goal of education and education as such. In the contemporary global,pluralistic, postmodern circumstances of today the role of the aesthetic in education is becomingless relevant when it comes to the functioning and maintaining of modern society, „knowledgesociety“, technicality that gives priority to economic growth under the guise of „development“ignoring fundamental human and cultural development. The whole process thus becomesinvolvement and efficiency in the „production and use of knowledge“ for the „knowledgeeconomy“ guided only with prosperous and economic motives. The somewhat forgotten andknown as the universally human and cultural does not neglect the importance of all educationalfields for the development of a versatile personality of the individual as a social individuality,and human development in general, thereby implying the notion of versatility as formation anddevelopment of physical, intellectual, moral, aesthetic and working abilities of the individual inan integrative synthesis. This paper provides an overview of ideas about aesthetics focusing onthe goals, purposes and tasks of the aesthetic in contemporary education with special emphasison the relationship between the aesthetic and other areas of human development, whichconstitute an integral whole and a grounds for development of an individual’s personality. Itextracts the general educational and cultural character of aesthetics in education by providingthe possibility of a meaningful substantiation, emphasizing art as a valuable creative and contentarea of aesthetic education.