Page - 56 - in Reflective Cosmopolitanism - Educating towards inclusive communities through Philosophical Enquiry

56 REfLECTIvE COsMOPOLITANIsM thoughts, our feelings and experiences. Language is the basis for reasoning and develop- ing interpersonal skills and enables us to engage in reflection and communication. Philosophers are concerned about the use of language and the ‘language game’ that is important to communicate meaning and understanding. One of the roles of a philoso- pher is to help understand the complexities of language. One main focus is on meaning – to promote awareness of the possible meanings of words inside the context of non–lin- guistic human activities, and to do conceptual analysis through language use. But how do we understand these concepts? What is the nature of language? Does language shape our thoughts? Does language influence our thinking? Language is closely linked to our thoughts. According to the Russian psychologist Vygotsky, language is the primary vehicle for human thinking and learning. It is through conversation that children progress. But children can use speech, not only for social com- municative purpose, but also for communicating with themselves and as a problem-solv- ing tool. Vygotsky wrote: “Instead of appealing to the adult, children appeal to themselves; language thus takes on an intrapersonal function in addition to its interpersonal use.” There’s a strong link between interpersonal communication and identity, so language is closely related to issues of democracy and human rights. Linguistic diversity and de- mocratization of language rights are important topics in intercultural education. We want to take a closer look at the concept of a language game - about the use of language and at the power of language in education for democracy. We will start this part with an inquiry on “language”. “What is the concept of lan- guage?”, “What are meanings?” This is an inquiry in the field of philosophy of language. Exercise: Exploring the concept of language Starting activity: Target 14 Target is a tool that your students can use, when they are uncertain about the nature of some concept: 1. Draw two circles on the board and write “language” in the middle of the inner circle. 2. Ask the students to think of as many words as they can associate with the tar- get concept “language”. 3. Don’t reject any offering and write each word on the board as it comes up. 4. Then divide the class into pairs and give each pair a blank sheet with two concentric circles (of course you can ask the children to draw circles for them- selves). They should write “language” in the inner circle. 13 Vygotsky, L. S. (1978): Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes (M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, E. Souberman, ed.) Cambridge: Harvard University Press, p. 27. 14 Target is adapted from Matthew Lipman and Ann Margaret Sharp, Wondering at the World: Instructional Manual to Accompany Kio and Gus. Montclair, New Jersey: Institute for the Advancement of Philoso- phy for Children with University Press of America 1986. Language