Introduction | Current Plans | Regular Activities | Presentations Thus Far | Interdisciplinary Research Seminars | Annual Public Lecture Series | Select Bibliography | Links
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Philosophic truth is to be sought in the
presuppositions of language rather than in its express
statements. For this reason philosophy is akin to poetry,
and both of them seek to express that ultimate good sense
which we term civilization.
Alfred North Whitehead, Modes of Thought, New York, The Free Press, 1938, p. vii. |
The University of Saskatchewan Process Philosophy Research Unit (USPPRU) is unique in the Canadian university system. It comprises a group of interdisciplinary researchers, who have been actively engaged in investigating process philosophy and its relationship to education, ecology, culture, science and society since 1992. Its Co-directors are Professors Mark Flynn (Educational Psychology and Special Education), Bob Regnier (Educational Foundations), Ed Thompson (Philosophy) and Howard Woodhouse (Educational Foundations).
USPPRU was officially recognised by the U of S in December, 1997. We have published more than thirty book chapters and articles in refereed journals, and presented papers at twenty four international, national and local conferences on process philosophy and education. The framework we adopt is that of process thought, which is a vibrant philosophical tradition stemming from the work of John Dewey, Alfred North Whitehead and Henri Bergson. It provides a constructive yet critical perspective for exploring the presuppositions of culture, modern science, education and ecology. By incorporating elements of the new physics with those inherited from the seventeenth century, process thought enhances a balanced understanding of the various phenomena which it considers. These may be as diverse as the process of human learning, the role of science in the modern world, and the connection between Aboriginal and process philosophy. Indeed, these are all topics on which we have already published in refereed journals, books and conference proceedings.
Process philosophy, then, is a dynamic paradigm, attractive to researchers in the natural sciences as well as to those in the humanities, the social sciences, and education. As evidence of this fact, physicists, mathematicians, ecologists, educationalists, philosophers and theologians were among those who joined with us at the international conference "Education, Ecology and Science" in Exeter, England, June, 1998. Together we raised questions about knowledge and the human condition which are a part of the ongoing research program of USPPRU. The papers presented at the Exeter conference were published in the refereed journal Interchange: A Quarterly Review of Education 31 (2 - 3), 2001, of which Howard Woodhouse was Guest Editor. The same journal published a symposium of ours on Process Philosophy of Education in 1995. This publication spurred responses from colleagues around the world. Four of the articles listed in the bibliography below are replies to those responses.
CURRENT PLANS
The University of Saskatchewan Process Philosophy Research Unit (USPPRU) intends to pursue research through: (1) publications; (2) conferences; (3) dialogue/networking with colleagues both at the University and in the community ; and (4) interdisciplinary research seminars . The following is a partial listing of on-going developments by USPPRU in these areas:
(See the select bibliography below for further details)
International Conference "Knowledge, Value and Meaning ...as Process" - Saskatoon 2003
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From left to right: John Cobb, Adam Scarfe, Ed Thompson, Howard Woodouse, Elspeth Crawford, Mark Flynn, Ian Winchester, Bob Regnier, Mary Elizabeth Moore, Chary Rangacharyulu, Pete Gunter, Jack Priestley, Keith Robinson. |
“Knowledge, Value, and Meaning … as Process”
International Conference Newsflash
At the “Knowledge, Value, and Meaning … as Process” International Conference hosted by the University of Saskatchewan Process Philosophy Research Unit last Thursday, fourteen scholars converged at the Bessborough Hotel to discuss topics pertaining to Process Philosophy, as well as its application to Education and to the Natural Sciences. Peter Gunter’s (University of North Texas) presentation on “Temporal Hierarchy in Bergson and Whitehead” commenced the proceedings in a deeply philosophical light, linking the two process philosophers in the notion of ‘Rhythms of Duration.’ Peter Gunter is the newly appointed chair of the Association for Process Philosophy of Education. Later in the afternoon, Howard Woodhouse presented a paper entitled, “A Process Approach to Community-Based Education: The People’s Free University of Saskatchewan” in which he identified the PFU as an institution imbued with Whiteheadian ideals.
In the evening, over one hundred people from the general public, academia, the student-body, and from various lobby memberships filled the Terrace Room to hear John Cobb’s (Founding Director, Centre for Process Studies, Claremont Graduate School) lecture on “Whitehead’s Theory of Knowledge as a Critique of the Modern University.” The crowd was welcomed by Tom Wishart, Dean of Graduate Studies and Associate Vice-President, Research followed by the warm introduction of John Cobb, by Professor Bob Regnier. John Cobb’s presentation included a thorough critique of universities as not contributing to an ecological world-view. Rather, he concluded that education should be directly centred on solving humanity’s common problems, such as the ecological crisis. Many questions followed the presentation. With a great deal of interest, the session lasted almost three hours. It was filmed both by Shaw Cable and privately by U.S.P.P.R.U.
After a morning filled with presentations on the relationship between the natural sciences and process philosophy, the session in the late morning and in the afternoon on Friday centered on linking Whitehead’s process metaphysics with education. Topics such as forgetting, emotion, feeling, critique, selectivity, contrast, and value were touched upon as seminal to education and to educational practice. Later, conference participants were whisked away for a visit to, and an evening meal at Wanuskewin Heritage Park. After a lively photo-session and a nature walk, participants feasted on salmon and bison. They were then entertained by the intricate guitar-work and vocals of Howard Woodhouse (accompanied by Adam Scarfe on bass guitar), as well as by the thoughtful and humorous songs of Peter Gunter.
At the sessions on Saturday, Elspeth Crawford (University of Edinburgh) further drove home the necessity of the emotions in education from a Whiteheadian perspective. Later, Jack Priestley (University of Exeter) concluded the proceedings with a paper entitled, “Education and the Religious Thinker,” which linked Whiteheadian philosophy with Eastern thought, and pointed to the necessity and importance of religious education. The conference concluded with an evening meal at the Passage to India Restaurant and with some discussion about upcoming International Process Network conferences such as those in Minneapolis, Scotland, and Korea. It was hypothesized that a follow-up conference might be held at Emory University in two years’ time.
-- by Adam Scarfe
International Conference "Education, Ecology and Science" - Saskatoon 1998
In June 1998, USPPRU organised an international conference, entitled "Education, Ecology and Science" in collaboration with the University of Exeter. Researchers from eight countries participated in the conference which marked the 50th anniversary of the death of Alfred North Whitehead; mathematician, philosopher, educator and one of the founders of process thought. We were able to obtain $5,500 in funding for the conference from both the U of S and elsewhere. In the year 2003, we shall hold a second international conference at the University of Saskatchewan based on the themes and issues of knowledge, value, meaning, and process. Participants at the Exeter conference encouraged us in this endeavour and we will be seeking substantial funds from SSHRC for this second conference. Moreover, we intend to hold other conferences in Europe and/or the United States with the Centre for Process Studies, Claremont College, California and the Catholic University of Lille, France.
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From step down, left to right: Bob Regnier (University of Saskatchewan, Canada); Pete Gunter (University of North Texas, United States); Sandra Fidyk (Collegio Bolivar, Cali, Colombia); Brian :Hendley (University of Waterloo, Canada); Mark Flynn (University of Saskatchewan); Jack Priestley (University of Exeter, England); Paul Ernest (University of Exeter); Mary Elizabeth Mullino Moore (Claremont School of Theology, United States); Jan van der Veken (Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium); Ian Winchester (University of Calgary, Canada); Elspeth Crawford (University of Edinburgh, Scotland); Garth Benson (University of Calgary); Ed Thompson (University of Saskatchewan); Howard Woodhouse (University of Saskatchewan) |
USPPRU has circulated a newsletter to participants from the Exeter conference to maintain communication among this network of researchers and keep them informed of the recent work of colleagues. Moreover, we have developed a web site for the Internet and are exploring possibilities to extend working relationships between USPPRU and other universities through faculty exchanges. Members of the unit are also involved in on-going collaborative research efforts with colleagues from the Department of Behavioural Sciences, University of Oulu, Finland and the Higher Institute for Continuing Education, University of Tours, France.
USPPRU is a founding member of the International Process Network (IPN), a federation of fifteen organizations around the world interested in the relational philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead. Its affiliates include the Australasian Association for Process Thought, the Association of Process Psychology, l’Association pour le Development de la Philosophie du Process, Centre for Process Studies, Centre for Spirituality and Sustainability, European Society for Process Thought, Foundation for Philosophy of Creativity, Highlands Institute for American Philosophical> and Religious Thought, International Institute for Field Being, and Society for the Study of Process Philosophy. USPPRU was invited at the founding meeting of IPN hosted by the Centre for Process Thought in Claremont California in January 2001 to be the central office for the network. Although USPPRU declined the invitation, it participates directly in network affairs by having a member on the IPN board of directors, by sharing its work through a website and publications, and by participating in the sharing of its work at various conferences and through various forums.
I. Ongoing meetings of the four Co-directors of USSPRU.
II. Continuing study of texts in process philosophy.
III. Critical reflections on the relationship between process philosophy and education, ecology, culture, science and society.
IV. Creative and critical thought on the relationship of theory and practice in education.
V. Participation in international, national and local conferences through making presentations.
VI. On-going publication in books and refereed journals.
VII. Fundraising for on-going activities of USPPRU.
VIII. Collaboration with other research units of the University of Saskatchewan and elsewhere.
IX. Interdisciplinary Research Seminar Series
This research seminar series began in March 1999, growing out of our interest
in promoting a dialogue with scholars and researchers across campus.
We meet on a regular basis at the Faculty Club over lunch, and listen to presentations
by members of the group. Seminars are not limited to the area of process philosophy,
as the accompanying list makes clear, but during the discussion questions of
a process nature are among those posed of the presenter(s).
The group has more than a dozen members with representatives from the departments
of applied microbiology, chemistry, computer science, curriculum studies, history,
mathematics, physics, philosophy, religious studies, educational foundations,
educational psychology, St. Thomas More College, and the Saskatchewan Indian
Federated College.
Our goal is to enable faculty from these various disciplines to connect with
one another intellectually, and to learn about alternative approaches to research
and teaching capable of transcending the limitations of the mechanistic and
materialist paradigms still dominant today. We plan to continue meeting with
this diverse and dynamic group well into the new millenium.
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Select Members
of the Interdisciplinary Research Seminar Standing (Left to Right) Seated (Left to Right) Not in Photograph |
2011
Creativity, Value, and Courage: Process Approaches to University Teaching and Learning, Professors Robert Regnier, H. Edward Thompson, and Howard Woodhouse (USPPRU), 6th May.
Creativity in the Arts: Professor H. Edward Thompson (USPPRU) and Leslie Potter (Artist), 8th April.
2010
Self-Knowledge and Moral Stupidity: Dr Emer O’Hagan, Professor, Department of Philosophy, 5th November.
2009
University Teaching and Learning: Enduring Hopes in a Hyperactive Environment: Dr Richard Schwier, Professor, Department of Curriculum Studies, 20th November.
2008
Cosmology: Dr Chary Rangacharyulu, Department of Physics and Engineering Physics, 30th April.
Reason with Metanarratives: The Postmodern Condition and Social Justice: Dr Farzad Barwani, Saskatoon Psychiatric Centre, 16th April.
2004
The Denial of Subjectivity and the Reality of Suffering: Reflections on Mental Health and Education in Postmodern Society: Dr Farzad Barwani, Saskatoon Regional Psychology Centre, 29th October.
2003
Knowledge, Value, and Meaning as Process: Professors Mark Flynn, Robert Regnier, H. Edward Thompson, and Howard Woodhouse (USPPRU), 1st May.
The Physics and Philosophy of Measurement: Dr Chary Rangacharyulu, Department of Physics and Engineering Physics, 4th April.
Sportsmanship and Gamesmanship: Dr Leslie Howe, Department of Philosophy, 7th March.
2002
Public Trust in Science: Measurement, Origin, and Remedies: Dr Richard Cassidy, Department of Chemistry, 23rd November.
Augustine and Hercules: The Importance of Literature: Dr Peter Burnell, Department of History, 1st November.
Public Talk by Dr. Tom Selover (Department of Anthropology and Religious Studies)
Divinity as a Quality of Relations", Friday, November 14, 2003
Professors Mark Flynn (Educational Psychology), Robert Regnier (Educational Foundations), Ed Thompson (Philosophy), and Howard Woodhouse (Educational Foundations)
"Knowledge, Value, and Meaning as a Process", Thursday, May 1, 2003
Reflections on the theme of the upcoming international conference organised by USPPRU, May 29-31, 2003 by four seasoned process thinkers.
Dr. Chary Rangacharyulu (Physics and Engineering Physics)
"The Physics and Philosophy of Measurement", Friday, April 11, 2003
A Critical Analysis of some of the central debates in modern physics about the nature and justification of observer-dependent reality, including that between Bohr and Einstein.
"Sportsmanship and Gamesmanship", March 7, 2003.
"Public Trust in Science: Measurement, Origin, and Remedies", November 22, 2002.
There is little doubt that scientists are quite concerned about the public's attitudes toward scientific developments and their trust of science. Most analyses of public surveys, often conducted by scientific societies or by governmental committees, link this problem with a poor level of scientific literacy within the public. Their suggestions for remedial action focus on improving the public's knowledge of scientific facts and of the nature of the scientific method. In this paper the data from recent public surveys is reviewed, and it is suggested that the problem is much worse and more fragile than most scientists recognize. In certain instances the public trust in information from independent scientists is same as that for animal-rights organizations. The nature of public trust in science is reevaluated by focusing on the meaning of the terms 'scientific literacy' and 'trust'. This analysis and other data available in the literature suggest that while improved scientific literacy may play a role in the improvement of public trust, its importance has been grossly overemphasized by science. Further analysis of the situation by shifting the focus onto the other partner in this process, the scientists, suggests that the main problem may be the scientific literacy of the scientists. Scientists know remarkably little about the nature of science or about certain types of logic required in the practice of science. This ignorance leads to actions (or inaction) and statements that create public distrust. By shifting the focus of this analysis more onto the knowledge of the scientist, it is concluded that the focus for remedial action should be in science education. Without such action the public's trust in science will likely continue to decline.
"Augustine and Hercules: The Importance of Literature," November 1, 2002.
"Aesthetic Value and the Moral," March 15, 2002.
This paper will be published in The Structurist, No. 42, 2002.
"The 'Teacher-Scholar Model': Critical Alternatives," January 25, 2002.
Our presentation examines how a balanced relationship can be achieved between teaching, learning, scholarship and research. The "teacher-scholar model" adopted by the U of S emphasises the abstractions of research by ignoring the concrete experience of both students and faculty as valuable sources of knowledge. This violates the unity of scholarship proposed by Ernest L. Boyer in Scholarship Reconsidered (1990) on which the "model" is allegedly based. Process thought enables teachers and learners alike to acknowledge their own passionate forms of understanding while pursuing knowledge for the common good, thereby restoring Boyer's balanced framework. Both papers will appear in the Conference Proceedings of a Symposium on the "Teacher-Scholar Model" to be published by the U of S in the spring of 2002.
"Saint Augustine and the Study of Literature," November 8, 2001.
Different Kinds of Non-Being in Plotinus and their Importance," April 11, 2001.
"Learning Events," March 30, 2001.
"Is Science Education Scientific?", January 26, 2001.
My goal is to present some ideas which will hopefully form the basis of continuing discussions arising from the interesting presentation given by Professor George Khachatourians on December 1, 2000. I will present some thoughts on the "evolution" of science education that is now provided in Western universities. Has this evolution resulted in "continuous progress"? Do we now benefit from the survival of the "fittest," a system based on the application of scientific principles that are ever improving? Or is science and science education merely the product of arbitrary change that results from adaptation to random environmental factors? Where have we come from, what are we, and where are we going? And why?
"Governing Food: Where is the Disconnect - Science, Scientific Advice, or Science Policy?", December 1, 2000.
The talk examines the current status of Canadian and UK issues with regard to governing food. I will describe the context and contemporary perceptual or real issues that have led to concerns and changing attitudes towards foods. Public concerns affect the manner in which all risk management decisions by governments occur - and will continue to occur - in a broad political context. This conclusion is reinforced by the observation that scientific work is increasingly thrown into an arena where the non-scientific dimensions of decision making have equal or greater weight. Another dimension affecting these issues, namely the transparent process of decision making, remains perhaps the single most important ingredient of public confidence in any regulatory system. Thus, in the end, governments, no matter what regulatory structures they have established (science based or otherwise), will respond to the concerns of their citizens as expressed in their role as consumers of, for example, food products.
"How Should We Start Teaching?", November 17, 2000.
"The Meaning of Path in Tibetan Buddhism," May 17, 2000.
This paper examines how the central Buddhist notion of a "path" (Sanskrit, marga) was interpreted and delineated by Tibetan Buddhist thinkers during the formative years of Tibet's assimilation of Indian Buddhism in the 8th to 14 centuries CE. It is argued that Tibetan scholars were faced with the task of synthesising a vast body of Buddhist teachings that had been developing in India for over a millennium. Central to this task was the problem of reconciling the two major traditions flourishing in India at the time: the so-called "cause-determined" Mahayana (or Laksanayana), which prescribed a linear path of ethical and intellectual refinement leading to a temporarily and existentially distant telos, and the more expedient goal-sustained Mantrayana (or Vajrayana), which emphasised an ever-present goal - variously known as Mind-as-such (Tibetan, serns-nyid), originary awareness (ye-shes), or the Ground (gzhi) - that is progressively disclosed by the path. The key to reconciling the two traditions, according to certain Tibetan scholars, is to understand the two paths as intertwining trajectories within experience. Their texts reveal that the path is a process that unfolds out of the creative tension between aspiration and inspiration. Hence, the path is increasingly seen as both a push from below and a pull from above.
"Physical Reality," April 13, 2000.
It is argued that the notion of "observer dependent reality" (ODR) has its roots in relativity theory rather than in quantum physics as is commonly believed. The EPR (Einstein-Podolski-Rosen) argument has more to do with the question of whether quantum mechanics is a complete theory or not, in Goedel's sense. It is possible that Bohr and his collaborators were correct in insisting that the ODR is all that one can assess in disciplines such as physics. However, it is not clear whether ODR resembles or reflects physical reality. Again, the problem goes back to Goedel's completeness theorem.
"In Praise of Idleness: Bertrand Russell and the Tyranny of the Global Market," March 10, 2000.
This paper argues that Bertrand Russell's notion of idleness helps us to understand critically the nature of the global market today. Articulated during the economic crises of the 1930s, idleness involves "a contemplative habit of mind" in which critical thought pierces "the cult of efficiency" to reveal the underlying reality of exploitation in which "everything is topsy-turvy." While Russell's analysis needs bolstering by contemporary critiques of the corporate market, it provides a strong basis for understanding the ways in which globalisation places at risk all forms of planetary life.(The article has since been published in The Structurist, No. 39/40, 1999-2000, pp. 4-10.)
"Three Faces of the Self in Ancient and Modern Thought: From Ego to Spirit," February 11, 2000.
"Value Experiences: A Process Perspective," January 16, 2000.
"Causal Models from Observational Data," April 15, 1999.
Statisticians have argued for a century that causal relationships cannot be inferred from observational data, because correlations might be explained away by hidden variables. This talk reviews results from Artificial Intelligence that show how causal structure can be induced from observational data in a manner formally consistent with inferring causal structure from controlled experiments. Causality is thus revealed as a conventional concept, an abbreviation for relationships that are not fully understood.
March 4, 1999.
The International Process Network