Photography and tacit knowledge

Experienced art and design practitioners may find that their skills defy explanation, making it difficult for students to grasp what there is to learn. This relates to their ‘tacit knowledge’ and leads to a ‘pedagogy of ambiguity’.

David will explore this issue of ambiguity through Polanyi’s views with accounts from Dreyfus and McDowell on the role of concepts in expert activity. He'll further discuss McDowell’s conceptualism as a basis for an account of tacit knowledge in photography that avoids ambiguity in any educationally problematic sense.

This in-person event will be particularly useful for researchers and teachers who are interested in photography, tacit knowledge, inferentialism and ambiguity.

PESGB seminar series

This event is part of the Philosophy of Education Society of Great Britain (PESGB) seminar series. PESGB is a learned society that promotes the study, teaching and application of philosophy of education. Its London Branch hosts seminars every Wednesday in conjunction with the Centre for Philosophy of Education. These seminars are led by national and international scholars in the field, covering a wide range of issues of educational and philosophical concern.

All are welcome to attend.

Related links

• Department of Education, Practice and Society
• Centre for Philosophy of Education