Pedagogika czułości w antropocenie

Maria Mendel

doi:10.21697/fp.2026.1.3

Published: 2026-08-28

Vol. 16 No. 1 (2026)

Tender Pedagogy in the Anthropocene

Maria Mendel

Pedagogical Forum

Section: Topic

https://doi.org/10.21697/fp.2026.1.3

Abstract

In this text, I develop and deepen the concept of tenderness (a spatial and affective phenomenon) and tender pedagogy in new theoretical contexts, drawing on metaphors and foundations of Olga Tokarczuk’s fourth-person narrator psychology. The ethical perspective in which Claudia Ruitenberg presents her “educational hospitality” as a challenge in the Anthropocene is extremely compelling. The idea of learning to inhabit the planet anew, embodied in the concept of the “common room” rooted in Jacques Rancičre’s philosophy, was also inspiring. Understanding the Anthropocene primarily as a movement of thought seeking relational ontologies that could replace the still dominant idea of individual being, I propose tender pedagogy as a potentially promising area both for this exploration and for practicing a philosophy of relational being in a world that is more-than-human.

Keywords:

tender pedagogy, Anthropocene, relational ontology , SDG 4

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Mendel, M. (2026). Tender Pedagogy in the Anthropocene. Pedagogical Forum, 16(1), 27–38. https://doi.org/10.21697/fp.2026.1.3

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