The Pedagogy of Argument seeks to develop learners who are connoisseurs of argument: They are skilled at healthy argument, enjoy argument, and choose to engage in arguments that support their growth. The pedagogy looks to allow room for passion to enter the conversation, while building the learners’ sense of agency. It differentiates between three main forms of dispute: The Debate (I aim to convince), The Negotiation (we aim to agree), and The Healthy Argument (I hope to learn). The pedagogy works with “argument-stories”. These are very short stories, read out-loud, designed to provoke an argument. Referring in particular to the book “Stories for the Sake of Argument”. Each of its 24 stories focus on an acute personal dilemma that emerges from a clash of values. In particular, the stories offer an emotional engagement with the “thick expressions” of “thin ideas” (Michael Walzer) – at a step removed from “real life”.
January 2023
The Pedagogy of Argument
The Pedagogy of Argument seeks to develop learners who are passionate about debates
Robbie Gringras is a British-born Israeli living in the Galilee, working in education, performance, and writing. In the field of Israel Education, Robbie coined the phrase “Hugging and Wrestling with Israel”, created and drives the 4HQ System of Israel Education, and consults and teaches for many international Israel Education projects. For several years he was the Creative Director of Makom, the Israel Education Lab of the Jewish Agency. January 2022 will see the publication of “Stories for the Sake of Argument”, an Israel Education book Robbie wrote with Abi Dauber Sterne. Robbie has also been working in a professional story theater for over 30 years. After performing the Mahabharata with Gregory Thompson’s AANDBC Theater Company, he co-founded his own physical story theater company called Besht Tellers – performing Jewish story theater in London’s West End and throughout the world. Since making aliya, he has taught at Israel’s main theater schools, directed several plays, and his self-written solo shows perform throughout the world in English, Hebrew, and Spanish. He’s married to Dorit, a magical stained-glass artist, and they have two kids.
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