(A)Symmetry of the Pedagogical Relationship

Abstract

A hierarchically conceived relationship between educator and learner, in which the learner is positioned as a passive recipient of knowledge and the educator as the bearer of power and control, lacks pedagogical value. Contemporary educational theories question such asymmetry and raise the issue of symmetry within the educational process. The need for this analysis arises from the tension between demands for greater student participation and the necessity of preserving pedagogical responsibility and the purpose of education. The paper demonstrates that neither complete symmetry nor rigid asymmetry contributes to the quality of the pedagogical relationship. (Socio)constructivism, humanistic pedagogy, and critical pedagogy affirm dialogue, collaboration, and the active role of the learner. The perspective of Gert Biesta warns of the risk of “learnification” and insists on preserving the teleological dimension of teaching, as well as the educator’s responsibility to introduce the “radically new” into the learner’s horizon. The analysis confirms that ethically grounded asymmetry can have a developmental function. The balance between symmetry and asymmetry, authority and autonomy, remains a permanent pedagogical dilemma and challenge, but also a space for creative educational practice aimed at developing free, responsible, and critically minded individuals.