1844-2014: 170 Years of Social Pedagogy Can Greece’s Economic Crisis Highlight the Potential of Social Pedagogy?

Abstract

He has even prepared a scroll to give him, replete with titles, with imposing names.-Why have our two consuls and praetors come out today wearing their embroidered, their scarlet togas? Why have they put on bracelets with so many amethysts, and rings sparkling with magnificent emeralds? Why are they carrying elegant canes beautifully worked in silver and gold?Because the barbarians are coming today and things like that dazzle the barbarians.-Why don't our distinguished orators come forward as usual to make their speeches, say what they have to say?Because the barbarians are coming today and they're bored by rhetoric and public speaking.-Why this sudden restlessness, this confusion?(How serious people's faces have become.) Why are the streets and squares emptying so rapidly, everyone going home so lost in thought?Because night has fallen and the barbarians have not come.And some who have just returned from the border say there are no barbarians any longer.And now, what's going to happen to us without barbarians? They were, those people, a kind of solution.This poem by Cavafy is offered for multiple 'readings'. Especially nowadays when we have been experiencing the impact of a huge, not only economic but also moral, value, spiritual, cultural and psychological crisis, Cavafy's allegory is a starting point and a framework for studying this complex situation, with many parameters and at many levels: The decadent society that is on the verge of collapse, the desire for change -even for the worse -the anticipation of the 'barbarians', the peculiar dependence on these powerful 'others', the intention of the unconditional concession to everything, the destructive tradition and the humiliating subordination to the 'barbarians' hoping that the crisis will end, the trivialisation of politicians, the eroded relation between the state and citizens, the orators' silence, the inability of the ordinary citizen against authorities, utopian hope, idleness of strange anticipation, political, social and spiritual indolence, indifference, boredom, confusion, despair for the change that have never been made, resignation, inaction, apathy. Of all possible analogies with the current era and the possibilities of a philosophical and critical reflective approach that the diachronic temporal scope of Cavafy's discourse conveys, many and powerful messages are emerging for our times. One is: There are no more excuses for apathy and inaction.

Social pedagogy and social work relations in Greece: autonomous trajectories

“…On the one hand, social pedagogy deals with the whole life of people (all, with special emphasis on those who experience any disadvantage and vulnerability), on the other it seeks, mainly through education, to influence them, so that they can evolve personally and socially, thus constantly expanding and utilising their cognitive, emotional, collaborative and social skills at an individual and collective level. The social pedagogue's role is linked to education when it comes to children and young people and to lifelong learning with regards to adults (Eichsteller and Holthoff, 2011;Lüssi, 2008;Mylonakou-Keke, 2015aPetrie, 2011).…”

“…This article has shown that in Greece social pedagogy and social work are clearly differentiated, having created autonomous trajectories. This differentiation is clear-cut and may initially be indicated by the distinction that exists between the words 'pedagogy' and 'work', in both their conceptual and semiotic content (Mylonakou-Keke, 2015a. This distinction is also evident in their orientations, in certain goals and priorities, their epistemological identity, their methodological approaches to time, field, the way they intervene and their potential.…”

“…This relationship between the family and community school communication and social pedagogy was recognised many years ago (Bäumer, 1981;Buchkremer, 2009;Kanavakis, 2002). 8 The social-pedagogical ethos through inspiring values and actions teaches people to continue to envision, strive, become aware of, activate and constantly enrich the possibilities and skills they have, individually and collectively, to trust each other, to cooperate, to strive for the enhancement and change of the difficult situations they encounter (Mylonakou-Keke, 2015a. 9 On this issue there is a very important study by Mühlum (1981), which is a self-published work that gathers in detail, through a systematic literature review of German literature, views on the interrelation between social pedagogy and social work until early 1980.…”

An international comparison: Social pedagogy training

“…Meanwhile, other countries are beginning to see a growing interest in social pedagogy. In Japan it is related to social education (Matsuda, Kawano & Xiao, 2016); in Greece, to new social needs arising from the current crisis (Mylonakou-Keke, 2015; Kyridis, Christodoulou, Vamvakidou & Pavlis-Korres, 2015) and in South Africa it is focused on adult education (Ismail & Cooper, 2016).…”

“Me – You”: Social Pedagogue’s Help for Social Risk Children in Terms of Interrelationship

“…According to Hämäläinen (2012), historically, social pedagogy has emerged from an idea which advanced the process of modernisation and resulted in the new societal order, characterised by the need for education to become as an intermediary in a discrepancy between individual's autonomy and the expectations of a modern society. Even though in different countries social pedagogy is perceived rather differently, according to Mylonakou-Keke (2015), analysis of social pedagogy in the context of different world locations reveals that despite space and time, social pedagogy can be noticed to possess certain common elements governing social pedagogy's philosophy, ideology, value system, theory, methodology, areas of scientific research and practice.…”