• Citer

How the concept of ambivalence derived from the French-language framework helps assess teachings: A case study on teaching Mendelian theory of inheritance

par Dahmouche, Hichem
Référence Social Sciences and Humanities Open, 11
Publication Publié, 2025-04-14

Article révisé par les pairs

• Accès en ligne
• Détails
• Contenu
• Statistiques

Résumé :

This article explores the concept of ambivalence, as developed by Grignon and Passeron (1989), in a French-language epistemological context and with sociological considerations about teaching. Using a case study methodology consisting of four interviews, we focus on teaching the Mendelian theory of inheritance in the final year of secondary education (grade 12) in French-speaking Belgium. Through the prism of ambivalence, we seek to unravel the double facet of all teaching. The findings reveal a series of ambivalent renunciations shaping the dynamics of the teaching approach. The concept of ambivalence discourages a simplistic, legitimist, or relativistic reading and instead encourages a nuanced assessment of teaching practices that extends beyond the single standard of knowledge to be taught. With regard to teaching work, this concept leads us to consider that all teaching is saturated with antagonistic demands that make it impossible to fully meet each one. Furthermore, we distinguish categorical imperatives from hypothetical imperatives.