Abstract Book of the 8th International Conference on Innovative Research in Education
Year: 2025
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Poetry in Daisaku Ikeda’s Philosophy of Human Education
Dr. Giulia Pellizzzato
ABSTRACT:
Daisaku Ikeda’s (1928-2023) contribution to philosophy of education encompasses multiple modes, whose impact is being acknowledged by a burgeoning body of literature (e.g., Busacchi, 2018; Goulah, 2010a, 2010b, 2012, 2019, 2020; Hatano, 2012; Inukai, 2021; Nagashima, 2012; Nuñez & Goulah, 2021; Obelleiro, 2012; Sharma, 2020; Urbain, 2010; Williams 2020). Growing interest in Ikeda as a leading philosopher of education is also signaled by his presence in recent handbooks and encyclopedias (Goulah, 2021b, 2024a). His multifaceted written work addresses formal, informal, and non-formal learning contexts (Pellizzato, 2024). This paper seeks to explore the role of poetry in Ikeda’s philosophy of ningen kyōiku, or human education (Goulah, 2020, 2021a), in the context of an increasing interest for poetry in philosophy of education (Allen-Paisant, 2021; Briand, 2022; Collins-Sibley, 2021; Guttesen, 2024; Hung, 2023; Illingworth & Jack, 2024; Kleppe & Sorby, 2022; Moulin, 2023). Studies on Ikeda resonate with this trend (Goulah, 2024b; Ikeda Institute, 2023; Rita, 2021); to date, however, a review of Ikeda’s work from the perspective of poetry is still missing. This paper seeks to bridge such gap, exploring the role of poetry in Daisaku Ikeda’s philosophy of education.
As a first step in exploring Ikeda’s vast corpus of writings (Goulah, 2024a), this paper is based on Ikeda’s collected pedagogical essays (2021a), his commemorative proposals (1983-2022), examined here as a “sweeping curriculum of global citizenship, value creation, and human education” (Goulah, 2024a, p. 15), and selected published dialogues (Ikeda & Abueva, 2016; Ikeda & Aitmatov, 2009; Ikeda et al., 2009; Ikeda et al., 2014; Ikeda & Rees, 2018; Ikeda & Vitier, 2013; Ikeda & Wider, 2014). Looking at references to poets and poetry in Ikeda’s writings will lay the groundwork for understanding the role of poetry in Daisaku Ikeda’s philosophy of education.
Keywords: poetry, human education, humanistic education, Daisaku Ikeda, global citizenship educationc