Worlds apart? On Niklas Luhmann and the sociology of education

Abstract

In an effort to address the relationship between globalisation, education and Niklas Luhmann’s branch of systems theory, we present his essay, published here for the first time in English translation, ‘Education: Forming the life course’, next to the nine contributions that compose this special issue and build on this and his other writings to take up the theme of education in world society. To conclude, we underline that systems theory’s emphasis on functional differentiation helps to address two lacunae in the today prevailing sociological practice. By positing the development of self-referential domains as modernity’s central mode of differentiation, it provides sociology with a comprehensive theory of world society. By the same token, it also allows one to observe education as a global affair with, so to speak, a life of its own.

Potentialising the potential: Dream of everything you can become, and become everything you dream of

“…The medium life course and its elements determine the latent possibilities of education. As Mangez and Vanden Broeck (2021) summarise it: 'The intention to change people's life course by educating them, thus detaching their past from their future, is what makes education recognizable as an activity distinct from all others' (p. 710).…”

The Medium in the Sociology of Niklas Luhmann: From Children to Human Beings

“…These publications address a wide range of topics, including education and globalization, 25 education and socialization, 26 schools, 27 the history of the educational system, 28 complexity and education, 29 social welfare and education, 30 and the future of education. 31 However, none of these works refer to Luhmann's publication on the child as a medium or elaborate further on this topic.…”