Conference Program

Dominant epistemological conceptions such as realism, pragmatism, or constructivism broadly inform school curricula, their aims, and their methodologies (Gramigna 2024; Osberg & Biesta, 2021; Osberg, Biesta, & Cilliers, 2008). This study examines how different epistemological models support competences for democratic culture and identifies the model most coherent with them. To achieve this objective, the study adopts as its theoretical frameworks the construct of paradigm (De Conti, 2016; Lincoln, Lynham & Guba, 2018; Kuhn, 1969) and, more specifically, that of personal epistemologies (Chiusaroli, 2022; Hofer, 2001; Yang & Tsai, 2012).

The concept of paradigm is currently employed in the literature to denote the set of laws, theories, and methodologies shared by the scientific community. Beyond being an abstract schema, a paradigm grounds scientificity and the orientations through which teaching and school curricula are structured (Cf. Kuhn, 1969; Osberg, Biesta, & Cilliers, 2008). Personal epistemologies, by contrast, concern the beliefs held by individuals about the nature of knowledge, the processes of knowing, and the nature of learning (Schommer-Aikins, 2002), and may be considered an individual manifestation of paradigms. Personal epistemologies exert a systemic influence on the various dimensions of the person, from cognitive to behavioral and cultural aspects (Schommer-Aikins, 2004), and orient approaches to learning, relationality, critical thinking, argumentation, reflexivity, and metacognition, predisposing individuals toward lifelong learning (Aytaç, Özbilen & Genç, 2022; Bath & Smith, 2009; Dewey, 1933; Kuhn, 1991; King & Kitchener, 2002). Personal epistemologies therefore constitute an element of the cognitive framework that educational processes must consciously and appropriately structure (De Conti, 2025; Gramigna, 2021, 2024) in order to ensure both the achievement of pedagogical and social objectives and the coherence between teaching methodologies and such objectives (Gramigna, 2015). In this sense, personal epistemologies function as a regulatory principle of school curricula, fostering their overall alignment (De Conti, 2025; Osberg, Biesta, & Cilliers, 2008).

However, the development of personal epistemologies is not regulated exclusively by biological processes. Although supported by developmental cognitive processes, their development is culturally mediated. This underscores the importance of education in the development of the individual and, circularly, of society (Cf. Dewey, 1916), and raises a foundational question: which epistemological model best fosters the development of competences for democratic culture?

Methodologically, the contribution compares epistemological models and personal epistemologies considered in the literature to be evolutionarily more sophisticated, with competences for democratic culture. By employing the method of comparative conceptual analysis with dimensional extraction, a matrix of epistemological models and personal epistemologies will be produced on the basis of the relevant literature (Cf. Bigge, 1982; De Conti, 2016; Lincoln, Lynham & Guba, 2018). The comparison will be conducted according to the criterion of greater coherence with the competences for democratic culture drawn from the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture developed by the Council of Europe (CoE, 2018a; CoE, 2018b). The outcome of this methodologically guided reflection may serve as a foundation for the theoretical and empirical evaluation and design of school curricula and teaching methodologies, in order to ensure their alignment with democratic culture.