Can Physics Education Support A Self-Responsible Society?

In the face of the “European Green Deal”, our continent needs young cohorts of self-responsible citizens steering the globe towards responsible sustainability.

This article reflects two didactic approaches for strengthening self-responsibility in students: the approach “3 x 7 = 21” and the approach “jet principle”. Both rely on dialogue and confrontation of learners with their peers – often a more stringent educational agent that contact with teachers.

The very simple method “3 x 7 = 21” sets learners into 3 phases of iterative complexity: single achievements, groups of 3 and groups of 7 while they iteratively exchange their views on complex interdisciplinary subjects.

The more elaborated method “jet principle” leads learners into framework conditions which they actually formed during their previous steps: analogous to a jet turbine, the border conditions of subsequent learning stages are the result of energetic applications of confrontations during earlier stages.

Both methods are suitable for advanced physics students in any transdisciplinary setting.

Keywords: “3 x 7 = 21”, Curriculum, Dialogic learning, Discursive learning, Globalization, Global studies, Global studies consortium, Graz University, Interparadigmatic, Jet principle, Quality assurance, Transdisciplinary.