LIBERALISM, COMMUNITARIANISM AND DISCUSSION METHOD AS A MEANS OF RECONCILING CONTROVERSIAL MORAL ISSUES

While liberals see personal autonomy as paramount in civil society and as intrinsic to human dignity and human rights, others, such as commu nitarians, see group rights as intrinsic to human development and huma n welfare. Thus, while generally liberals give no or very little place in their thinking to right-bearing groups or collective entities, oth ers see communities as conditions for self-fulfilment and individual f reedom. This paper explores these two positions and argues that a cult ural, pluralist, democratic society will be characterised by a diversi ty of controversial mesal positions at a range of levels. The paper of fers discussion as a method of reconciling controversial moral positio ns, in general and in classrooms, in particular.