15315-wolbert

CHAPTER 5 W HAT ATTITUDE SHOULD PARENTS HAVE TOWARDS THEIR CHILDREN ’ S FUTURE FLOURISHING ? Abstract This article explores how parents should relate to a particular (ideal) aim of education, namely their children’s (future) flourishing lives. The article asks three questions: (1) what does ‘aiming for flourishing’ mean?; (2) In what sense should parents have expectations with regard to their children’s flourishing lives?; or (3) is hope a more appropriate attitude for parents? It is argued that, although there is also a place for expectations, an attitude of hope captures best how parents should relate to the educational aim of flourishing. Hope refers to the commitment and desire of realising the object of one’s hope, but also implies a recognition of the limitations of human powers and of the uncertainties inherent in striving for an ultimate aim. Keywords Human flourishing; Aim; Hope; Expectations; Education; Parents; Children. This chapter is published in a revised form as: Wolbert, L.S., De Ruyter, D.J., and Schinkel, A. (2018). What attitude should parents have towards their children’s future flourishing? Theory and Research in Education .