At the meeting place of Pedagogy and Salutogenesis. Connecting models, strategies, and critical reflections for educators

In this proposal a Pedagogy of Salutogenesis will be explored moving from the idea of a Pedagogy of Pathologization, Pandemic Pedagogy, and neuro-phenomenological studies. Pedagogy, the science which ref lects on educational experience, and salutogenesis, a model for health promotion, can be connected in the field of health education but they could also connect in other settings dedicated to formal and informal learning. Pedagogy and salutogenesis dialogue under the interdisciplinary umbrella thought by Antonovsky to thematize many crucial topics such as the role of narratives, imagination, expressive methods and ref lective practice which play an important role in (health) life-long learning. The aim of the paper is to get deeper into how generating learning also means generating health and vice versa. The focus on pedagogy, rather than on learning, aims to highlight the connection between two fields of study following a critical intersectional perspective on the multiple oppressions and factors which could create a pathogenic approach rather than a salutogenic approach to learning and teaching. According to these considerations, this proposal will design a framework for a pedagogy of salutogenesis, drawing on three elements: the epistemological roots of this connection; the possible areas of interests, intersection and development (disciplines, settings, practitioners), and, specifically: literacy and literature education, outdoor education, positive education and language learning, health humanities, social justice, inclusion and intersectionality, expressive methods. Finally, this proposal presents case examples related to the application of salutogenic theories in teaching and learning design through pedagogical approaches suitable for meaning-making, decision making, embodied cognition and narrative guidance. The introduction of a salutogenic learning model made pedagogical instances more visible in the field of health education and also in the more general field of education. Dimensions such as learning by doing, the added value of learning from mistakes and negative experiences, meaning making, the role of an embodied cognition, the added value of narratives, reflection, and imagination are crucial for both pedagogy and salutogenesis.