I am a professor of Practical Philosophy at Humboldt University, specializing in ethics, applied ethics, and political philosophy. While at the Centre, I am working on a project concerning conceptions of the self in education. Conceptions of the self, such as the autonomous or authentic self, operate as explicit aims or implicit background assumptions in educational contexts. For example, the idea that education enables self-realization is rooted in philosophical traditions that still influence educational contexts today. How should such conceptions of the self be understood? Do they imply that individuals should realize their inherent capacities? To what extent do these conceptions refer to an authentic self? Is self-determination a more appropriate aim of education? I will also examine conceptions of the self that are relevant to the goals of gifted education and inclusion. Furthermore, I am interested in what light empirical research can shed on these debates. For example, how does a student's self-concept influence the educational process, and how are these concepts shaped by specific role expectations and stereotypes?