Education should be focused on wholesome growth

#Education should be focused on wholesome growth how to

By accommodating differences and refusing to label children, for example, as вЂњlearning disabledвЂќ or вЂњhyperactive,вЂќ teachers bring out the unique gifts contained within each childвЂ™s spirit.ДЄ parent or educator interested in learning more about holistic education can read the books and journals in this emerging field that have appeared since the 1980s, as well as classic writings by Montessori, Steiner, and Krishnamurti. By encouraging reflection and questioning rather than passive memorization of вЂњfacts,вЂќ teachers keep alive the вЂњflame of intelligenceвЂќ that is so much more than abstract problem-solving skill. By using real-life experiences, current events, the dramatic arts and other lively sources of knowledge in place of textbook information, teachers can kindle the love of learning. By fostering collaboration rather than competition in classrooms, teachers help young people feel connected.

While few public schools are entirely committed to holistic principles, many teachers try hard to put many of these ideas into practice. This attitude toward teaching and learning inspires many home-schooling families as well as educators in public and alternative schools. The art of holistic education lies in its responsiveness to the diverse learning styles and needs of evolving human beings. There is no one best way to accomplish this goal, there are many paths of learning and the holistic educator values them all what is appropriate for some children and adults, in some situations, in some historical and social contexts, may not be best for others.

Montessori, for example, spoke of вЂњcosmicвЂќ education: Help the person feel part of the wholeness of the universe, and learning will naturally be enchanted and inviting. Holistic education nurtures a sense of wonder. This is done, not through an academic вЂњcurriculumвЂќ that condenses the world into instructional packages, but through direct engagement with the environment. Holistic education aims to call forth from people an intrinsic reverence for life and a passionate love of learning. Holistic education is based on the premise that each person finds identity, meaning, and purpose in life through connections to the community, to the natural world, and to spiritual values such as compassion and peace. Every child is more than a future employee every personвЂ™s intelligence and abilities are far more complex than his or her scores on standardized tests. A holistic way of thinking seeks to encompass and integrate multiple layers of meaning and experience rather than defining human possibilities narrowly. During the 1970s, an emerging body of literature in science, philosophy and cultural history provided an overarching concept to describe this way of understanding education - a perspective known as holism.

The Swiss humanitarian Johann Pestalozzi, the American Transcendentalists, Thoreau, Emersonand Alcott, the founders of вЂњprogressiveвЂќ educationвЂ“ Francis Parker and John Dewey- and pioneers such as Maria Montessoriand Rudolf Steiner, among others, all insisted that education should be understood as the art of cultivating the moral, emotional, physical, psychological and spiritual dimensions of the developing child.

Throughout the 200-year history of public schooling, a widely scattered group of critics have pointed out that the education of young human beings should involve much more than simply molding them into future workers or citizens.

#Education should be focused on wholesome growth how to

how to cite this article Holistic education.

links to holistic organizations and schools.

What is holistic education? What are the primary philosophies that distinguish it from traditional education? Who were the pioneers in holistic education? Ron Miller provides an introduction. A brief introduction to holistic education.