Gateway to the Dao-field

Gateway to the Dao-field
Author: Avraham Cohen
Publisher: Cambria Press
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2009
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1604975539

This book evolved from Avraham Cohen's doctoral dissertation, for which he received the 2006-2007 Ted Aoki Prize for the Outstanding Dissertation in Curriculum Studies from the University of British Columbia. Cohen, who has an extensive background as a humanistic-existential therapist and as a mindfulness meditator, believes that these two fields have much to offer in the field of education. His work in this book supplies a rich resource and shows that indeed the practice and philosophy of mindfulness and humanistic-existential practices is a gold mine waiting to be fully mined and applied in education. These ideas and practices come alive in his writings. This collection of provocative and evocative essays written for both educational theorists and classroom practitioners addresses very directly the much neglected human dimension and community development potential within classrooms. His groundbreaking work describes what most of us know intuitively to be important in classrooms, and which is rarely adequately addressed-how to be authentically and fully human, and how this pedagogy of being human is central to becoming a great educator. He points towards the practical implementation of pedagogic practices that integrate the personal inner work of the educator, classroom practice, and curriculum learning.

The Contemplative Practitioner

The Contemplative Practitioner
Author: John P. Miller
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
Total Pages: 201
Release: 2014-01-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1442615532

Describes how the experience of the whole through mindful contemplation can release energy and knowledge for practical use in the classroom and in the place of business.

Speaking of Learning . . .

Speaking of Learning . . .
Author: Avraham Cohen
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 143
Release: 2014-09-11
Genre: Education
ISBN: 946209716X

I have no doubt that many of you who read this book will be captivated by it, just as I have been captivated. This book is woven through evocative stories told by masterful educators who came together to explore the meanings of learning, teaching, and life. For those who have read Speaking of Teaching, it is not a surprise to hear, again, the profoundly touching, humane, and imaginative voices of these authors. This book draws me in, touches my heart, and refreshes my mind. —Hongyu Wang, Professor, Oklahoma State University, Tulsa, OK, US The authors invite us to join them in asking, “What else can learning be?” What else indeed? What is beyond the recipes, rubrics, formulas, and credentials of contemporary education? Deep in the heart of their own personal stories, told and untold, spoken and unspoken, the authors search and tell. With an artful admixture of stories, poems, artwork, and reflections, this book is a rare opportunity to listen in on an eight-year extended conversation amongst these gifted educators as they become increasingly present in their learning journeys. —Arden Henley, Professor and Principal, Canadian Programs, City University of Seattle, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Exploring Self toward expanding Teaching, Teacher Education and Practitioner Research

Exploring Self toward expanding Teaching, Teacher Education and Practitioner Research
Author: Oren Ergas
Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2020-10-29
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1839822643

Against the backdrop of a pull toward external standards and accountability, this collection of chapters re-grounds us in the importance of bringing the 'self' to the foreground of the discourse of teaching, teacher education and practitioner research.

Speaking of Teaching . . .

Speaking of Teaching . . .
Author: Avraham Cohen
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 130
Release: 2012-12-23
Genre: Education
ISBN: 9460917879

Teaching is a richly multifaceted endeavor. It isn’t always easy to know just where we should focus our thinking and our dialogue. In Speaking of Teaching, six educators talk about their inner selves. They bring the inside out for their own self-exploration. And they bring the inside out for us to view and learn from. They also question the boundaries between the inner and the outer and whether existence can be dichotomized in this way. Gary Poole, Professor, Faculty of Medicine, The University of British Columbia, 3M Teaching Fellow. The authors of this collection explore the many ways to remain present in the midst of the trifling but perpetual swirl of events, thoughts, distractions, and how they, as they are at, what T. S. Eliot called, the still point of the turning world, find profound meaning in their work as educators. A deeply moving collection that allowed me too, while reading it, to rediscover that still point without which there would be no dance, and there is only the dance. Gerda Wever, PhD, editor and publisher, The Write Room Press

Humanities Perspectives in Peace Education

Humanities Perspectives in Peace Education
Author: Nicole L. Johnson
Publisher: IAP
Total Pages: 181
Release: 2021-08-01
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1648025722

In Humanities Perspectives in Peace Education: Re-Engaging the Heart of Peace Studies, scholar-teachers across a variety of humanities fields explore the content, methods, and pedagogies that are unique to their respective disciplines in contributing to the study of peace and justice. In recent decades, even as peace scholarship has burgeoned, many peace studies texts—including those that purport to be interdisciplinary in nature—have emphasized social science perspectives and, in some cases, have foregone exploration of the role of the humanities altogether in comprehensive peace education. While humanities scholars continue to stake out space for peace scholarship within their fields, no volume has attempted to collect the wisdom of multiple humanities disciplines in order to make the case for their critical role in authentic peace education. Humanities Perspectives in Peace Education addresses that shortcoming in the field of peace studies by exploring the ways in which the humanities are uniquely situated to contribute particular content, knowledge, skills, and values required of comprehensive peace education, scholarship, and activism. These include the development of empathy and understanding, creative vision and imagination, personal and communal transformation toward “the good” in society (such as the pursuit of justice, nonviolence, freedom, and human thriving), and field-specific analytical lenses of their own, among other contributions. Both teachers and students of peace will find value in this interdisciplinary humanities volume. Each chapter of Humanities Perspectives in Peace Education offers a deep-dive into a particular humanities field—including philosophy, literature, language and culture studies, rhetoric, religion, history, and music—to mine the field’s unique contributions to peace and justice studies. Scholars ask: “What are we missing in peace education if we fail to include this academic discipline?” Chapters include suggestions for peace pedagogies within the humanities field as well as bibliographies and suggestions for further reading.

Nurturing a Daoist-Inspired Classroom Pedagogy Through the Contemplative Lenses of Teacher Diaries

Nurturing a Daoist-Inspired Classroom Pedagogy Through the Contemplative Lenses of Teacher Diaries
Author: David McLachlan Jeffrey
Publisher: IAP
Total Pages: 252
Release: 2024-08-01
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN:

The harmonizing influence of ancient Daoist philosophy is of much relevance to the world in which we live today, and this is especially so in the field of global education. Among the growing numbers of contemporary teachers and scholars who nurture Daoist wisdom in their classrooms, this book takes the unique pathway of considering its applications through the contemplative lenses of teacher diaries. Its South African-born author has taught academic English for over three decades in Japan, the Middle East, and the People’s Republic of China. Since early childhood, he has infused his fascination for Daoist wisdom with his enjoyment of writing diaries – and in ways that derive insights into the compassionate, frugal, and humble foundations of Daoist-inspired pedagogies within contemporary classroom environments. This book presents Daoist wisdom in terms of it being the Supreme Ultimate of all ways. It introduces the classical Daoist texts of the Laozi, the Zhuangzi, and the Liezi, and shares a short historical overview of Daoism with its growing global influence. As such, it emphasizes that Daoist-inspired pedagogies encourage a delicate balance between intuitive insights and intellectual analysis – and in ways that are not antagonistic toward each other, but which dance together as one. In this regard, the role of meditation during the undertaking of diaries is specifically highlighted concerning its propensity to bring one into the present moment, pacify racing thoughts, and transcend the ego. It also shows how a meditative state of mind that accompanies the reading, writing, and analysis of the diary entries contributes to deeper self-discernment along with unique intuitive insights related to oneself as a teacher and the classroom environment. In addition, this book describes how the Wordsmith Tools Program and the Book of Changes can be used as additional approaches to analyzing thought patterns within the diary entries – and how these also nurture inward contemplations and the intuitive insights that accompany them. Thereafter, considerations based on the applications of core Daoist principles for classroom pedagogies are filtered through the contemplative lenses of teacher diaries. These principles are the unintentional integrity of de, the complementary duality of yin-yang, the cosmic vitality of qi, the self-so-ness of ziran, the unforceful spontaneity of wuwei, and the unblemished purity of pu. This book illustrates through its diary lenses how these six Daoist principles can be nurtured in ways that contribute to a scholarliness that is grounded in an equal appreciation for the logical applications of intelligence along with the uniqueness of intuitive creativity which cannot be explicitly taught but which spontaneously arises from within the deep reservoirs of intuitive wisdom which exist within the true selves of everyone. In addition, this book shares pearls of Daoist wisdom for teachers from within the poetic chapters of the Laozi, as well as within the amusingly enlightening stories in the Zhuangzi and the Liezi – such that their ancient teachings can be applied to Daoist-inspired pedagogies, and nurtured in ways that unite the joyfulness and scholarly efficacy of both teaching and learning. It is shown how doing so enhances a sense of awe, wonder, openness, and contemplative oneness within the classroom environment - making it a happier, more contented, and more meaningful place for both teachers and students.

A Second-Wave Positive Psychology in Counselling Psychology

A Second-Wave Positive Psychology in Counselling Psychology
Author: Paul T. P. Wong
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 344
Release: 2023-03-31
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1000858944

This book on the new paradigm of existential positive psychology (PP2.0) or second-wave positive psychology focusses on the importance of transcending or transforming negative experiences and emotions to achieve durable flourishing. The book offers exciting new concepts and skills in the practice of counselling psychology. Positive psychology is evolving due to changing times and circumstances. PP2.0 opens new vistas for research and interventions in counselling psychology and positive psychology. Instead of relying only on the positives, it posits the importance of navigating an optimal balance between positives and negatives in each context. It emphasizes the importance of inner peace, balance, and harmony rather than the pursuit of happiness or positive emotions. More importantly, PP2.0 is based on meeting the basic human needs for 1) the need to be liberated from the suffering and human bondage, 2) the hope of achieving a meaningful future, 3) the need to relate to others in a compassionate and authentic way so that people can experience genuine kindness and love, and 4) the deep-seated spiritual need for a sense of oneness with a Higher Power or nature. This volume explores ways to help individuals to be liberated from their inherent limitations and, at the same time, empower them to achieve their highest aspirations. With an updated Introduction, this book is the ideal companion for any student or practitioner looking for an insightful overview of positive psychology including humanistic psychology, existential positive psychology as well as counselling psychology. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of Counselling Psychology Quarterly.

Daoist Cultivation of Qi and Virtue for Life, Wisdom, and Learning

Daoist Cultivation of Qi and Virtue for Life, Wisdom, and Learning
Author: Tom Culham
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 215
Release: 2020-07-03
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 3030449475

This book explores Daoist philosophies of qi and virtue through inquiry into their potential as technologies for cultivating good among individuals and society within educational settings, as well as in the modern world. The first part of the book, authored by Jing Lin, examines Daoist cosmology, axiology, and epistemology. She illuminates qi cultivation’s reliance on the accumulation of virtues, leading to transformation of the body and even—extraordinarily—the abilities of Daoist masters to transcend physical limitations to achieve health, longevity, and immortality. The second part of the book, authored by Tom Culham, establishes an understanding of qi and virtue as a technology within the Daoist paradigm, outlining the benefits of its cultivation while illuminating how contemporary Western philosophy and science support this paradigm. Both authors explore new forms of education to incorporate Daoist wisdom in schooling.

Hope for the Embattled Language Classroom

Hope for the Embattled Language Classroom
Author: Olivia Kanna
Publisher: IAP
Total Pages: 214
Release: 2022-10-01
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1648028586

Learning, as it is being increasingly recognized, is centrally predicated upon students’ well-being. Research findings indicate that in the instances of wounding and trauma, students’ capacity and ability to learn can be severely compromised. This understanding applies particularly to the immigrant students in the language classroom, many of whom are refugees bringing with them past experiences of privation, violence, wounding and trauma. Since teachers often find themselves wearing multiple hats, not only as instructors, but also as friends, philosophers, guides, confidantes, and counsellors to their refugee and immigrant learners, addressing those students’ trauma with compassion, and employing appropriate pedagogical practices to mitigate their suffering should be of great relevance and inform the teachers’ praxis in the classroom. This book takes an interdisciplinary look at trauma from the vantage points of critical language theories, neuroscience, psychotherapy, and Buddhist psychology, and suggests pedagogies for well-being and trauma healing that utilize contemplative ways of education. The practical aim of this book is to support teachers in addressing trauma in their classrooms.