Education
in an Interconnected World
There is nothing more important for our future than fostering a consciousness of ethics and peace. – Dalai Lama
It has been said that in order to see change in the world, we must first educate for change. I believe this sentiment is more crucial today than ever before. We live in a time that has been referred to as the biggest evolutionary change in human history. According to Edmund O’Sullivan (1999), “we are living in a watershed period comparable to the major shift that took place from the medieval into the modern world. The educational framework appropriate for this movement must be visionary and transformative and must clearly go beyond the conventional educational outlooks that we have cultivated for the last several centuries”.
The
Need for a New Educational Vision
“Perhaps we are beginning to move towards a new global ethic which transcends all other systems of allegiance and belief, which is rooted in a consciousness of the interrelatedness and sanctity of life. Would such a common ethic have the power to motivate us to modify our current dangerous course? There is obviously no ready answer to this question, except to say that without a moral and ethical foundation, sustainability is unlikely to become a reality.” Source: UNESCO (1997) Educating for a Sustainable Future: A Transdisciplinary Vision for Concerted Action.
Who wouldn’t say that they want earth to be a peaceful place? We may claim that this is our intention, but often our actions and decisions do not reflect this sentiment. It seems to me that in order for the world to be peaceful, the people of the world must first become peaceful. Education is poised to effectively address global challenges but it is integral to consciously strive for a peaceful and equitable future rather than assume that it will simply happen. We must be honest with ourselves and take responsibility for each of our own actions as they do indeed make lasting global and environmental impacts. In his book Educating for Humanity, Mike Seymour states “humanity is at war with itself in escalating numbers of regional, ethnic and religious conflicts. Moreover the, the global economy and institutions of modernism – like education – have fallen prey to shortsightedness and a mostly economic agenda. The result is a growing gap between both rich and poor, loss of cultural diversity, and self-sustaining livelihoods. An unstoppable appetite for economic growth undermines attempts to safeguard the environment and, ultimately, our own lives”. Consider for a moment what education could possibly be.
Transforming
Society One Person at a Time
"Systems, whether educational or political, are not changed mysteriously; they are transformed when there is a fundamental change in ourselves. The individual is of first importance, not the system; and as long as the individual does not understand the total process of himself, no system, whether of the left or of the right, can bring order and peace to the world." – Krishnamurti, 1953
A New Global Education is deeply influenced by educational thinkers such as Dewey, Freire, Aurobindo, Krishnamurti and Gandhi who pose that the empowerment of the individual is a prerequisite for participatory and democratic societies. I believe that through the development of universal values such as compassion, humility, understanding and inquisitiveness schools can foster conviction and altruistic action. I feel that students must be taught that they are part of an interconnected world and that they are as able and responsible as the next person to shape their reality and future. Children have an inherent capacity for love, understanding, caring and happiness yet these qualities are often not developed by the societies into which they are born. Fear, distrust and competition are typified by our media and political agendas as necessary for survival over cooperation and respect of differences. It seems to me that a shift in our educational paradigm is necessary to educate our children to be peaceful, cooperative and compassionate global citizens.
A
New Global Education
“Declarations and legal measures are not enough; a culture of peace must grow out of the beliefs and traditions of people themselves….. Of all the frontiers where the advance to a culture of peace is needed, perhaps the most important in the long-term is the development of children. Schools themselves often sustain and help reproduce social injustice and violence, including both structural and physical violence. Instead of this, school should be a place where children feel cared for and where they may cultivate the knowledge, values and skills they need to create together a future world of justice and solidarity.” - UNESCO: Sintra Plan of Action
The purpose of A New Global Education is to re-explore the purposes of education that we are bringing to children worldwide. When we begin with a solid positive intention we can better utilize education as a force for social and global change. A shift in paradigm is required to truly look at education as a tool for empowerment and evolution of character. Top down approaches and the imposition of external models may no longer work. Imposing beliefs from the outside may not be relevant or helpful in a context and may serve as a hindrance to community empowerment. Working together, we can begin to deepen the meaning behind education in order to foster a future of peace, equity and sustainability. When I was first in India, a teacher of mine would say, “Imagine a car. The West is very good at steering the car, moving the car in particular directions. But in order to get the car to move you need fuel. What the East has is the fuel, the inner wisdom that helps us determine where the car needs to go”. We have so much to learn from each other, so much wisdom and experience from the West and the East.
Educating
for peace and change is unlikely to happen in a weekend workshop or even in a
few years. It requires a long term
commitment and often takes generations.
Of course seeds can be planted, but educating for personal and societal
change takes nurturing, patience, faith and of course, time.