Contemplative Education

1. Contemplative Education Justin Miller Samantha Unsworth

2. Introduction • Our group decided to focus on the potentials for contemplative education practices with adult education. • Specifically, our group decided to investigate current courses that utilize contemplative education practices and then create our own course using those practices on a specific topic, in this case sustainability practices in the office place, for adult learners.

3. Background Literature • Contemplative practices can involve sitting quietly (such as in meditation), movement (such as yoga and tai chi), and the contemplation of nature or the arts (Jennings, 2008). • It is a very old method that has been seen in various cultures including: Native Americans, Native Australians, the Jewish religion, the Christian religion, the Muslim religion, and, of course, Asian philosophy, particularly Indian, Buddhist, and Taoist (Repetti, 2010).

4. Methodology • We utilized a collected of case studies created by the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society. • Specifically, two case studies were chosen for review: • English courses taught by Professor Heller of Roanoke College • The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto led by Edmund O’Sullivan. • These cases were then compared to our understanding of contemplative practices and the best features of these cases were identified to be integrated into our program.

5. Findings • The main focus in the studies seemed to be a determination to push the students’ interest into having a critical understanding of themselves and the world as a whole. • The cases urged a need for transformational learning so that student can see in a larger context, which they believe will help with problem solving and create a “planetary conception”.

6. Application • Our program design will utilize contemplative practices to help learners understand their place in the world, and the effects their actions can have on the environment. • Each learning session will open with a period for written reflection. This is a common contemplative technique.

7. Evaluation • Our project design was evaluated by three diverse educational professionals with interests in sustainability • The external reviewers were all impressed with the topic chosen to explore – sustainability. • The biggest suggestion was to simply include more detail in the Program Design, including how to advertise the course and evaluate results. • While both evaluators were not very familiar with contemplative education practices, they both felt that the practices incorporated into the program design were very appropriate for the topic.

8. Implications • We feel that there is definitely a place for contemplative practices with the realm of adult education. • Adult learners, as a whole, tend to be receptive to new ways of learning and connecting course content to their personal lives. • As such, practices such as journal writing, silent contemplation, and community engagement as part of a learning experience all have promise. • In addition, sustainability holds strong potential within adult education. Our suggested course has the ability to teach adult learners about sustainable practices in a new way.