" The Heart is Awakened and
We are filled with an Amazing Light"
r.r.lackney liturgical architect
THE EDUCATION OF THE ARTISAN
How do we collectively create a Catholic school that will be based on putting " Creative Imagination" at the center of learning and creating connective networks that break through the boundries of disciplines, and the creative professions?
There is a serious flaw within current educational processes where a
the “one size fits all” approach to teaching and learning.
In this concept, conformity is the rule of law, creativity is sacrificed for teaching to the test, teaching without regarding teacher individuality and uniqueness.
The EDF proposes that we create an alternative educational process where "Creativity" is considered as a discipline that is the center of learning.
But, the EDF encourages Catholic educational leadership to look at the current programs and seek to discover the emerging opportunities within religious education.
What if our students, teachers, and educators visit the most progressive Catholic schools throughout the country with the single idea of inviting Catholic communities to propose alternative models of educating the next generation of Catholic youth?
What we need to do is to bring the best and the brightest into the Catholic education process and nuture this over an extended period of time: say 5,10,15 plus 3 years.
What we need to do is to make develop curricula that integrates the major disciplines and includes students, teachers, and practicing professionals.
Further, we at the EDF encourage those who are responsible(and accountable) for the future of Catholic education to evaluate the validity of the existing programs currently pursued.
The Educational Foundation Inc. is the process by which we identify the the best and brightest students and teachers now and recognize them through our Work + Study + Travel grants program.
21st CENTURY LEARNING:THE FUTURE
Facing a magnitude of collapse in the Educational Institutions: are we to witness of the Death of Education and also be the witness to the Dawn of Learning?
The Learners are already on the train, they have left the station and well into their journey.
Three things I sense from my studies:
1/ The Quality of what is going on: the new recipes for learning becoming more and more complex.
Where children engaged in the emerging technologies are doing extraordinary things.
Where children are reaching out into the horizons in every direction and forming a new recipes:
Within the embrace of META LEVEL LEARNING, children are thinking about their personal learning experiences.
Belonging to a community base learning process where the internet dominates communications they are assembling ideas/concepts/solutions from multiple resources: to and from people from all over the world.
Integrating from the spectrum of innovations within every human activity. Children want to be way better than last year- now that they have started they are not stoppable. Working in the schools, the coffee shops, restaurants, and in the home.
2/ We knew what was wrong in the financial system- collapsed because people did not act on what they knew to be true.
Education will face the same fate as the financial institutions within five years.
We may be a witness to the "Death of Education and the Dawn of Learning".
We cannot go on indefinitely without acting on what 'we know what must be done differently and better', educational leaders are responsible to provide the resources to learners.
3/ 'One glimmer of optimism'- children and learners are changing their institutions and then the institutions changing policies.
The learners are already on the train- they have left the station and well on their way
We must remember the people in our lives teaching us (students) how to think:
We go to school and our brains are destroyed.
We are taught “things” not “concepts”.
We waste prime time in school memorizing things that we will never need or use.
We are no longer teaching Concepts and Theories and Ideas.
Peace and Only Good Things: Feast of the Transfiguration August 6th 2001
The Society of sacred Art and Architecture, Inc.
http://archangelpublications.com/2contactus/5.html
[ Robert R. lackney's 3- reflections based upon Professor Steven Heppell comments]
