Creative and integrative university education within a universe as educator for the integrity of creation

Department/Unit

Theology and Religious Education

Document Type

Article

Source Title

Aghamtao

Volume

13

First Page

20

Last Page

36

Publication Date

2004

Abstract

This paper will argue for a type of university education that will enable students to make a meaningful living and at the same time contribute to the shaping of a sustainable global future for the planetary community. The premise of the argument is that to a large extent the current system of university teaching deals with inert matters grounded in an understanding of the non-human world simply being a collection of inert objects that we need to process through the industrial systems of our modern consumer societies. A more imaginative approach to university education will be required so as to contribute to a transformation of many of the assumptions and institutions in our human societies that have been identified as culprits for the rapid and large-scale decline in the quality of the natural environment.

In the 21st century, ecology and cosmology must inform education that aims at learning by doing. Teachers and students in the envisaged tertiary educational level will be engaged in a mutually beneficial learning process, stimulating and being stimulated to curiosity and imagination, and learning the art of applying knowledge creatively and integratively for one's personal ethical, spiritual, political, social, and ecological growth. The method of teaching must be open and participative, utilizing interactive technology and fostering freedom that works toward justice and peace. The end of such education is the self-development of the student through a variety of fields of learning and understanding. By knowing oneself and how one becomes within this emergent universe, one will also discover what is required to build a globally sustainable society.

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Disciplines

Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education

Keywords

College teaching; Transformative learning

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