Aesthetic, Spiritual, and Flow Experiences: Contrasts and Educational Implications

The purpose of this paper is to cross-examine Dewey’s ideas on religious and aesthetic experiences, and Csikszentmihalyi’s theory of flow experience. To achieve this end, we offer an analytic framework for evaluating experiences: triggers, characterizations, and import. In using this framework, we not only more deeply examine these ideas of experience, but we also discuss what educators may learn from the intersection of these three important theories of experience

The Global Dimension: A Practical Handbook for Teacher Educators

The Global Dimension in Initial Teacher Education (ITE) project was funded throughthe Development Awareness Fund from the Department for International Development (DFID) between 2009 and 2012. The aim of the project was to embed the global dimension in initial teacher education in an initial teacher education programme. This handbook provides an account of some of the practical activities (both subject-specific and cross-curricular) developed through the project which may be of use to teacher educators. Specifically it highlights session templates, course audits, approaches to teaching and subject-specific resources. It isinformed by the context of the institution and the individuals involved in data collection provide insight as to how activities were perceived and worked on a practical level

Global Citizenship in Canadian Universities: A New Framework

The value and importance of global learning is widely promoted and debated in the literature but, without a common language to frame this discussion, we cannot accurately assess its effectiveness or value. One term frequently used in these conversations, and extolled by universities, is the idea of global citizenship; however, there is no consistent definition of this concept. In this article, we describe the philosophical traditions surrounding the term global citizenship and explain the roots of the debate over its use. To further understand how this term is used among institutions of higher education, we investigated how select Canadian universities discuss global citizenship and identified some of the key terms used as proxies for global citizenship. By bringing together the existing academic literature, the available statistics, and a survey of mandates and practices across Canadian universities, we have developed a framework that defines a global citizen in a Canadian context. This shared framework that universities can adapt and modify to meet their own institutional needs is necessary to enhance their ability to develop the next generation of global citizens. A consistent language and vision will better shape the experiences students have, ensure the evaluation of university programs is both possible and effective, and creates common goals that can be shared among industry, government, and universities

Moving sciences beyond museums and theatres

Recent literature suggests that art and aesthetics are evident in ancient times, as well as in Islamic, Indian, Chinese, African and Western medieval traditions. However, literature on the incorporation of art and aesthetics into economic and management sciences and social sciences is not so readily available. Using a narrative exploratory study, this article reported on two lecturers’ interpretation of the sensory contemplation or appreciation of aesthetic judgement within their academic programmes at a higher education institution. Stimulating creativity, passion and imagination is just part of an array of characteristics that prospective educators will need to develop in their teaching. Research has indicated that to become a reflective practitioner, educators should be able to assess and explore the success of their practices. It is this freedom to imagine, assess, explore and reflect continuously on new ways of doing things that leads ultimately to practical application. Teaching aesthetically also requires a strong grounding in pedagogical content knowledge, thereby allowing students to become transformers of society. The main thrust of this article was to determine how we develop and embody these qualities in ourselves and in the modules we teach. The results of the study indicated that whilst early socialisation processes did impact on how aesthetics was incorporated for one participant, culture did not play a very significant role for the other. The findings also indicated that students have a real appreciation of the incorporation of the aesthetic domain within the disciplines

Teoría curricular itinerante. Una declaración epistemológica de independencia

En el transcurso del siglo xx y en el contexto de cuestiones sociales, locales y globales más amplias y complejas, el plan de estudios se convirtió en un campo de batalla político e ideo- lógico abierto, en el que los grupos dominantes y contradominantes reavivan la animosidad con los bandos asumiendo básicamente un ‘no asumir el compromiso de los prisioneros’. El propósito de la teoría curricular [curricularista] es viajar, ir más allá de los límites, moverse y permanecer en una especie de exilio permanente. Una teoría de no lugares y no tiempos es, en esencia, una teoría de todos los lugares y todos los tiempos. El teórico del plan de estudios es un migrante constante, un nómada permanente de su propia conciencia multifacética que experimenta una serie de eventos [epistemológicos]. Además, las teorías curiculares itinerantes (TCI) lo empujan a uno a pensar a la luz del futuro, así como a preguntarse cómo ‘realmente’ podemos afirmar que realmente sabemos las cosas que ‘nosotros’ afirmamos saber si ‘nosotros’ no estamos preparados específicamente para pensar lo impensable, sino ir más allá de lo impensable y luchar con su infinitud.Within the course of the twentieth century and within the context of broader complex social –local and global– issues, curriculum became a open political and ideological battle field, in which dominant and counterdominant groups re-escalate the animosity with sides basically assuming a ‘taking no prisioners commitment’. The purpose of curriculum theory[ists] is to travel, to go beyond the limits, to move, and stay in a kind of permanent exile. A theory of non-places and non-times is, in essence, a theory of all places and all times. The curriculum theorist is a constant migrant , a permanent nomad of his own all multifaceted consciousness who experiences a series of [epistemological] events. Moreover, ICT pushes one to think in the light of the future as well as to question how can ‘we’ actually claim to really know the things that ‘we’ claim to know if ‘we’ are not ready specifically to think the unthinkable, but to go beyond the unthinkable and to struggle with its infinitude

William T. Grant Foundation - 2008 Annual Report

Contains president's letter, board chair's report, essays on the impact and relevance of the foundation's support for research, year in review, program information and highlights, grants list, and lists of reviewers, board members, and staff

The Historical Impact Of Philosophical Naturalism On American Aesthetic Education: Bennett Reimer’s Philosophy Of Music Education As Aesthetic Education

Philosophical naturalism is the view that all of reality reduces to natural explanation. The resulting so-called fact-value split biases language against universal, objective values—where empirical observation is said to determine truth, while values are reduced to private emoting or socio-cultural human construction. This research questioned the definition of aesthetic value as determined by the music education as aesthetic education (MEAE) movement in the United States, and the justification of aesthetic education as a universally applicable and comprehensive approach to a course in general music/music appreciation. As the MEAE movement seems to have been largely defined by Bennett Reimer, his philosophy was assessed critically. This study investigated the historical impact of philosophical naturalism on aesthetic philosophy in general, and the potential impact of a fact-value-bias upon the value language of Bennett Reimer’s philosophy of aesthetic education in particular. It was determined that there was a noteworthy historical shift following the Enlightenment—i.e., the rise of aestheticism curiously coincided with the rise of philosophical naturalism. It was further determined that philosophical naturalism indeed seems to have influenced Bennett Reimer’s view of aesthetic value. It was concluded that non-naturalist positions must be alloto vie in the classroom, if aesthetic education is to speak comprehensively of value. Some contemporary alternatives are suggested concerning the possibilities of what a more holistic approach to aesthetic education might look like, and it is posited that the most comprehensive and inclusive approach will be a dialogical approach that uses the arts to encourage students to think critically concerning questions at the heart of inquiry into the very nature of goodness and the meaning of beauty

The Use of Visual Arts in World Language Instruction to Increase Student Motivation and Attitude

Because of the complexity and changeability that characterize languages, language learners face a number of various factors in their quest to acquire a new language. Nevertheless, it is the level of motivation and personal attitude toward language learning that will determine their rate of success (Dörnyei & Csizér, 1998). The purpose of this study was to find out (1) whether there was a relationship between the use of visual art in world language instruction and student motivation, and (2) whether student writing skills improved when visual art was used for Content Based Instruction. The study used a mixed method research design to quantitatively analyze student questionnaires, student writing samples and End of Course (EOC) exams, and semiqualitatively analysis of open-ended student surveys. Results from two-way repeated measures ANOVA on the first three instruments did not confirm the existence and significance of any relationship between the use of visual art in language instruction and student motivation toward learning a new language. The student survey, however, showed that most students liked class activities that taught them content matter and required their active participation, such as dialogue presentations and student-produced videos, indicating language instructional activities using the CBI approach were much more effective in increasing student motivation than visual art instruction per se

Organizational culture and international education : case studies at selected institutions

The purpose of this study was to examine, describe, and explain the relationship between a school's organizational culture and the development of international education programs on that campus. In addition, the study compared the development of these programs at two different institutions and determined possible reasons for why these programs developed on one campus and not on the other. A comparative, historical case study was constructed using data from a people trail and a paper trail. The people trail consisted of a series of interviews with involved administrators, faculty, and students at each institution. A paper trail was summarized by examining college catalogs, mission statements, campus newspapers, and other pertinent written documents that chronicled the development of international education programs on each campus