Contemplative Education Justin Miller Samantha Unsworth

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.

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).

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.

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”.

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.

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.

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.