SPIRITUALITY: AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM OF THE XXI CENTURY

SPIRITUALITY: AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM OF THE XXI CENTURY

This article accepts the notion of spirituality as advocated by Danah Zohar proposes that the third as an intelligence able to put our acts and experiences in a broader context of meaning and value, making them more effective. According to her, have high spiritual quotient (SQ) means being able to use the spiritual to have a life richer and more full of meaning, purpose and appropriate sense of personal direction. The QS increases our horizons and makes us more creative. It is an intelligence that drives us. She's the approach and solve problems of meaning and value and develop ethical values and beliefs that will guide our actions.
This way of thinking about spirituality requires a deep dive into the human condition from the perspective of self. From a broader conception of human being, the human heel-holotropic (Grof, 1992, 1997) proposed by Grof, note the importance of considering this aspect in the educational process, once we understand this process as a space preferred formation of human beings from the construction of knowledge permeated the pedagogical relationship. Therefore, we believe that educational practice requires methods and strategies that aim at the creation of the human being, ie, that take into account not only the individual but the different variables that contribute to the pedagogical relationship, individual / society / species are not only inseparable but also co-producing each other. In other words, as specifically human experience, education is a form of intervention in the world and requires from educators the courage to take the entirety of the human condition.
Understanding the existence and nature of experiences is a process that leads man to identify with others, beyond the physical body, feelings and culture imposed that often proclaim truths only conducive to a false worldview, constraining the totality of being. However, for the development of a new look, a new world view is a necessary paradigm shift, something not very simple and easy, despite the relevant contributions from different scientific areas point to this need.

The way spirituality is understood here lets say that it is included in any kind of independent knowledge of the system. And from this premise, one can conclude that spirituality is of utmost importance to education, the conductive support with specific knowledge in various disciplines interwoven to empirical knowledge. The educational system in the world requires a paradigm shift, which only become effective if all involved in the educational process changing their attitude toward the dualistic world view, since we should not separate scientific research of spiritual quest, because that's junction that allows the transformation of the individual.

Spirituality is the way to the transformation of being. However, culture is the habits, norms, beliefs, values etc.. Within any society. Thus, talk of opening / changing in education means understanding the process of education as relations between human beings that grow in wholeness, in a constant movement of construction and reconstruction of self and of history. Therefore, the education system need to be attentive also to the dimension of spirituality.

This idea, the attention to the dimension of spirituality, suggests thinking of the role of educators. Educators need a cycle of action / reflection at all pedagogical. This does not mean that the contents remain outside the school education process. The school subjects are part of this cycle of action / reflection on the whole, it is they who help in the process of building and shaping the individual. The fact is that many education specialists work plan and specific content, ignoring the sight of the human being.

The need to introduce the self for both the educator and for the student urges. For the self, able to develop different levels of consciousness, providers of the whole human being, is implied in the spirituality. Therefore, it is important an education based on the human condition, considering the subjectivity within the diversity and complexity that permeates these two antagonistic systems and inseparable.
Education professionals should reflect on what documents should be addressed in the classroom, taking into account the factors described above. There is no room for the classroom teacher whose students consider a clean slate and he the keeper of knowledge as a source of ultimate truth. It is necessary to reflect on what content contribute to the formation of human beings as such, which are developed in / for completeness, in tune with the universe. Do not just talk about content and lessons, it is necessary to bring together professionals who think and perform a political pedagogical project for such a situation.

The education world is in crisis, calls for change and, consequently, by paradigm shifts. In this sense, the search for new ways to understand another world involves education at all levels and in all ages and this must be the task of education in the twenty-first century.


REFERÊNCIAS

ESPÍRITO SANTO, R. C. C. Pedagogia da autonomia. Rio de Janeiro: Paz e Terra, 2003.
GROF, S. A.. A aventura da autodescoberta. São Paulo: Summusl,
1997.
______. (Org). Emergência espiritual: crise e transformação espiritual.
São Paulo: Cultrix, 1992.


originally published at http://www.educacao-e-espiritualidade.com