Educators Convene To Propose A Holistic Vision
Of Learning At John F. Kennedy University

	JOHN F. KENNEDY UNIVERSITY: Kaleo Ching and Elise Dirlam Ching, authors of Faces of Your Soul: Rituals in Art, Maskmaking and Chi and Creativity: Vital Energy, were among the presenters at JFKU's Holistic Arts Conference. Kaleo Ching is an adjunct professor in the Arts & Consciousness program at JFK University's Berkeley campus.

By Michael Grady

A "holistic" vision is at the heart of many of the innovative trends in educational theory and practice, according to educators, artists and students from around the country and the world attending a recent conference at John F. Kennedy University's Berkeley campus. The conference on 'Holistic Approaches to Arts Education' drew presenters and panelists who are distinguished artists and scholars – educators who are pioneering new approaches to arts education at all levels.

What does "holistic" mean?
Opinions and interpretations varied, but conference participants soon found consensus that a holistic approach to education integrated body, mind and spirit. We also agreed that holistic education was distinct from other educational approaches in that it was experiential – requiring multiple forms of learning. Numerous holistic approaches to arts education were presented, all eventually leading to the idea that education is about discovery and innovation.

"Creativity," also a common theme in this art-oriented conference, was seen as a natural consequence of holistic learning. Virtually every educator at the conference agreed that when a holistic approach to education occurs creativity is encouraged and developed. Deeper discussions led to the insight that creativity, and its logical consequence, 'innovation', are part of all holistic learning – not just in the arts, but in science, mathematics, engineering, business and the social sciences.

What conditions facilitate the holistic integration of body mind and spirit in education?
A sense of trust and safety is essential. Further, conference participants agreed that holistic education, especially in the arts required three basic modalities of learning: kinesthetic (physical), academic and spiritual.

The kinesthetic, or physical, modality was among the most uniformly acknowledged and valued approaches to holistic education. Some examples included model-building, working in nature, physical interaction with other students – teaching styles that allow ideas to be physically demonstrated. In arts education, physical activity is a given, but it is rarely acknowledged by traditional art teachers as being related to fun and experimentation. Play, sensuousness, touch and movement – all forms of kinesthetic learning – are essential elements in teaching art as well as virtually any other subject area.

How is academic inquiry guided in a "holistic" approach to education?
The wisdom of the assembled holistic educators was that academic inquiry needs to be at the center of learning, but is best made a matter of discovery rather than recitation. The old paradigm of education was seen as that which involved a power hierarchy between teacher and student. The holistic approach is that students are facilitated by the teacher into the discovery of new knowledge. It's important, of course, to learn facts and to gain skills, but using these things as they're learned allows them to be a part of the student's ongoing transformation.

How is "spirituality" defined in a "holistic" educational setting?
Interpretations varied widely. For some, spiritual experience was seen as closely related to religion and morality. Some rejected the term based on the same assumption – that spirituality was the imposition of a set of religious values and beliefs which were to be communicated in the teaching process. The wider view, held by the majority of those discussing the issue was that "spirit" simply refers to a direct experience of transcendent identity.

Spirituality, disconnected from religion, has to do ultimately with the expanded awareness of self and the direct insight into a new sense of inter-connectedness. In all cases, spirituality, taught as a part of holistic education, becomes a quality of self-affirmation which is discovered by the student in the "ah-ha moment." Sudden insight and cognition comes in lots of forms. It doesn't necessarily involve supernatural experience – most often, it appears as a smile and a sense of satisfaction in understanding how it all fits together. All of the educators present at the conference understood that sense of discovery as one of the prime motivators for learning – and for teaching as well. That's the kind of every day spirituality that is an integral dimension of holistic education.

The aspect of holistic education that seemed to resonate most fully in our conference had to do with that very idea of "connection." Play and experimentation are important parts of the holistic experience, precisely because they lead inevitably to the realization that ideas are connected – people and environments are connected. Given a safe and supportive environment in which we're free to experiment, the consummation of learning is the awareness of complete inter-connectedness. One presenter went so far as to suggest that we abandon the entire idea of curriculum and simply created educational structures that facilitate play, reflection and discovery. "They'll figure it out for themselves if you let them," he admonished. Most were hesitant to take such a bold position, but understood the basic point – that we're all naturally attracted to learning and that the most innovative and powerful teaching methods are those that allow students to learn out of the sheer joy of discovery and connection.

The shared end goal of all our holistic approaches to education is "transformation." When offered a learning experience which cultivates creativity and innovation – which acknowledges the innate desire for learning and connection – students are literally transformed. They become a new kind of person, paradoxically becoming transformed into someone more, and more like themselves. Transformation and affirmation, as we examined the issues, became the hallmarks of holistic education.

In acknowledging the whole person, education is recognizing exciting new potentials and allowing for great innovations in how we see ourselves and our relationship to the world.