A CHILD IS NOT A VESSEL TO BE FILLED BUT A CANDLE TO BE LIT!
Isn’t this a beautiful image? This quote made a huge impression on me and I began to reflect more on my education. I am so grateful to my teachers for lighting the flame of curiosity within me. My imagination was ignited and my dreams and desires became clearer. As Einstein said “ Imagination is more important than knowledge.”
I believe this is a great foundation for education. Children will begin to resent their teachers and their schooling if they are simply being filled with facts and information. Many students understandably begin to question the importance of education if they are only retaining factual information for regurgitation later on in an exam. Whereas if a child is being challenged and inspired, if the teacher is striving to develop every aspect of the child this is far more successful. To quote Einstein once again “It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education.”
As educators we should be striving to guide the development of curious, questioning and unique individuals. I have an immense amount of respect and gratitude for my teachers, their passion for educating made every school day satisfying and worthwhile.
I discovered this beautiful and meaningful quote in a book called “The Journeys of Socrates” written by Dan Millman.

FURTHER REFLECTIONS

GARDNER'S MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES

LINGUISTIC INTELLIGENCE

"Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb." ~WINSTON CHURCHILL


MATHEMATICAL INTELLIGENCE

"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity." ~ALBERT EINSTEIN


MUSICAL INTELLIGENCE

"People should check this music out because it is relevant to themselves and their lives. It’s about what it is to be a conscious individual alive today" ~JAMES BLUNT

"Beautiful dawn Melt with the stars again. Do you remember the day when my journey began? Will you remember the end of time?" ~JAMES BLUNT


BODILY/KINESTHETIC INTELLIGENCE

"Dance is so joyous." ~GRAEME MURPHY

"I actually build my dreams around the dancers I've got in my company." ~GRAEME MURPHY


SPATIAL INTELLIGENCE

"We fought to the end. We are a family out there and we are very disciplined. Whatever anyone throws at us, together we are stronger. We are confident. With each game we have shown what we are capable of." ~GUUS HIDDINK



INTERPERSONAL INTELLIGENCE

"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world."

"The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall."


INTRAPERSONAL INTELLIGENCE

"Have you ever been at sea in a dense fog, when it seemed as if a tangible white darkness shut you in and the great ship, tense and anxious, groped her way toward the shore with plummet and sounding-line, and you waited with beating heart for something to happen? I was like that ship before my education began, only I was without compass or sounding line, and no way of knowing how near the harbour was. "Light! Give me light!" was the wordless cry of my soul, and the light of love shone on me in that very hour." ~HELEN KELLER


NATURALIST INTELLIGENCE

"All over the world the wildlife that I write about is in grave danger. It is being exterminated by what we call the progress of civilization."



EXISTENTIAL INTELLIGENCE

"Whether one believes in a religion or not, and whether one believes in rebirth or not, there isn't anyone who doesn't appreciate kindness and compassion." ~DALAI LAMA

MY MAJOR WORK JOURNEY

THERE IS NO OBVIOUS ANSWER WAITING TO BE DISCOVERED, IT IS OFTEN THE JOURNEY WHICH WILL TEACH US MORE!!!
My Year 12 Experience at Lorien Novalis was very challenging, rewarding and eventually really satisfying. As an individual in a class situation, it was great to see our class finally join together and help each other accomplish 10 brilliant Major Works by the end of the year. We supported and guided each other, sometimes unknowingly but most often with clear intention, we gave each other ideas, advice and practical help that was extremely valuable in creating each and every amazing project. It was a journey that we all embarked on with very little knowledge of what lay ahead, we journeyed into the unknown with strength and courage. The creative impulses and ideals that had always been instilled in us throughout our education came alive in that final year. Although the year brought with it many near breakdowns when something didn’t go according to plan, it was certainly an incredible journey with many joyful moments! I was very grateful to have this amazing opportunity to express my thoughts in an artistic way, and I gained a vast amount from this experience. We were a dynamic group, and we encountered many emotional roller coasters along the way, however we all had loads fun and learnt a great deal from each other, from our wonderful teachers and also from ourselves! We were given amazing freedom with the paths we could take for our Major Works. It was our choice.....any subject, any medium, make the work your own, make it unique, and make it wonderfully impressive! The sky was really our only limit, and some of us even challenged that!

We knew that having been given this freedom, our teacher’s had placed incredible trust with us, we were left to explore the different ways we could achieve our dreams and desires. Over the years, the school had provided us with the knowledge, self-confidence and the ability to create something brilliant from our own impulse and initiative. We were not handed a guide-book on a silver platter, although sometimes that would have been really helpful! The Major Work journey is all about discovering your personal capabilities and what you can achieve from your own ideas and initiative! We were let loose to explore our imagination, our creativity, our experiences and our place among the class, the school and the world, I feel like I learnt a lot about myself. While travelling this journey with my class, I discovered my journey!

I expressed this in a poem that I performed through Eurythmy, which is a form of movement making speech visible, unique to the Steiner philosophy of Education. This poem describes a journey through sadness, overcoming sadness and strengthening the courage and light within our hearts. This poem is a means for teaching myself, and hopefully others too, that it’s much healthier to overcome the feeling of sadness and look forward to the future of your life. My poem represents a struggle through sadness, overcoming the sorrow and looking forward, creating ambitions, desires and dreams. You need to radiate your inner light to the world and glow!
Following is an excerpt of my poem entitled “Reflection and Desire” and also a photo of the accompanying painting entitled "Inner Sun"

My tears fill the darkness
My heartbeat fills the silence
My sorrows fill the silent dark

I’m searching for a path to follow
Looking for the clarity of wisdom
Yearning for the awareness of truth

I have developed the courage to dream
I have discovered the sun within my heart
I have found the sun within each of us

Returning to the beginning of this reflection, there is no obvious answer waiting to be discovered, it is often the journey which will teach us more! My understanding of the major work process is that students develop the capacity and awareness to make and trust their own choices and judgements. It is not about choosing what you want to achieve and signing a contract to say it will not change for the whole year, that would be cutting off endless possibilities, it is an unreasonable and unnatural process. The most amazing part of a major work, is the whole journey, the changes, the new impulses, the ups and downs, the smiles and the tears. We learn so much from our mistakes, and the hardships we encounter, as Richard Bach says: “There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts.”
Students from Lorien Novalis tend to be well developed human beings, with a well rounded view of the world. We are questioning individuals, not dumbed down citizens ready to accept everything which is thrown at us. We will ask questions, we strive to understand things fully!
"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment"~Emerson

CLASS TRIPS

CLASS TRIPS
Whenever I’m sifting through memories of my education, my class, my teachers, anything to do with school, I always think about our amazing class trips……… there are so many memories, beautiful and exciting, emotional and frightening, but every single trip taught me something special, I learnt about my friends, my teachers, and even myself! Imagine an education filled with some of these moments and experiences: learning to ski on a mountain top in New Zealand, spending time in a traditional Maori marae, jumping off a high rock into a river, abseiling into a deep and dark cave, walking 40 kilometres in 3 days, sitting in a bus for 36 hours straight, climbing and walking around Uluru, swimming beneath a huge waterfall, sleeping under the stars in the desert, watching the sunrise over Uluru, canoeing in a river alongside crocodiles, snorkelling in the Whitsundays, spending 4 days at sea on a little boat, sleeping on the beach watching shooting stars as you fall asleep and the sunrise when you wake up, travelling through Europe for 3 weeks including: France, Switzerland, Spain and Italy…….experiencing different languages, different foods, different cultures, many memories! All these memories helped to bring our class closer together, to strengthen our friendships and to create lasting lessons, an education for life! This type of learning endeavours to strengthen social connection within the group and to teach through direct experience, rather than through abstract concepts. Although Vygotsky speaks about social interaction in the class room, I think he would agree that spending time away with a group, would also be extremely valuable in developing social learning. While we were on our Yr 12 Class Trip, we visited the Goetheanum in Switzerland which is where the Steiner movement is centralised, it was a beautiful experience. We all enjoyed it so much! One of the most amazing and memorable times, it was a beautiful building, lovely people and I think we all appreciated seeing such a strong Steiner impulse on the other side of the world, so far from home.

REFLECTION ON MY EDUCATION

REFELCTIONS
I believe my education was extremely valuable and wholesome, not only did I learn about life, I also learnt a great deal about education itself. I was educated in the Rudolf Steiner system, from my first day of school to my last. I enjoyed nearly every day of school and never wanted to miss a day, even if I was really sick. With an emphasis on the individual child, I always felt comfortable in the classroom and developed a passion for learning and understanding. The Rudolf Steiner philosophy is very complex, most of what I understand about it, I have learnt through my 13 years of Steiner Education. Both of my parents are Steiner teachers, so my whole childhood was imbued with this wholesome way of life. Rudolf Steiner talks about the importance of the threefold man, head and thinking, heart and feeling, hands and willing. Each school day consists of 3 lessons: Main Lesson, Middle Lesson and Block Lesson. Main lesson activates the children’s thinking and encourages their thought-life to grow and expand. Middle Lesson increases their creative and artistic abilities through subjects like music, painting, drawing and singing. Block lesson involves the hands and limbs, physically doing something, making something, for example woodwork, building, knitting, clay work and sewing. This concept of the threefold nature of man is used throughout Steiner education and is the basis of developing young people as wholesome human beings ready for the world and the challenges it brings. Steiner teachers strive to balance these 3 important aspects of the child. I always respected my teachers, they were all so dedicated and supportive, making school life not only interesting, but often fun as well. From my experience, Steiner teachers are valued and respected by their students, they not only come to work every day to teach, they come to support and guide their students. A teacher’s guidance and friendship is so important, it helps to make the students strive their utmost to develop further in every aspect. I am really grateful for my education, my teacher’s have not only developed my knowledge and understanding of the world and myself, they have planted seeds in my mind, questions still to be answered, and paths still to be pursued. There are always many stories we can tell, many experiences, moments, memories, can be retold with ease. Can we create stories, develop our world the way perceive our lives? Many answers create more questions, I believe that education should be endeavouring to ask questions, developing interesting thinkers, instead of always giving students questions which they only need to find an answer for.

BRUNER

Jerome Bruner’s theory of education emphasises three main aspects of a child’s learning, beginning with Enactive, then Iconic and finally, Symbolic. As outlined below, each one of the three is another step along the road of learning. His work is solidly based on Piaget’s theory of cognitive development.

ENACTIVE: This term relates to physical learning, to be able touch something and learn through feeling and doing is the first stage.

ICONIC: This stage is about learning pictorially, looking to internal imagery to help you understand something. This stage relies on your memory of visual or other sensory association with the concept.

SYMBOLIC: Learning through symbols, abstract concepts, for example words and numbers. This stage is about being able to think about things that may or may not happen. This symbolic understanding of the world is very important in reflective thinking.

Bruner believes students should be encouraged to learn through their own actions and experiences. Teachers should be keen make these experiences interesting and exciting, to keep the children’s curiosity alive.

One key concept that Brunner brought forward is that of the spiral curriculum. This states that students can learn anything at any age, provided that it’s appropriate to their stage of development, and not used in a negative way. By using this concept of the spiral we can see that we are constantly revisiting what we have learnt, but at a higher level.
For example, when we teach a child to read, we cannot show them words and expect them to comprehend the information immediately, we first need to teach them letters and the specific qualities of each letter. Only when they understand the alphabet can we begin to show them how the sounds are used together to make words. From this example we can see that when learning words, children are constantly revisiting the alphabet, and reminding themselves of how each letter sounds. Each topic is progressively reinforced at every stage of development so the child is constantly revising in order to build up their knowledge and understanding.

GARDNER

Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania in 1943, Howard Gardner studied at Harvard University, with a desire for a career in Law. He was able to study with some brilliant psychologists, sociologists and psychoanalysts, who inspired him to pursue his investigations of human nature. Gardner’s Intelligences:

LINGUISTIC INTELLIGENCE
The ability to learn easily through the spoken or written word and the capacity to express oneself through speech, learns languages with great ease.

LOGICAL-MATHEMATICAL INTELLIGENCE
The ability to reason logically and scientifically, using the awareness of patterns involved in problem solving.

MUSICAL INTELLIGENCE
The ability to find patterns in rhythm, pitch and tone. Understanding the importance of composition and performance skills.

BODILY-KINESTHETIC INTELLIGENCE
Using mental abilities to coordinate physical movement.

SPATIAL INTELLIGENCE
The ability to recognise and use different spaces including wide open spaces and confined spaces.

INTERPERSONAL INTELLIGENCE
The capacity to recognise and understand the intentions, motivations and desires of other people.

INTRAPERSONAL INTELLIGENCE
The ability to understand our own individual, ideals, desires, feelings, contributing to our ability of working effectively.

NATURALIST INTELLIGENCE
The understanding of the natural world through plants, animals, minerals and othe natural substances.

EXISTENTIAL INTELLIGENCE
The capacity to comprehend and understand the spiritual realms of our world.

VYGOTSKY

Lev Vygotsky, lived from 1896 till 1934, he was a Russian Psychologist and Education theorist, he trained at the University of Moscow, receiving a Law Degree, then going on to study literature and linguistics. Vygotsky’s work began not long after the Russian Revolution, indicating that his inspiration came from the culture of Russia at the time. The Revolution brought a significant change to the Russian culture, instead of the Tsarist authoritarian rule, the Marxism movement was sweeping through Russia, bringing with it an ideal of social equilibrium. So Vygotsky built an educational theory around the social ideals of the time, expressing the importance of social interaction towards increased learning. The political situation changed from being one individual ruler, to a communist ideal, where all is equal and available to the masses. Sharing and co-operation was encouraged, an individual’s success was viewed as reflecting the success of the culture. Vygotsky’s ideals about education were based upon social interaction with a teacher’s guidance, lesson content would be discussed amongst the students, rather than the teacher lecturing to simply fill their minds with useless facts.
Vygotsky stated that a child’s intellectual ability is based on the culture they grow up in, children gain knowledge and understanding of the world from their surrounding culture. A child needs to interact socially with other people when solving problems. Gradually a change should take place, originally the parent or teacher should verbalise all the steps taken to solve the problem, but the ideal is for the child to eventually internalise these instructions, so they can direct their own actions without so much assistance.

His theory is based around the fact that the classical style of classroom teaching is ineffective. He states that although a teacher is obviously necessary, a lesson should not be conducted in such a way that the children are given information for the sole purpose of memorising it for recitation in the future. Children should be given valuable information, to assist them in becoming aware of the world around them. The teacher should work in partnership with the children, engaging them in activities whereby they can interact with and learn from one another. From this viewpoint, children learn through interaction with their classmates, enabling them to develop their skills further. Child development occurs first through interaction between people and again within the child himself.

Another aspect of Vygotsky’s theory is the Zone of Proximal Development, which is the space between what a child can do on his own and what a child can do with guidance and assistance either from a teacher or through social interaction with his classmates. We should be teaching just ahead of where the child is, constantly encouraging them to develop and achieve more!
If we only teach children what they are already capable of understanding, we are not allowing them the freedom to excel. We are holding them back, we should be encouraging them to make an effort and achieve their potential! The Zone of Proximal Development is basically the difference between what the child is currently capable of achieving and what the child is potentially capable of achieving. We should always be aiming to teach a child’s potential, therefore encouraging them to accomplish more than they may have thought possible. It is always great when children surprise themselves by their own abilities, we encourage them to attain things they may think are impossible. They are amazed when they realize they can achieve more than they thought possible, replenishing their faith in your knowledge of their potential.

PIAGET

Jean Piaget was born in Neuchatel, Switzerland in 1896. He was an amazing observer of children. Beginning his studies by closely watching the development of his own three children, he became fascinated by the different stages in a child’s development. He dedicated over fifty years of his life to the study of children, creating his own theory defining the intellectual development of the child, stage by stage as follows.

Piaget was actively involved in studies of children taking Intelligence tests and he discovered that they repeatedly chose the incorrect answers. This intrigued him, motivating him to begin studies of cognitive development in children. Piaget felt that psychology would provide the missing link between the philosophical problem of epistemology and biological intelligence. Piaget taught a variety of subjects from philosophy to psychology and sociology, in the Universities of Geneva, Neuchatel, Lausanne and Sorbonne.


1: THE SENSORIMOTOR STAGE
This first stage of development involves infants discovering the relationships between their bodies and the world around them. This stage lasts from birth to approximately 2 years of age. They learn through sensory experience of their environment, through touch, sight, sound, smell and taste. The infant begins to understand that the environment they live in is not an extension of themselves. One of the final criteria in this stage is the realisation that even if an object is hidden behind or underneath something, it still exists. Before this, if a toy their playing with is hidden from view, they lose interest. However once a child has mastered this concept of “object permanence” they are then ready to move forward to the next stage. The best indicator is a child searching for something they cannot see, because they can understand that it does still exist.

2: THE PREOPERATIONAL STAGE
The second stage, occurring approximately between the ages of 2 and 6, this is the time when a child views the world from their own perspective. They lack the ability to change angles and look at things through another’s eyes. During conversation, children this age tend to speak in monologue form. If you observe two children talking to each other, they are each speaking a monologue, but they alternate who speaks so it sounds like a conversation although neither of them have any idea what the other is saying. This type of conversation is called a collective monologue. During this stage, children feel a complete unity with nature, as though all their fears and desires melt into the world. Everything is filled with awe and wonder, the world we live in is an amazing place when viewed through the eyes of a child. The child considers his own perspective as being complete and final. Children view names as just simply being a part of someone, they cannot fathom the concept that someone could have been given a different name. At this age, children begin to use symbols, for example, they learn the alphabet in order to progress to learning how to read and write. The use of words and language opens doorways for the child to portray things which they cannot see.

3: THE CONCRETE OPERATIONAL STAGE
This third stage of development becomes apparent between the ages of 7 and 12, during this stage the child will begin to organise thoughts logically and coherently. They cannot handle abstract reasoning, their thoughts extend only in the physical realm of the world, they can comprehend actual objects and material things but not invisible thoughts and concepts. A major characteristic of this stage is the movement between looking at the world from an egocentric perspective and developing a more encompassing view of the world. This stage marks the child’s ability to understand reversibility and sequence. The child can now see the difference between an object on its own and a series of many objects.

4: THE FORMAL OPERATIONAL STAGE
This fourth and final stage in Piaget’s theory of development, begins at approximately 11 to 12 years of age and continues to develop through adulthood, Piaget also recognises that some people may not reach this stage of cognitive development. The main characteristic during this time is the child’s ability to formulate hypotheses and systematically test their theories, coming to a conclusion or solution to their enquiry. During this stage, the child is able to think abstractly and understand the form and structure of a mathematical problem. This stage marks the development of their ability to reason contrary to fact. If they are given a statement and asked to use it as the basis of an argument they are capable of accomplishing the task.

PIAGET'S THEORY OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT

SUCCESSION THROUGH THE STAGES
The succession of stages involves the movement through four stages that Piaget has set and defined. Although there are specific ages stated for each stage of development, every child is unique. We need to consider whether the child has mastered each set of criteria before they move on into the next stage of skills. The child’s competence is measured by the stage they are in, based on their skill level, not strictly by their age, as each child develops slightly differently. Through the balancing of maturity, experience and social interaction a child can move through these developmental stages, gathering the tools and knowledge to carry him through life. By teachers becoming aware of these stages, we can cater to each child, knowing that some children will develop quicker or slower than others.

COMPUTERS

When we use computers in education, they should not simply be a source of information. They cannot be used creatively and productively if they are just files and files of facts.

If computers are going to be used, they need to improve the way in which we learn. Children these days learn in a very different way than past generations. They can focus on several things at once, so they can work on the computer, while also listening to the teacher.

There is an impulse in the realm of education, called Constructivist Education, a form of learning in which each student develops through different stages and their interest and motivation in their learning changes and transforms through each stage of development. Their thinking improves, their knowledge increases, they become growing, changing beings, capable of taking some responsibility of their education. Education is ultimately about improving and increasing knowledge and awareness of the world. Learning is about being given the skills to comprehend and understand the subject matter. To learn effectively, we also need to critically reflect on our classroom experience, giving ourselves the chance to construct and develop our own thoughts and opinions on what we have learnt. It is unhealthy to just sit back and trust everything that we are told. We need to actively question the world we live in, to make our own thoughts valid.

EDUCATION

Education is a very broad topic, it covers all manner of philosophies and viewpoints, but above all, it is about the teacher's ablility to draw students in and about the students ability to learn!