Examining Loss of Soul in Education

One does not have to walk long in the hallways of schools to see that something is very wrong. We search in our students for the passion and enthusiasm for learning that they possessed before entering school. Instead, we find idle bystanders content to remain distant from formal instruction and from their hearts. Too often they remain dazed, passive consumers window shopping the mall of education. Education becomes something to get through with a grade or a degree rather than a clearing for deep experience. A common malady of education today is the familiar emptiness found in the experiences of both teachers and students. This paper will explore the complex issues in contemporary education surrounding the dissatisfaction teachers and students experience with teaching and learning, from each other and from their own desires. In addition, this paper will examine the concept of soul as it relates to educational practice and its effect on teachers and students. It also represents a personal journey to deepen my understanding of a crisis facing students, educators, our nation, and of the soul's essential role in educational renewal. Examining the loss of soul is just one way to understand our modernist-rationalist educational milieu and the impact this environment is having on students' and teachers' lives. Soul as a function of education is certainly not a new idea and has been described by authors for thousands of years. Yet in the decades prior to 1990s, there was an absence of much serious dialogue on the subject. Words like "soul," "spirituality," and "spirit" had been deemed inappropriate for secular education or serious discourse, but they are found to be increasingly relevant to contemporary life, including education. In recent times, there have emerged scholars who are speaking boldly on the inclusion of soul in education praxis. The profile of participants include: Parker Palmer, David Purpel, Ron Miller, John Gardner, Thomas Moore." We will consider the implications of soul as it relates to the malady of educational systems.