Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
* An inspirational and holistic approach to teaching by a renowned Latina scholar
* Defines seven steps to unlocking the potential of teachers and their students
* Deeply informed by the author's educational journey as a minority woman from a background of rural poverty
Laura Rendon is a scholar of national stature, known for her research on students of color and first-generation college students, and on the factors that promote and impede student success.
The motivation for the quest that Laura Rendon shares in this book was the realization that she, along with many educators, had lost sight of the deeper, relationship-centered essence of education, and lost touch with the fine balance between educating for academics and educating for life.
Her purpose is to reconnect readers with the original impulse that led them to become educators; and to help them rediscover, with her, their passion for teaching and learning in the service of others and for the well being of our society.
She offers a transformative vision of education that emphasizes the harmonic, complementary relationship between the sentir of intuition and the inner life and the pensar of intellectualism and the pursuit of scholarship; between teaching and learning; formal knowledge and wisdom; and between Western and non-Western ways of knowing. In the process she develops a pedagogy that encompasses wholeness, multiculturalism, and contemplative practice, that helps students transcend limiting views about themselves; fosters high expectations, and helps students to become social change agents.
She invites the reader to share her journey in developing sentipensante pedagogy, and to challenge seven entrenched agreements about education that act against wholeness and the appreciation of truth in all forms. She offers examples of her own teaching and of the classroom practices of faculty she encountered along the way; as well as guidance on the challenges, rewards and responsibilities that anyone embarking on creating a new vision of teaching and learning should attend to.
Though based on the author's life work in higher education, her insights and approach apply equally to all teaching and learning contexts.
Synopsis
"Vital reading for anyone seeking to create more inclusive institutions for students and teachers alike."--Diversity & Democracy
She offers a transformative vision of education that emphasizes the harmonic, complementary relationship between the sentir of intuition and the inner life and the pensar of intellectualism and the pursuit of scholarship; between teaching and learning; formal knowledge and wisdom; and between Western and non-Western ways of knowing.
Synopsis
"Challenging, inspiring, beautifully written, and unusual, this book calls readers to find ways to link mind and heart -- thinking and feeling -- to transform teaching and learning in higher education. Laura Rend n has illustrated how one can unite one's deep beliefs, values, and feelings, with one's keen analytical and intellectual abilities...an important, thought-provoking, and unique addition to the literature on teaching, learning, and the academic life."--The Review of Higher Education on the first editionThis new and expanded edition of the acclaimed and successful book by nationally-recognized student advocate, activist scholar and contemplative educator, Laura Rend n, will surely find new audiences who are eager to create teaching and learning environments where the learner is fully present and engaged using the full capacities of mind, body and senses; and where the learning experience can be simultaneously subjective and objective, a view which challenges the privileged notion that only reason and objective modes of learning are valid. While the pedagogy can be employed with all students, Rend n provides support for faculty who work with low-income, first-generation, and racially-minoritized learners. Sentipensante Pedagogy benefits all students through holistically meeting their emotional needs and quest for knowledge, and simultaneously fostering their civic sense, critical consciousness, and community engagement.Rend n offers an inspirational and contemplative pedagogy that leverages student assets and addresses the rhythmic balance and interconnection between intellectual, social, emotional, and inner-life skill development. The book blends academic discussions about pedagogy and diverse world views as it inspires a new generation of faculty and staff to develop blueprints for democratic, decolonial teaching and learning environments.The sensing / thinking approach has been successfully adopted and adapted in courses and seminars across many academic disciplines, including STEM, in two- and four-year colleges institutions. Several colleges and universities have created centers around contemplative studies and pedagogy with applications extending to the K-12 education arena.As with adopting any new pedagogical approach, planning and thought needs to be given on how to integrate its reflective and creative elements with course content. This book offers inspiration and guidance for faculty who want to holistically address the needs, aspirations, and individual development of their students