Relation between spiritual value and work education
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Spirituality and Education
Nurturing Connections in Schools and Classrooms
Ann M. McGreevy and Susan H. Copley
Interest in the role of spirituality in business and medicine, as well as in education, is growing. Michigan State University now offers a course to prospective doctors entitled "Spirituality—A Vital Component of Wellbeing" (Foglio, 1996). Massachusetts General Hospital has recently established the Kenneth B. Schwartz Center whose mission is to "preserve the curative power of the gentle touch, the sympathetic ear, and the open discussion of spirituality in the patient-caregiver relationship" (Boston Globe, 1997). Will the idea of nurturing spirituality be a part of educational reform? One of our first tasks is to define spirituality. In his most recent book The Courage to Teach (1998), the Quaker writer Parker Palmer examines teaching as a vocation and charts the inner landscape of the teacher on three important paths: intellectual, emotional, and spiritual. He defines spiritual as "diverse ways we answer the heart's longing to be connected with the largeness of life—a longing that animates love and work, especially the work called teaching" (Palmer, 1998, p.5). Other relevant aspects of spirituality include:
an awareness of an inner, reflective life;
attention to what nourishes us, provides balance in our lives and makes us whole;
a deepening connection to what really matters in our own life, in our relationships, and in our life work;
a gentle, lively sense of humor;
an optimistic perspective that highlights the "goodness" in people and one's life circumstances;
a profound connection with nature—taking deep comfort and inspiration from the natural world;
a willingness to listen compassionately to the needs and concerns of others;
a sense of hope, a "moreness that takes us by surprise when we are at the edge and end of knowing" (Huebner, 1993, p.2).