Whole Child Education: Cognitive

The first article in this series introduced the concepts of a Hebraic (heart - whole child) approach to education instead of the Hellenistic/Greek (mind - specialized) approach to education. Simply, a whole-child approach broadly focuses on six tenets of student development (discussed below), while the modern Greek model is primarily focused on cognitive development. In education, we value what we measure; clearly, we value the cognitive development over everything else because schools and students are rated based on standardized test scores, and typically not much else.

A complete shift to a whole-child perspective in education would impact everything from school curriculum, to staffing, to government funding, to assessment, to school ratings, to college admissions. However, many local schools have realized the importance of a whole-child perspective, and, while they are still required to play in the Greek educational sandbox with assessment, they are adding whole-child elements to help students flourish. 

So, what does this look like in schools and classrooms?

Here are the six tenets of whole-child education that I will be discussing:

1. Cognitive
2. Spiritual
3. Social
4. Emotional
5. Physical
6. Intrapersonal

Cognitive

"Cognition" is an odd term, but it essentially means thinking, acquiring knowledge, and gaining understanding. It's the "brain work" most often connected to school learning and an essential part of any educational environment. Of course, all schools are, and must continue to be, focused on cognitive development. Cognitive development includes, at the most basic level, learning the 3 R's of reading, 'riting, and 'rithmetic, but, surprisingly, our modern (and Greek) educational ethos has stopped there. Just look at what we measure (typically reading and math). How limiting to the potential of education! In contrast, a whole-child perspective on cognitive development would align with Comenius who stated curriculum should be "as broad as life itself." 

John Amos Comenius, when outlining his perspective on curriculum, states ...  

There is nothing in Heaven or Earth, or in the Waters, nothing in the Abyss under the earth, nothing in the Human Body, nothing in the Soul, nothing in Holy Writ, nothing in the Arts, nothing in Economy, nothing in Polity, nothing in the Church, of which the little candidates of Wisdom shall be wholly ignorant. (Laurie, 1892. John Amos Comenius) 

A curriculum "as broad as life itself" would be an exciting set of core and elective courses (and topics) for the "little candidates of wisdom" (aka students). How liberating, relevant, and empowering school would truly be if "LIFE" was the overarching curricular goal!

A school that is committed to a whole-child curriculum would include the "traditional" courses for students, but each of then would be constantly pointing students to life, adding relevance to these subjects for the students. Additionally, students would have a plethora of elective courses that are as "broad as life itself." Students would be able to take classes in those areas that bring meaning to life: media, art, music, culinary arts, relationships, gardening, woodworking, interior design, fishing, etc.

How liberating a whole-child curriculum would be in contrast to the restrictive curriculum found in the majority of modern educational systems today. 

Unfortunately, schools are too heavily focused on assessment to be concerned about life. Most American schools are rated on reading and math through state and national standardized test scores, and colleges value prospective students on the same two subjects (ACT, SAT, CLT); therefore, an excessive amount of instructional time is spent in these two subject areas. While these are two amazing subject areas (I was a former English teacher), often students struggle in these traditional subjects to see the relevance to life.  

Modern educational systems seem to be content with the limited nature of cognitive development today (two subjects) rather than pushing for a broadening of the curriculum (and the assessment of more subjects). A logical first step to expand the curriculum would be to expand the subjects being assessed. It has always been perplexing to me that other "traditional" subjects taught in school (like history, science, world languages, fine arts, physical education, etc.) are not on standardized tests used to evaluate school programs. Knowing educators value what we assess, equally perplexing is why the leaders in these areas haven't fought harder for their subjects to be included in these assessments. A school that is committed to a whole-child system of cognitive development would utilize (and probably have to develop themselves) assessments for all subjects being taught. 

In addition to the academic program, a school following a whole-child educational philosophy would look quite different. Teachers would need to have a zest for life, and a desire to share their passions with students. Of course, a staff filled with a zest for life need school administrators willing to say "yes" to their ideas. With "life" as the curriculum umbrella, schools would need to be flexible enough to pause to address life events that arise. Also, the school calendar and class schedule would need to have enrichment days and discovery weeks for travel, field experiences, and expeditionary learning.

Wouldn't it be invigorating to work in a school that embraces the whole-child perspective ... a school that has a curriculum as broad as life itself!

Next up in this series is Spiritual Growth.