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"There are ways of thinking that haven’t been thought of yet." This little bit of common sense is pinned to the bulletin board in my office and is like the North Star of education for me. If we aren’t striving to educate ourselves beyond the known world of accepted ideas, we risk never discovering our own capacity for original thought. Humane education provides the framework for those of us who believe an authentic education should include an invitation to examine the world we live in and to apply our best thinking toward solving some of its problems. Having worked in the field of education my entire adult life here in the U.S., as well as in developing countries, I hold firm to the idea that education is the most viable form of activism on the planet, and that injustice cannot thrive in a climate of awareness and compassion. When I am talking with an M.Ed. student on the phone and we are discussing connections between issues that confront our environment, our fellow creatures, our brothers and sisters around the world, we might suddenly find ourselves feeling as if these issues are so long-standing, so prevalent and intractable, that there is nothing we can do to help. This is when I look to my bulletin board and am reminded of what I already know to be true. The solution exists. It’s just embedded in a way of thinking that hasn’t been thought of yet. Let’s keep at it.
Mary Pat Champeau is the Director of Education at IHE and faculty at Valparaiso University and has been an educator for more than 30 years. She has an M.A. in English from New York University. She has been a Peace Corps volunteer in Niger, West Africa, and has supervised teacher training programs in Southeast Asian refugee camps in Indonesia and Thailand. Before moving to Maine in 1994, she worked for organizations serving refugee populations and coordinated English language and American culture programs for the World Trade Institute in New York City. She currently lives in Maine with her husband George, son Liam, daughters Claire and Jing Hui Fan, and animals too numerous to mention.
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Teaching for the 21st Century Humane Education Workshop
April 28, 2012 - 8:30 am to April 28, 2012 - 5:00 pm | Location: Nightingale-Bamford School
How can we best prepare our students for the important roles they must play in meeting the challenges of today's world? How can we help youth to become creative and critical thinkers who embody the qualities of wisdom, compassion, and integrity and who focus their grea...
Read More
April 28, 2012 - 8:30 am to April 28, 2012 - 5:00 pm | Location: Nightingale-Bamford School
How can we best prepare our students for the important roles they must play in meeting the challenges of today's world? How can we help youth to become creative and critical thinkers who embody the qualities of wisdom, compassion, and integrity and who focus their grea...
Read More