Critical Evaluation of Childrens Spirituality by Hyde - Essay Example

Critical Evaluation of Hyde Name: Institution: Instructor: Date: Hyde is a writer who after a long observation of the subject matter wrote an article on the identification of four characteristics of children’s spirituality in Australian catholic primary schools. In his paper he disuses the spirituality of children attending catholic primary schools. He studied a number of children attending catholic primary schools to ascertain four characteristics of children’s spirituality. He studied this through classroom observation and conversation with the children from which the conclusion was to be drawn. Form this study he also suggested pedagogical implications for nurturing spirituality through the primary religious education curriculum. He argues that there has been very little attempt to describe what is meant by spirituality and that that there has been an assumption that spirituality is synonymous with religion. He states that such an assumption does not hold as spirituality can and does find expression outside of religion. He argues that spirituality is not only the expression of faith through prayer and attendance of mass services (Hyde, 2008). From his study, it is seen that the nurturing of spirituality is largely done through the religious education curriculum. This however is increasingly becoming difficult since outcomes based approaches, has impacted in Australia not only on literacy and numeracy but also on religious education as well (Arthur, 1995). The implication here is that, if teachers of religious education wish to attend to the spiritual development of their students, then they need to know how they might plan experiences to achieve this (Jack, et al 69). According to the teachings as taught in catholic schools, spirituality refers to how individuals and groups adopt traditional Christian beliefs and understandings about God, the human person, creation, and their interrelationships, and then express these in values, lifestyle and religious devotions (Hyde & University, 2005). In the recent past, religious groups are no longer seen as having a monopoly on spirituality. The concept can be used in different ways, as we shall see in the variety of research on children’s spirituality. Spirituality can also be seen in spatial terms as a creative inner still point of our being (Jack, 2003). This creative inner spirit is usually manifest outwards in our mind, will, emotion, moral sense and interaction with the world through our senses. Spirituality can also be looked at as a metaphysical ground of a person’s being, a capacity for “sapiential” insight (Keating, 2000). In a more general understanding, spirituality has to do with the fundamental connecting and propelling forces of our lives. Spirituality is the source of our sense of meaning and of our will to live. It is the source of our deepest loves, values, yearnings and hopes. It ultimately affects every part of our lives. People associate spirituality with the extraordinary and the supernatural, but for many contemporary writers in this field spirituality is actually ordinary and completely natural (Arthur, 1995). Everybody has a spiritual life. A child’s spirituality sensitivity has been divided into several areas. Awareness sensing being the first one refers to the child’s ability to attend to the here and now of experience, the felt sense of a situation and to get them in tune with an intense sense of the present moment (Jack, 2003). It is a sense of alertness, which might be experienced in moments of stillness or concentration. It focuses on the moment now (Adams, Hyde & Woolley, 2008). Mysterious sensing is another spiritual sensitivity. It is an awareness of a particular kind. It is the wonder of awe characteristic of children as they experience the inherent mystery of the universe (Hyde, 2008). The third spiritual sensitivity of a child is value sensing. This is the deep emotion, related to moral sensitivity, of delight and despair that expresses children’s sense of goodness and worth, or their sense of evil. It includes experiences of what really matters. To encourage children’s spirituality, four proposals are put forward by the catholic as shown. The first option will be to help children keep an open mind by encouraging an environment of freedom and self-confidence that allows students to become aware of their relational consciousness and express it (Jack, 2003). One needs to encourage personal awareness by pointing to it the children themselves and relating it to its cultural expressions in the great ethical and religious traditions of humanity. A person needs also to become personally aware of the social and political dimensions of spirituality in order to encourage children’s spirituality (Hyde & University, 2005). To nurture the spirituality of children through the religious education curriculum in catholic schools, the following has to be done. There should be the use of tactile activities in religious education. Such activities are essential if students are to draw upon their bodies as a primal source of wisdom (Arthur, 1995). For some children in the classroom context, these corporeal activities may enable them to become conscious of their bodily perception and to engage in a movement toward becoming unified with the other (Adams, Hyde & Woolley, 2008). In addition, engagement in tactile activities and sensory activity provided the foundation in some instances for integrating awareness to occur. Without the initial corporeal task in which to engage, it may not have been possible for the children in the research reported here to integrate the emerging level of consciousness with the previous level of attending to the hands on activity (Jack, 2003). As a second option, religious education needs to begin with the students personally created framework of meaning (Hyde, 2008). The research shows that the children created their own personal worldview by entering the spaces between various frameworks of meaning and selecting eclectically from these frameworks elements, which created meaning for them. There also needs to be space to nurture spirituality (Arthur, 1995). If spirituality is to be nurtured within the classroom context, appropriate spaces need to be established and maintained. They would be characterized not by an adherence to observed competencies, but by trust and openness, enabling students to weave together the threads of meaning, and to quest for authentic ways of being in the world. In some instances, this may entail classroom teachers removing themselves from this space, allowing their students freedom to choose eclectically from various frameworks of meaning, or to seek a sense of connectedness in areas outside of conventional Christianity (Jack, 2003). Herein lays also a challenge for educators in knowing when appropriate to re-enter the space to guide and challenge where necessary in relation to some of the chosen frameworks of meaning, or to join students in their questing. Educators are skilled in creating appropriate spaces for learning and teaching (Hyde & University, 2005). Traditionally, the catholic school has been identified in post-Vatican church documents as an evangelical arm of the church. It is from this Catholic identity that the school gets its characteristics and its structure as a genuine instrument of the church, a place of real and specific pastoral community (Hyde, 2008). Over the years, various studies have explored the experiences and perceptions of students attending Catholic schools, and they have continued to note that while many students had positive experiences of catholic schools this did not necessarily increase their interest and involvement in the institutional church (Jack, 2003). A study shows that only about a quarter of students were interested in participating in church activities when they were called upon to assist. Looking at the Christian traditions and creation, Christians believe that ambivalence will automatically come in when reflecting on the story of creation and the environment that God had created. It also reminds Christians that Jesus Christ from Galilee was just a simple man attuned to His natural surroundings. His teachings always included nature references. The reign of God is imaged as a sower scattering seeds, a mustered tree, and a growing tree, afield of wheat, pearl and living water. Our relationship with God and Jesus are described as a vine and branches (John 15:1-5). During the sacred meal of Eucharist, the assembled community breaks open transformed bread and wine, wheat and grapes. The pages of church history record how the Jesus heritage of nature was enhanced through the ages (Jack, 2003). We note the influence of the monasteries, the stewardship of the Benedictines, Celtic spiritually, a Franciscan affinity to God in nature and the Rhineland mystics. Another and opposing theme concerning Christians and nature is evident in the Christian story (Hyde, 2008). This theme was suspicious of nature and material things lest they diminish the power of the spiritual and the ascent of God. Many influences covered on Christian consciousness to limit the scope of its theology and spirituality. These influences can only be named here without any elaboration. Having a creation centred religious education has various implications. Anthropology is one of the implications and deals with the study of understanding the human nature. A teachers approach to religious education is shaped by her or his understanding of human nature (Hyde & University, 2005). A dominant motif in Christian anthropology has tended to situate human beings over and above creation. Religious educators need to recover a neglected strand in Christian anthropology that recognizes that humans live within the web of life forms in creation (Arthur, 1995). Our existence is not independent of our cosmic context. We are breath of God and earth people in the nature of our being (Arthur, 1995). Epistemology as an implication associated with having a creation centred religious education deals with how human beings come to know and discover things in their environment (Jack, 2003). To accomplish this with much ease, human beings have implemented the internet to serve them worldwide with information. Creation centred religious education also encourages that each one needs to have wisdom (Arthur, 1995). The wisdom tradition links knowledge and living, world and being in world. Knowledge without wisdom becomes introspective and sterile. Wisdom empowers us to move beyond the illusions of consumer additions and be more attuned to global concerns and spirituality (Hyde, 2008). From the documents, the biblical culture ascribed an inferior role to women. Jesus however adopted a much more radical approach of inclusion to women and ignored the various cultural taboos. Sadly, the church quickly lost the Jesus heritage towards women and became entrenched in patriarchal structure and attitudes (Hyde & University, 2005). Slowly the church is beginning to recognize that its anthropology that buttered the structures of the church is now defunct and is in urgent need of reform (Jack, 2003). Creation centred religious education argues that hierarchical social arrangements are dysfunctional and inhibit healthy relationships with the earth (Jack, et al 89). Sabbath according to the documents is a moment that one takes to relish and contemplate the wonders of creation. Sabbath invites is to uphold an alternative value to reflect on our role as co-creators with God (Adams, Hyde & Woolley, 2008). Sabbath time is an occasion to set our religious compass to true north if it has strayed from this direction through the frenetic pace of modern living. Although the Christian Sunday focused on the resurrection, both the Jewish Sabbath and the Christian Sunday call us to realign our priorities. Creation centred religious education seeks to assist students to formulate and live ethical stances that endorse the sustainability of the earth’s resources in their local environment. A sense of stewardship empowers students to know that they can make a difference, however small, in their local situation. Better a little thing done for the environment than nothing at all (Grace, 2007). Creation centred religious education begins with the premise that we live within an intricate and fragile web of relationships with all of creation and not outside this interdependent relationship (Hyde & University, 2005). Christianity is also seen to be placing a heavy load on to children who still are small. The evidence shows that if we accept that spiritually is intricately bound up with concern for the ultimate meaning and purpose of life, then the vast majority of children enjoy rich and challenging spiritual lives that are at the centre of their developing self-understanding. In thinking about students and their stages of progress, it is important to be aware of their capacities for understanding. However, it is far more important to acknowledge the child as an intensely spiritual being and find ways to discover the language and image they are using to be in relationship in the world. References Adams, K., Hyde, B., & Woolley, R. ( 2008). The spiritual dimension of childhood. London ; Philadephia : Jessica Kingsley Publishers. Arthur, J. ( 1995). The ebbing tide : policy and principles of Catholic education. Leominster : Graewing. Grace, G. R. (2007). International handbook of Catholic education :. Dordrecht : Springer. Hyde, B. ( 2008). Children and spirituality. London ; Philadelphia : J. Kingsley. Hyde, B., & University., A. C. ( 2005). Identifying some characteristics of children's spirituality in Australian Catholic primary schools . Australian : Australian Catholic University. Jack, C. T. ( 2003). Growing good Catholic girls. Carlton, Vic: University of Melbourne Press. Souza, M. D. (2007). International handbook of the religious, moral and spiritual dimensions in education. Dordrecht: Springer. Read More

A child’s spirituality sensitivity has been divided into several areas. Awareness sensing being the first one refers to the child’s ability to attend to the here and now of experience, the felt sense of a situation and to get them in tune with an intense sense of the present moment (Jack, 2003). It is a sense of alertness, which might be experienced in moments of stillness or concentration. It focuses on the moment now (Adams, Hyde & Woolley, 2008). Mysterious sensing is another spiritual sensitivity.

It is an awareness of a particular kind. It is the wonder of awe characteristic of children as they experience the inherent mystery of the universe (Hyde, 2008). The third spiritual sensitivity of a child is value sensing. This is the deep emotion, related to moral sensitivity, of delight and despair that expresses children’s sense of goodness and worth, or their sense of evil. It includes experiences of what really matters. To encourage children’s spirituality, four proposals are put forward by the catholic as shown.

The first option will be to help children keep an open mind by encouraging an environment of freedom and self-confidence that allows students to become aware of their relational consciousness and express it (Jack, 2003). One needs to encourage personal awareness by pointing to it the children themselves and relating it to its cultural expressions in the great ethical and religious traditions of humanity. A person needs also to become personally aware of the social and political dimensions of spirituality in order to encourage children’s spirituality (Hyde & University, 2005).

To nurture the spirituality of children through the religious education curriculum in catholic schools, the following has to be done. There should be the use of tactile activities in religious education. Such activities are essential if students are to draw upon their bodies as a primal source of wisdom (Arthur, 1995). For some children in the classroom context, these corporeal activities may enable them to become conscious of their bodily perception and to engage in a movement toward becoming unified with the other (Adams, Hyde & Woolley, 2008).

In addition, engagement in tactile activities and sensory activity provided the foundation in some instances for integrating awareness to occur. Without the initial corporeal task in which to engage, it may not have been possible for the children in the research reported here to integrate the emerging level of consciousness with the previous level of attending to the hands on activity (Jack, 2003). As a second option, religious education needs to begin with the students personally created framework of meaning (Hyde, 2008).

The research shows that the children created their own personal worldview by entering the spaces between various frameworks of meaning and selecting eclectically from these frameworks elements, which created meaning for them. There also needs to be space to nurture spirituality (Arthur, 1995). If spirituality is to be nurtured within the classroom context, appropriate spaces need to be established and maintained. They would be characterized not by an adherence to observed competencies, but by trust and openness, enabling students to weave together the threads of meaning, and to quest for authentic ways of being in the world.

In some instances, this may entail classroom teachers removing themselves from this space, allowing their students freedom to choose eclectically from various frameworks of meaning, or to seek a sense of connectedness in areas outside of conventional Christianity (Jack, 2003). Herein lays also a challenge for educators in knowing when appropriate to re-enter the space to guide and challenge where necessary in relation to some of the chosen frameworks of meaning, or to join students in their questing.

Educators are skilled in creating appropriate spaces for learning and teaching (Hyde & University, 2005). Traditionally, the catholic school has been identified in post-Vatican church documents as an evangelical arm of the church.

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