The most important job a person can have is to teach another. Educators have a great responsibility toward those they teach, because everything they do and say has a lifelong impact upon their students. For this reason, it is very important that the children and youth be empowered by allowing them to make their own decisions, within a set structure, and teaching them how to accept the outcomes of those decisions. It is important for the students to be encouraged to develop a close relationship with the "Self' and to become aware of all reactions and feelings s/he may have in a group.

Developing Global Consciousness

The close connection with the "Self" allows one to deal with fear, pain, anger, and discontentment in a knowing way. The student is no longer subjected to those emotions. This also allows the true inner self to surface into the student's daily life, facilitating an easy flow for the expression of their creativity and brilliance. The student then realizes his/her own wisdom and qualities, which bring upon a wonderful feeling of accomplishment and self worth.

Educating children and youth not only entails teaching them certain concepts, facts and figures but also includes helping the students awaken within themselves a sense of global consciousness.

To acquire a highly developed sense of consciousness is essential for learners and for living in a global community. The development of global consciousness includes learning the very delicate task of maintaining a healthy sense of individuality, focused on personal growth and emotional development as well as keeping a very close profile on the community's needs to grow and develop emotionally, thus benefiting all forms of life.

Throughout history, many educators and psychologists have developed different educational methods which have focused on specific educational strategies to enhance learning, such as the Montessori and the Fernaldian methods. All these methods have fallen short of including the student in the learning process, and none have incorporated how to deal with the child's emotions and self-esteem in a "knowing way". None of the established educational methods have taught the children or given them strategies on how to deal with the world around them.

Developing The Self

Educating and empowering the children to have a strong sense of self is very important. It is imperative that children know that their opinions matter and that they, even at their young age, have something positive to offer to others. This is not achieved overnight, for it is a long and arduous process.

A way to begin this process is by allowing children, from the first day they enter school, to take an active role in their own education. The teacher should also provide an environment where the children are allowed to express their feelings without being afraid of what others may think.

A set amount of time should be put aside for this purpose and a specific place within the classroom should also be established. This will allow students to know that this is their safe place, and when they go there, they can express their feelings without any fears or repercussions.

Students should be taught and encouraged to get in touch with their higher self, which is that part of us that is buried deep within us, but is very wise and never misleads us.

One way the students can get in touch with their higher self is through meditation and visualization. This is a great technique for problem solving, for it allows the students to look deep within themselves and to listen to their own intuition for the answer to the problem or worry they are facing at the time.

Meditation and visualization have become part of my everyday curriculum. I have been practicing meditation with my students for a little while now, and the results have been fantastic.

Every day we make time to sit back, relax and go into meditation It is a way for children to seek and find the answers to their own problems. It is a way to empower the children, for they truly realize that they do not have to depend or to look at someone else for answers. When the students learn how to access that power within, they also realize that no one can stop or get in the way of making their dreams come true. That is the most powerful experience a child can go through.

Related book:

Montessori: Living the Good Life
by Connie Lujan

A thoughtful guide for mothers, fathers, grandparents, and all educators and citizens concerned for peace in the home, schools, and world, Montessori-Living the Good Life, about the child in your arms and the child in your heart, is for everyone. The key to assisting children lies in the adult’s willingness to collaborate with the child’s desire for an appropriate environment. Education, for the child and the adult, is the crucial element.

Info/Order book. Also available as a Kindle edition.

About The Author

Alina Guiterrez is an elementary teacher at Silver Bluff Elementary in Miami, Florida and teaches emotionally disturbed fourth and fifth graders. Alina is a avid supporter of the Nizhoni School for Global Consciousness which is a new form of education that allows young people from around the world to discover their inner wisdom and to bring it forth to teach, heal, and lead. For more information, Alina can be reached at: 9640 SW 103 Ave Rd., Miami, FL 33176.