The Way Forward

You might well think that we are somewhat idealistic in believing that education holds a major key in creating a more hopeful future. Our current expectation of education is that it is supposed to give us the information and skills that are needed to go out and get a good job.

Realistically, we all know that none of us has the information needed to resolve the issues that confront us. So currently, education isn’t able to help us with this. Sure we can play around with laws and taxes to punish particular behaviours. But changing behaviour by force merely suppresses the underlying cause of an issue — it doesn’t remedy it.

In exploring the environmental issues to find underlying causes, we always come back to a common denominator – people. When we explore people, we discover that very few of us are open to more than a small fraction of the capacity we’re born with. Yet those “geniuses” who are, such as Gandhi, Montessori, Einstein, tell us again and again that we are all born with the same potential, that there is nothing particularly special about them. While most of us follow the main trunk line, these people retain enough of themselves to follow their own true path.

As long as education is led by the economy, current economic thinking will prevail. We maintain that if education takes upon itself the goal of effectively facilitating the growth of its students to their own innate potential at all levels, then it will support the evolution of society and economy that is so sorely needed.

It is usual to believe that people are people and will never change. However our recorded history has been dotted by wise people who have shown by their own example, and have told us in their own words, that higher levels of consciousness are possible for us all. Peaceful, partnership-oriented civilisations have existed for thousands of years, interspersing aggressive, unhappy civilisations such as ours.

Leading edge science is now beginning to discover for itself, some of the awareness that has been known intuitively by wise people, for example the strong relationship between our thoughts, our emotions and our physical health.

Leading edge psychological research shows that desirable character virtues such as optimism or forgiveness can be learned.

Leading edge educational research shows that learning is experiential and that the environment has a powerful effect on one’s learning.

Our Seven Oaks Education Centre combines awareness of leading edge science, psychology and educational practice, with human wisdom and love, to provide children and adolescents with an education that guides, supports and encourages them to open and develop the whole of their being.

From this base, they will be leaders in their chosen fields, in touch with whom they really are, deeply caring about others and the planet, resilient, empowered and inspired.