ford ahlberg_esera_paper_29.8.05 új

7/29/2019 FORD Ahlberg_ESERA_Paper_29.8.05 j

1/7

EDUCATING FOR WISDOM, CREATIVITY AND INTELLIGENCE AS A MAINPART OF EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Paper presented at the Fifth Conference of ESERA (European Science EducationResearch Association), August 28 September 1, 2005, Universitat Pompeu Fabra,Barcelona, Spain

Mauri hlbergDepartment of Applied Sciences of Education

University of Helsinki, FINLANDHomepage:http://www.helsinki.fi/people/mauri.ahlberg

Email:[email protected]

Introduction

United Nation has declared the years 2005 2014 as a Decade of Education for

Sustainable Development. Ministers and Presidents of all countries have signedagreements according to which sustainable development ought to be promoted in all areasof government, including education, starting from preschools to university education andresearch. There is a great need for both basic and applied research in this area.Scientifically new important knowledge ought to be created how to best promotesustainable development through education. In December 2002, resolution 57/254 on theUnited Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014) wasadopted by the United Nations General Assembly and UNESCO was designated as leadagency for the promotion of the Decade, http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID=27234&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html .

There are many definitions of sustainable development, including the landmark onewhich first appeared in 1987: "Development that meets the needs of the present withoutcompromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."(The World Commission on Environment and Developments (1987)(the Brundtland Commission) report Our Common Future (Oxford: Oxford UniversityPress). hlberg (1998 and 2005) has defined Sustainable Development as follows:Sustainable Development is development for optimal satisfaction of real human needs ofboth present and future generations.

Creating a new framework for education for sustainable development

I have created a new interpretation of Education for Sustainable development integratingRobert J. Sternbergs (2003) ideas and my earlier work in this field (Table 1). I havedeveloped a new interpretation for culturally sustainable development. From viewpoint ofbiology everything that is learnt is part of culture, and may be part of cultural evolution,and in this sense may be also part of culturally sustainable development. Newcomponents of Sustainable Development are health-centered sustainable developmentand an amended version of politically sustainable development.

1
http://www.helsinki.fi/people/mauri.ahlberghttp://www.helsinki.fi/people/mauri.ahlbergmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID=27234&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.htmlhttp://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID=27234&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.htmlhttp://www.helsinki.fi/people/mauri.ahlbergmailto:[email protected]://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID=27234&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.htmlhttp://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID=27234&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html


2/7

Different aspects of sustainable development can be connected with different forms ofcapital (accumulated work) as presented in the Table 1. All of them ought to be takencare of. At present humankind is not very good at it. There is a huge need for researchand development how to best promote integrating learning, thinking and acting topromote sustainable development and all its aspects/components. Education for

Sustainable Development needs resources to develop. There has been very littlesystematic research mainly because of lack of research money.

Aspect of sustainable

development

Form of capital (accumulated work) Interests which ought to be

balanced applying Sternbergs

balanced theory of wisdom

1) Ecologicallysustainabledevelopment

Natural capital, accumulated work ofNature, work of ecosystems and resultingfree services: cleaning of air, and water,food, raw materials, biodiversity etc.

Natures interests, interests of life,ecosystems, biodiversity, protectionof nature, management of nature

2) Economicallysustainable

development

Monetary capital, financial capital:Infrastructure, houses, factories, roads,

money etc.

Interests of global, regional and localeconomy, interests of households,

interests of quality of life forindividual and societies3) Socially sustainabledevelopment

Social capital, social networks, family,friends, humankind, all who shareincreasing and accumulating win-winthinking and acting

Interests of individuals, families,societies and humankind for good life

4) Culturallysustainabledevelopment

Cultural capital, in a new and broadersense: everything worthwhile thatindividuals, societies, organizations,nations and humankind have learntduring history, including all developingabilities, competence and expertise,intelligence, creativity and wisdom.

Cultural capital in this sense includesintellectual capital, creativity capital and apart of human capital.

Cultural interests, interest foreducation and learning, developingabilities, competence and expertise,intelligence, creativity and wisdom

5) Health-centeredsustainabledevelopment

Health capital is an important part ofhuman capital which ought to be takencare of. Good health is requirement for allother forms of human capital.

Health interests, interests forobtaining and maintaining optimallevel of health individually andsocially, nationally and forhumankind

6) Politicallysustainabledevelopment

Trust capital, political capital, e.g:Representatives of nations have signedmany agreements to promote sustainabledevelopment. They have promised to

promote it. If the nations, municipalities,organizations and individuals do not act asthey have promised and agreed on, thenthey lose credibility, their trust capital,

political capital.

Political interests, individual andgroup interests to promote commongood as they understand it. Interestfor obtaining and maintainingcredibility, trust.

Table 1. How different aspects of sustainable development are related to different formsof Sustainable Development.

2


3/7

The main framework for the proposed research and development project is presented inthe figure 1.

U n i t e d N a t i o n s

E d u c a t i o n f o r S u s t a i n a b l e D e v e l o p m e n t

h a s d e c l a r e d

y e a r s 2 0 0 5 - 2 0 1 4

a s a d e c a d e o f

e c o l o g i c a l l y

s u s t a i n a b l e

d e v e l o p m e n t

a b i l i t i e s ,c o m p e t e n c e s

a n d e x p e r t i s e

i n t e l l i g e n c e w i s d o m

e c o n o m i c a l l y



s o c i a l l y



c u l t u r a l l y



h e a l t h - c e n t e r e d



p o l i t i c a l

s u s t a i n a

d e v e l o p

c r e a t i v i t y

o u g h t t o i n t e g r a t e

o u g h t t o

c r e a t e

t o p r o m o t e t o p r o m o t e

a r e n e e d e d t o p r o m o t e

S t e r n b e r g2 0 0 3

a r e

d e v e l o p i n g

d e s c r i b e d i n

Figure 1. Main elements of Research and Development program of Education forSustainable Development at the University of Helsinki (12.6.2004/Mauri hlberg)

What is culture and culturally sustainable development from viewpoint of

biosciences

Boyden (2004) has written an overview of Biology of civilization understanding

human culture as a force in nature. Human beings are part of the nature as all otherorganisms. Many organisms, if not all, change their environment during there lifetime,think e.g. coral reefs, ant hills, termites, rain forests etc. Human beings are no exception.All cultural products are transformed nature, all materials are originally from nature, alldomesticated animals and cultivated plants have there origins in nature. Human beingshave transformed them from nature (physis) to the transformed nature (artephysis). As abiologist Boyden (2004, 181) defines culture: Those abstract aspects of human situationwhich include accumulated knowledge, beliefs, assumptions, values and technical

3


4/7

knowledge, and which are passed from one individual to another, from one group toanother, and from generation to generation, mainly through the used of learned symbols,as in speech and writing.

Plotkin (2004, 154 157) presents an overview of a natural science of culture. According

to Plotkin (2004, 155) there are three general tentative theories to establishing linksbetween culture and evolution: 1) gene-culture coevolutionary theory (see also Erhrlich2000, 5), 2) theory of memes as cultural analogue of genes and 3) uniqueness theory ofhuman culture, according to which human culture arises from species-specificmechanisms , like developed language, meaningful learning, creativity etc. The firsttheory is too narrow to be interesting educationally. The second theory is false, becausethe transmitted way of thinking and acting are not unitary like genes. The thirdtentative theory is the best option available. Sterelny (2003, 3) expresses this approachaptly: Humans are encultured primates, and have been encultured as long as they havebeen humans. As such we are extraordinaly cooperative. For hundreds of thousands ofyears humans have lived by collective action. However, as best these actions have been

rational, educative, creative, flexible ones, not as rigid as with many other animals.

Using Sternbergs research results of educating for intelligence, creativity and

wisdom to promote Education for Sustainable Development

Sternberg (2003) and his research group have shown that intelligence, creativity andwisdom can be promoted by education. They are based on openly developing abilities,competence, expertise, and skills. Sternberg (2001a and 2004) presents 16 practicalprinciples of teaching for wisdom derived from the balance theory of wisdom. It is atentative normative psychological and educational theory that can be tested byeducational research. Sternberg (2001b) answers to five critics of his tentative theory.This is kind of theoretical testing of the balance theory of wisdom that is needed also infuture. All good theories deserve to be tested continually both theoretically andempirically. It is the only known way to continually improve them, to make them moretruthful/truthlike and more efficient.

Innentl a konklziig lgyszi fordtsd le nekem

According the empirical research results both theory and practice can probably beimproved when the balance theory of wisdom is applied. It is a tentative sound, welljustified normative theory that can be tested and improved by educational research topromote Education for Sustainable Development. Both continual theoretical and

empirical testing are needed in order to develop theory and practice of promoting wisdomas a part of Education for Sustainable Development in science education. The interestsinvolved are both individual and societal interests of humankind.

4


5/7

Some of the main ideas of promoting wisdom in education to be tested continually

both theoretically and empirically

According to Sternberg (2001a, 238) there are 16 practical principles of teaching forwisdom derived from the balance theory of wisdom, eg.:

_6. Help students to learn to recognize their own interests, those of other people and thoseof institutions._7. Help students to balance their own interests, those of other people and those ofinstitutions._10. Encourage students to form, critiques and integrate their own values in theirthinking._13. Teach students to search for and then to try to reach the common good a goodwhere everyone wins, not only the ones whom one identifies._14. Encourage and reward wisdom.

It means that it would be wise if we in the teacher education could somehow be able to

integrate those kinds of issues into our daily life and work: to live wisely, to teach wiselyabout the balance theory of wisdom and its components. One of the main common goodsis sustainable development.

Main ideas of promoting creativity in education to be tested continually both

theoretically and empirically

According to Sternberg (2003b, 238) there are 21ways to decide for creativity, eg.:_1 Redefine the problem._2. Question and analyze assumptions._12. Model creativity._16. Reward creativity_17. Allow mistakes.

Main ideas of promoting successful intelligence in education to be tested continually

both theoretically and empirically

According to Sternberg & Grigorenko. (2000) three kinds of thinking ought to bepromoted in order to promote successful intelligence: 1) analytical thinking (analyticalintelligence), 2) creative thinking (creativity) and 3) practical thinking (practicalintelligence).

Tested ideas how to promote analytical thinking according to Sternberg & Grigorenko.

(2000, 39 52), e.g.:_1. Identify problem._2. Allocate resources._3. Represent and organize information._4. Formulate strategy.

5


6/7


7/7

hlberg, M., nismaa, P. & Dillon, P. 2005. Education for sustainable living:Integrating theory, practice, design and development. Scandinavian Journal ofEducational Research 49(2), 167 - 186..

Boyden, S. 2004. The biology of civilisation: understanding human culture as a force in

nature. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.

Ehrlich, P. 2000. Human natures: Genes, cultures and the human prospect. New York:Penguin Books.

Plotkin, H. 2004. Evolutionary thought in psychology. Oxford: Blackwell.

Sachs, J. 2005. The end of poverty. Economic possibilities for our time. New York: ThePenguin Press.

Sterelny, K. 2003. Thought in a hostile world. The evolution of human cognition. Oxford:

Blackwell.

Sternberg, R. J. 2001a. Why schools should teach for wisdom. The balance theory ofwisdom in educational settings. Educational Psychologist 36(4), 227 245.

Sternberg, R. J. 2001b.How wise is it to teach for wisdom? A reply to five critics.Educational Psychologist 36(4), 269 - 272.

Sternberg, R. J. 2003a. Wisdom, Intelligence, and Creativity Synthesized. Cambridge:Cambridge University Press.

Sternberg, R. J. 2003b. The development of creativity as a decision-making process. InSaweyr, K. & al. (Eds.) 2003. Creativity and development. Oxford: Oxford UniversityPress, 91 137.

Sternberg, R. J. 2004. What is wisdom and how can we develop it? The Annals of theAmerican Academy 591, 164 174.

Sternberg, R. J. & Grigorenko, E. 2000. Teaching for successful intelligence. Illinois.Skylight.

7

ford ahlberg_esera_paper_29.8.05 új

Documents