How has my understanding changed?

How has my understanding of spirituality, education and justice changed throughout this unit so far?

It has been several months since I began some of the readings for this subject. There is a big difference between what I knew about these three concepts in December as compared to now. It is not only that I feel that I have learnt a lot about these concepts but also that as I have been reading it has become easier to understand the language and terminology used in the some of the readings.

If I reflect back to my post 'more than definitions', at that point in time I could see what the three words meant but struggled to see actually how they were going to tie in together in this subject and have practical relevance to my teaching. Now, a few months on, I can definitely see that there is so much more to each of these concepts independently and through interrelation than I previously thought.

Spirituality	Justice	Education
The quality that involves deep feelings and beliefs of a religious nature, rather than the physical parts of life ("Spirituality," 2015)	Fairness in the way people are dealt with ("Justice," 2015)	The process of teaching or learning, especially in the school or college, or the knowledge that you get from this.  ("Education," 2015)

I agree that spirituality is something that is not of a physical nature but from what I have learnt in our intensive and through the readings, my view of spirituality being related solely to feelings and beliefs of a religious nature has changed. The way that Tracey explained spirituality is that all people are spiritual beings whether they believe in a god or not. I see spirituality now as something much broader and all inclusive than I ever had before. It is not just related to a specific religion but rather the way that we were created as spiritual beings.

I feel that this definition still rings true based on what I have learnt but it can be explored much deeper than just saying what is fair. I understand what justice is in terms of what is just, fair and right and can see the importance of creating just situations in all areas of life. It was great to read about the impact Paulo Freire has made with his passion for educating those in struggling situations. I had never thought about what impact literacy could have on the power of individuals within in a community but I can now understand this. I believe this can also relate to us in our community. If students don't get a proper education their future and their power to take control of the lives can be impacted as their opportunities to do what they might be gifted in may be restricted.

I agree that education is a process of teaching and learning and that this isn't always restricted to the school or university environment though is the specific role of these institutions. I find this definition to be true, however is lacking many areas that are involved in educating a person. This definition highlights only knowledge as a key to education. I have learnt and feel I believed prior to this course that education is about much more than knowledge. It is about the experience of teaching and learning and helping people develop in many different ways; emotionally, spiritually, socially, academically etc. People can be educated at school, university, in a workplace, a child at home with their mother etc. Education is the concept that I believe I had known the most about prior to beginning this course yet I still feel that I have learnt so much more about by completing this subject. Particularly, Parker Palmer's ideas about teaching who we are is something that was new to me, as well as a range of other topics he discussed about fear, community and the importance of conversations and having time to think about and question who we are and what we believe in. I learnt a lot about some ideas for teaching in a Christian school and how we can create the best environment for transformation for our students. Critical thinking is another area that I have learnt about and would like to try to incorporate in my teaching to help me develop these skills as well as my students.

There is still plenty to learn...

Looking at the rest of this course, including the next intensive, I know I still have plenty to learn and be challenged with. A few areas I would particularly like to explore deeper include; 

• Justice- at our next intensive we are exploring justice further. I look forward to this as I still have a lot of questions to ask about justice and how we as teachers can help implement this concept to improve our teaching and benefit the lives of our students. I would love to know; who decides what is just? In terms of a religion, is it what is written? For those that aren't religious is it the law? Is there conflicts sometimes between what we believe is just and what others might think? What does God say about justice? Is there a difference between being just and doing what is right? We spoke a little about sometimes the just action is not always a positive thing. For example, creating consequences for a child that does the wrong thing. I would also like to explore justice in terms of reinforcement to broaden my understanding of the topic. 
• Spirituality- I now have the understanding that there is a distinct difference between religion and spirituality even though in some circumstances they are very closely connected. I need to critically look at spirituality from different perspectives to gain a better understanding of this concept. I would like to start to explore other's spirituality a bit more to see what experiences people have without religion in their lives. If everyone is a spiritual being, yet there are a large number of people all throughout the world which would claim to not believe in a god, how are they developing their spiritual lives if at all? I want to be able to learn more about this to help better understand my students, where they might be at in terms of their spirituality and to help them explore this area of their lives.
• Education - In terms of my teaching, I want to allow time to start to really look at some of the ideas of Parker Palmer and others that we have learnt about to apply in my teaching. I want to look at and challenge myself about why I am doing what I am and whether or not I am genuine in the classroom. I want my students to witness genuine care and concern for them and I want them to see my relationship with Christ reflected in who I am and how I interact with them. 
  

Where to from here?

I look forward to the rest of the course and particularly the next intensive. I really enjoy listening to discussions about topics I have been reading about and having that feeling of ideas starting to click and it all piecing together in my mind. I believe that face to face contact and the opportunity to ask questions allows for greater understanding as although reading can give us knowledge, it is when we critically think about the information and discuss it with others, that it is really learnt. For me personally, I find this easier to do with others around.