This book aims to examine contemporary educational challenges from the perspective of those mental qualities that have evolved as typically human and, as such, require further development. It follows the assumption of the previous book by the same authors that the general aim of education is to rise the degree and quality of human consciousness across three domains: cognition, creation, and coexistence.
Part I discussess the evolution of the human mind within these domains. The evolving congnition is shown through the development of free will as well as various mental and emotional phenomena that lead to critical thinking. The domain of creation is shown as the capacity for aesthetic experience and human creative needs, with creative thinking as its key factor. The domain of coexistence presents two crucial features: freedom and solidarity, made possible by conscience and the capacity to see the world through the eyes of another human being.
Part II of the book proposes educational strategies that trigger in people the evolutionary qualitites delineated in Part I through an interplay between the education of the teacher and the learner. It shows this proces from several perspectives, e.g., higher motivational drives or general vs. specialized education. It includes practical suggestions for lessons in which the potential of critical thinking or the student’s creativity is triggered through dialog and discussion.
Part III i san essay that presents the proces of learning as a metaphor of a garden, where human mental development is akin to cultivation, focused on the individual potential of each human being. In such education, the teacher’s role is to provide learners with the right conditions for growth and expectations. Thus, the teaching profession resembles the work of an artist rather than that of a craftsman.
