Simply put, we want more people being more aware, thoughtful and disciplined.
This means we need:
- More teachers educating the Essential Qualities - with them being explicit, mainstream learning objectives in schools and being used as a key indicator of a student's and a school's success
- More parents consciously and intelligently educating the Essential Qualities
- 'Ambient educators' knowingly reinforcing the Essential Qualities (an ambient educator is anyone outside of school and family who influences young people - public figures, media producers, advertisers etc)
In other words, we want awareness, thoughtfulness and discipline to be at the front of our minds whenever any one of us is influencing young people... at home... in school... anywhere.
Why is this so important?
We believe the Essential Qualities are the prerequisites to a very wide range of positive behaviours and significantly influence many more.
A person who is aware, thoughtful and disciplined is more likely to act in ways that demonstrate, for example:
Empathy, compassion, wisdom
Confidence, dignity, critical thinking
Engagement, curiosity, cultural sensitivity
Diplomacy, humility, enthusiasm
Imagination, creativity, resourcefulness
Concentration, thoroughness, discernment
Understanding, appreciation, caring
Kindness, helpfulness, commitment
Collaboration, self expression, diplomacy
Respect, tolerance, forgiveness
Sincerity, reliability, integrity
This is why we are so determined to put the Essential Qualities at the heart of everyone's learning experience - everywhere.
What are the Essential Qualities?
We believe that the Essential Qualities are:
- the three core qualities that impact social wellbeing and personal fulfilment
- universal - agnostic of culture, gender and age
- habits of mind that can be learned and controlled by myself
The following descriptions are not intended to be scientifically definitive but rather give a sense of their meaning:
Awareness
- Being wide awake and paying close attention to the breadth and detail of life
- Being conscious of my inner mental processes and phenomena produced by my own mind
- Doing this is an open, accepting and inquisitive way
Thoughtfulness
- Being aware of myself in relation to the wider world
- Imagining the world from different perspectives
- Contemplating the ripple effect of my actions
Discipline
- Accepting responsibility for my actions
- Being in control of my impulses and emotions
- Exerting sustained effort, being patient and resilient
If you think you can help in any way then please click below...