Center for Global Integrated Education
234 E. Alfred Dr.
Claremont California
91711

Papers and Publications

Introduction

This document contains papers presented at the 2004 International Forum on Integrated Education and Educational Reform, held on October 28 to 31, 2004, at Bosch Conference Center in Santa Cruz, California, USA.  The Forum is sponsored by the Center for Global Integrated Education (CGIE).

CGIE is a non-profit organization that promotes, develops, supplies and supports educational programs, studies, products and services intended to introduce and address a new system of integrated education in collaboration with individuals and organizations who are dedicated to providing a comprehensive system of education to children worldwide. We support educational activities that in addition to achieving academic excellence, will help create unity, foster the full human potentials, encourage the preservation of global natural resources, support and bring to life those aspects of culture and moral values that promotes the progress of an ever-advancing civilization.

CGIE is inspired by many of the world’s spiritual luminaries and educators who taught us that human nature is fundamentally spiritual and that spiritual principles, which resonate with the human soul, provide an enormous motivational power for change and progress. Communities that thrive and prosper in the future will do so because they will acknowledge the spiritual dimension of human nature and make the integrated moral, emotional, physical, and intellectual development of the individual, a central priority in their education programs.  We understand that education as a whole is the most effective way to shape the values, attitudes, behaviors and skills which make it possible for an individual to function effectively in an integrated world community. CGIE’s goal is to contribute, through specific programs and services, to an educational framework, which facilitates human transformation through simultaneous development of an individual’s intellectual, spiritual, emotional, and physical dimensions. We hope that such transformation not only produces smart individuals, but helps to create a just and harmonious global society.

One of  CGIE’s objectives has been to sponsor and conduct ongoing international forums and seminars and invite leaders of comprehensive integrated education, to discuss the merits of the systems they work with, to identify the obstacles to their implementation, and to evaluate the means for their global promotion and introduction.  The 2004 Forum is the first attempt by CGIE to conduct such an event on an international level.  The aim of the Forum is to assess the present need for such a system and present available new approaches and programs by introducing an integrative perspective into educational reform in both the East (particularly China) and the West. China has been selected by CGIE for the initial exploration and implementation of integrated education because of its forward-thinking approach towards educational reform. The Forum will explore new ways to go beyond traditional and limited definitions of education and move beyond the now dominant and narrowly focused education systems in both the West and China.

This document presents papers prepared by scholars from China, United States, and the United Kingdom.  We felt that the efficiency of the communication and exchange of ideas will be significantly enhanced if the participants of the Forum have all the papers at their disposal upon arrival at the Forum. An attempt was made to translate many of the papers into English and Chinese from its original language.  However, due to late delivery of a number of papers and the sheer enormity of the task of translation of approximately 45 papers, we were not able to translate all the papers to both languages.  We have however attached translations of the abstracts of all available papers so that the participants in each presentation have an initial understanding of the papers being presented.   Furthermore, it would be impossible for the participants to attend all the presentations at the Forum, since up to three sessions will be conducted simultaneously.  This document will allow all the participants to be able to read the papers presented at the sessions they were not able to attend in person.  Also, all participants will have the opportunity to take the document back with them to their home country to be read and shared at their convenience.

The document is organized in two main sections.  Section 1 is entirely in English and presents all the papers submitted in English or translated into English, arranged alphabetically, based on the author’s last name.  Section 2 is in Chinese and presents all the papers submitted in Chinese or translated into Chinese.  The Forum’s agenda is also enclosed in the beginning of this document.

The Forum is only a step in the bigger process of identification, evaluation, research, fine tuning, and eventual implementation of integrated educational systems all over the world, in the East as well as the West.  Our hope is that the Forum creates an atmosphere of cooperation and exchange of ideas which leads into future relationships and continuous communications between the educators who participated in the Forum.  We offer our website as a medium that can be used as a clearinghouse for all new research, papers, material, and curricula that can facilitate the understanding and implementation of integrated educational systems throughout the world.

And finally, we can think of this Forum as a microcosm of integrated educational systems that it tries to advocate, which means that we hope that we can engage our bodies, minds, and spirits in an integrated fashion, and make a contribution to the unity of human kind and an ever-advancing civilization. This would require, among other things,  that we actively seek to know each other better, care for one another, appreciate our differences, and keep an open mind to new ideas.

Acknowledgement

Many individuals dedicated hours of their time to make sure that this Forum is successfully conducted.  First, the Board of Directors of CGIE volunteered a substantial amount of hours over a period of 16 months to plan and execute this Forum.  The Board Members are:

 

The contributions of Dr. Fan and Mr. Wang were instrumental in identification and participation of the Chinese scholars at the Forum, and in coordinating the massive task of translation of the papers.  The enthusiasm and endless energy of Ms. Geula, CGIE’s President was the propellant of all the required activities.  We are also indebted to Mr. Ramses Rashidi who was one the original Board members and had to resign due to extensive travels to and from China. The Board members were guided in all of their action by the counsels and recommendations of a distinguished group of Advisors.  We first would like to express our gratitude to a primary group of our advisors who visited us and were involved in initial setting of the goals and guiding the direction of CGIE.  This group are:

 

  • Dr. D. Allen, PH.D. Eminent Professor of Educational Reform, Department of Educational Curriculum and Instruction, Old Dominion University.
  • Dr. I. Ayman, Director of Wilmette Institute
  • Ms. T. Langness, Board Chair/Executive Director Full-Circle Learning/Children’s Enrichment Program, Educator, Writer.
  • Dr. M. Higgins, Director of Education and Training International Educational Initiatives, Inc. Professor
  • Dr. Marilyn Higgins, Director of Education and Training International Educational Initiatives, Inc.
  • Mr. W. Barnes, Educators, Executive Director Desert Rose Baha’i Institute.
  • Ms. N. Barnes, Educator, Admin.

Our other advisors who joined us later and who have been of  immense assistance for the direction this Forum has taken, and to whom we continue to be deeply indebted for their guidance and support: :

  • Dr. R. Johnson, Educational Administrator at Fort Hays University.
  • MS. Joanna Conrad, United States National Spiritual Assembly Recording Secretary
  • Dr. Roger Prentice, Ph.D. Director of The Holistic Institute, Burnlaw Whitfield, Hexham
  • Dr. Ding Jo Curry, Ph.D. President of Coast Line Community College.
  • Dr. Rhett Diessner, Professor of Psychology and Education Division of Education Lewis-Clark State College.
  • Dr. Judith Johnson, Associate Professor Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Yamaguchi University.
  • Dr. Bahia Farahi, Educator/Administrator.

We express our gratitude to all of the scholars who accepted our invitation and prepared all the informative and well researched papers presented in this document, and took the time to come from the United States and far places to attend this Forum.  Obviously, without your dedication, enthusiasm and efforts this Forum would not have happened.

We are indebted to the Bosch Conference Center staff without whose dedication and enthusiasm the successful conducting of the Forum was impossible.  The key staff working on this Forum included Dr. Bahia Farahi and Ms. Zoe Sobhani..

The efforts of Ms. Shiva Imani were invaluable in bringing this document together and its final production.  We thank Mr. Darrell Metcalf, Chris Frans, and Christin Barnes whose music during the Forum would lighten and brighten many of our sessions.  We thank Mr. and Mrs. Farhangy who will video tape this Forum and will produce a documentary that will be available in the near future. Our gratitude is extended to Mr. Larry Robinson who is in charge of the audio and simultaneous translation devices.  And finally our heart felt thanks to many other volunteers who helped us including Mr. Allen Chong for his technical assistance with our website design, its construction; ongoing maintenance as well as Laleh Shariary and Nava Geula.

Last but definitely not least, the CGIE as a non-profit organization, and this Forum as a key initial activity of our organization, would not have existed if it was not because of generous and sacrificial donations from many individuals, families, and organizations.  These donors agreed with us that the education of our children is among the most important tasks that anyone could get involved in, and that the traditional educational system around the world needs to be reformed.  There are too many names to be acknowledged in this limited space.  But we offer our sincerest thanks to this group who provided the opportunity for this service to be rendered through their contributions and continuous support.

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