Consultation with the Mind: The Power of Reflective Writing for Deepened Learning and Self-Knowledge in Teacher Education

Abstract

"The second principle [of education] is that the mind has to be consulted in its own growth. The idea of hammering the child into the shape desired by the parent or the teacher is a barbarous and ignorant
superstition. It is he himself who must be induced to expand in accordance with his own nature."
Sri Aurobindo, 1910, A System of National Education Aurobindo's educational ideas resonate and have much relevance in today's complex educational arena. His second principle follows his first, which simply stated that "nothing can be taught." What Aurobindo means is that as teachers, all that we can do is provide quality learning opportunities for students. The work of learning requires an active partnership between teacher and student. Teaching is not just relaying information; teaching is not telling. A teacher cannot make a student learn. Here is where Aurobindo's second principle becomes very important. As teachers, we must help students find constructive ways to consult their own minds in the service of learning. And, as Aurobindo reminds us, this consultation with the mind must be done in accordance with one's "own nature."