Teaching is a call to the sacred in life, for it is the field of self-knowing and
ultimately of transformation. My conceptual exploration of the inner life of the teacher
represents an experiment in educational research wherein I define the qualities of the "True"
teacher and show how a heightened teaching "presence" cultivates a classroom of
compassion and soulful learning. I have invited the voices of other writers from the fields of
psychology, philosophy, spirituality and education to co-habit this text, offering their unique
insights into searching/educating for spirit. This auto-ethnography presents a personal
narrative of my teaching/living experiences revealing the pre-requisites necessary to be fully
present in the classroom, and honoring the humanity both in myself and in my students. I
examine the essential qualities of the True teacher as manifested in her presence, and in the
acts of "myth-making," "witnessing," "compassion," and "knowing." Throughout my
writing, I juxtapose my personal/professional inquiries with a more academic discussion
revealing the tension between these two voices within myself. As well, I locate my personal
inquiries in the experiences of the body honoring the kinesthetic wisdom that I have too long
ignored. What emerges is a conversation between teacher and person, both identities
searching for communion with the other. The classroom is the site of that communion as I
come to inhabit my body and my spirit more fully, and begin to recognize the barriers and
bridges to my True self/ teacher within my pedagogy and my life. This autobiographical
writing is a healing journey locating transcendence within the everyday experiences of a
teacher's life.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/14366 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | Stager, Mary Catherine |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Relation | UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/] |
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