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Current Status -
28th May, 2001
LVE has been blooming in Holland for several years. A few schools are using the Programme with pleasing results and reports by educators using the Programme appear below. A video team is also capturing Living Values Activities scenes in different countries of the world.
The Design Academy in Eindhoven
The Academy has been using LVE since 1995 as Nannet van der Kleijn, a designer at the Academy, reports:
"After 5 years of using LVE with students, starting in the second year, the school made it compulsory for all first year students under the course name 'Respect'. Every term 60 students are given a class one day a week, in 4 groups of 15 students each. Each class lasts one hour and 40 minutes and the students are between 17 and 23 years old. 180 students receive the class each year and so far a total of nearly 750 students have been involved.
The Course is divided into Blocks, each Block being four weeks long. Block 1 is Respect for Yourself, Block 2 is Respect for Your Environment and Block 3 is Respect for Your Future. A new group of teachers, which I meet in lunch breaks and at the final evaluation, are interested is learning more about the new approach.
Values of focus: During the first two terms I used a different value to focus on each lesson. Inspired by the United Nations' International Year for the Culture of Peace I decided to focus in the last term only on the value of Respect. Every week the students collected their own thoughts, words and actions of respect; these were noted down and then shared.
Result: Each student had a much deeper awareness of his or her own value of respect. The aim of grasping the value in such a way that the student can use it as a tool in the design process was better reached. Also, the values-based atmosphere increased to 100%. A primary emphasis was looking at what one has and using it in a worthwhile way and it was this that created the atmosphere of respect.
Results of growth: Students attained 100% more appreciation of themselves, their ideas, the creative process, their parents, environment and the little things of life. Their self-respect increased. Their attitude towards all the teachers changed in such a way that they felt the ability to learn from all classes regardless of the attitude of the teacher. Communication increased dramatically, in the sense of sharing when they were not able to come and then catching up. Hence, they were able to participate fully in the next class. They felt more like a group and appreciated each other's opinions in the design-process. Stress decreased because of their awareness that doing something to relax is not a waste of time. They understood that it can help increase creativity. It creates double space (creativity and time) instead of what they thought before - that it would consume space in time. Their point of view changed towards the profession of Design: that it is not something that requires only hard work but is a profession full of joy, a profession where one can 'be'.
I changed the system of evaluation this year. Instead of giving points myself, I asked them to answer a questionnaire. Based on that they were to give themselves a mark. Their honesty and responsibility towards their own growth changed positively.
The final presentations are never fixed but evolve over the weeks, drawing upon the different interests of the students. The first term resulted in a fashion show "The World on your Head" in which the result of the third Block about the future was presented as a hat. At the end of the second term, the students showed their visions in music and play in "The Sound of the Future".
My personal experience was that I could walk my talk better. I had more patience. I was better at starting where they were, which created a very relaxed atmosphere and I felt more friendship through that attitude.
I would like to know how others carry out value-based evaluation in school systems where they still use marks to judge the students.
Success story: I have been asked to work with 12 other teachers at the school on a project to create a values-based creative impulse.
Hagepoort Group
The Hagepoort Group is a group of 10 people with their head and heart in Education. In 1986 Benno
Jurgens, one of the people responsible for the Government Examinations, started to create a platform of passionate educators, some with high decision-making positions in Holland, others purely enthusiastic. They meet to inspire and stay close to the essence of their profession. At their last meeting for the year in 1999, they met in the inspirational atmosphere of the Brahma Kumaris Centre in Amsterdam with Charlotte Korbee and
Living Values Education Coordinator Karen
Derks. They felt that, after 13 years of meeting together, a change was in the air. They decided not to meet six times a year for an evening, but three times a year for two days in a row to go deeper into prepared themes. Two of the group became responsible to work out the themes. Nannet was asked to join the group, partly because of her work with the Design Academy. The first new meeting in April 2000 was held on the theme "The Authentic Teacher". In September 2000 the topic will be "Multiple Intelligence".
Cascade
At Cascade, Pauline van der Lee began working with LVE in 1998. She works with students from 18-24 years old and integrates values-based activities in support sessions. The students learn how to give courses and activities to children from 4-12 years old, with a focus on the values of respect, cooperation, freedom, honesty, responsibility, simplicity, faith and many other qualities.
Results:
1. A positive attitude towards the working place and their working time.
2. They experienced the work placement as their best time of the whole study year.
3. Minimum illness of the students; punctual arrival at the work place.
4. More children come now; in 1998 there were 50 children and now 150 children are coming.
5. In general there are less conflicts amongst the children. There is a safe and positive atmosphere.
6. Positive response of the parents.
7. Various students were interested to come back to help at the centre during the summer holiday
programme.
8. Students want to come back for more training.
9. Students felt that there was care and respect for them instead of being used to get the work done.
10. The students were impressed about others' vision of them in the final evaluation. Some cried
realising: "It's about me!"
11. A report in a paper about the LVE method.
Values in Workshops
Once every few weeks Living Values organizes a workshop about values for children 6-12 years-old on topics such as Best Friends, I like Pizza, Skating and Myself, Bosom Friends, Secret Treasures. Simultaneously, their parents have a workshop about Parenting.
National Educational Programme on "The Didactics of Silence"
A master class on silence was given by Sister Jayanti of the Brahma Kumaris followed by a variety of workshops about the theme of silence. Many different educational organisations participated.
Living Values Video
In 1999 Piero Musini of Italy and Karen Derks from Amsterdam worked on a video about
LVE. A questionnaire was circulated to Living Values Education Coordinators asking for their views
about what they thought the video should contain. From March 2000 onwards, Piero and Karen visited India, Kuwait and England and the outcome was a 18-minute video clip. Further visits to South Africa, Kenya and Mauritius resulted in an additional 16-minute video clip. An international
LVE video, incorporating both these clips and further footage from Brasil, will be ready by the summer of 2001.
Number of Sites Using Living Values Education
Total number of sites
Impact
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