WHEN:
Monday 26 – Friday 30 August 2024
TUTORS:
Jonathan Dawson and a guest faculty of expert contributors
VENUE:
Schumacher College, Dartington, South Devon
AGE SUITABILITY:
PRICING (Bursaries are available):
COURSE FEE
£620
(Or secure your place with a £150 deposit)
COURSE FEE PLUS ACCOMMODATION
£830
(Or secure your place with a £150 deposit)
About this course
Led by experiential educator, Jonathan Dawson (co-creator of Gaia Education, formerly President of the Global Ecovillage Network as well as co-creator and leader of Schumacher College’s Regenerative Economics postgraduate programme) alongside a guest faculty of expert contributors, this unique course aims to provide training in what we call a Head, Heart and Hands (HHH) approach to learning. The course will support you in developing your very own creative teaching toolkit that draws upon the theory and practice of cognitive, somatic and affective educational resources.
On the basis of over 30 years’ experience, Schumacher College is internationally respected as a centre of innovation in transformational education and today hosts a wide range of ecologically-focused undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. One of the aims of the College is to promote a fairer, flourishing and sustainable world for all through the use of participatory and experiential approaches to learning.
This five-day learning adventure will provide you with the opportunity to rub shoulders with and learn from some of the outstanding thought leaders and actors who teach at Schumacher College; and to experiment, develop your teaching skills and create a community of practice. Through applying a HHH approach, we will explore how to rapidly prototype, innovate and actively collaborate with nature. We will explore how to sustain and nurture ourselves, even while working with challenging material. This will include tools for teaching with more spontaneity, personal experience and presence.
Together we will explore how we can unlearn some of our old working patterns and strengthen our capacity to innovate, sustain energy and commitment. We will have time together as a group, time with tutors and expert guest faculty staff, time on the land with nature, time to play, time to develop ideas and, above all, time to practice.
The course will take place in the beautiful buildings of Schumacher College and the many gardens, woods and forests in which it is located. Delicious vegetarian food is provided by our legendary team of chefs.
The approach used during the course incorporates five elements:
- Participatory experience. Through sessions with our experienced faculty, learning will be co-created by the group, the community and the place. Learning is regenerative, involves relationship building, and is aimed at working collaboratively with your peer learners;
- Systems thinking. We explore specifically how knowledge of whole systems can create a context for the teaching of your subject that is complex, emergent and dynamic.
- Nature-inspired learning. We will immerse ourselves in activities geared to exploring how we can learn from immersion in nature, using ecological principles to inspire, nourish and inform your educational practice.
- Multiple ways of knowing. Emphasis is laid on the development of understanding and tools for stimulating learning at multiple levels – specifically, the somatic, affective and intuitive in addition to the cognitive. This will include an exploration of indigenous pedagogical theory and practice.
- Collaborative action. Collaborative learning and self-organisation within the cohort will be encouraged at every step of our journey together. Following the course, the group may decide to continue to offer peer support to help each other apply the toolkit you develop in your everyday professional life.
The aim of this course is to equip teachers with the confidence, time and support to strengthen their experiential and creative teaching skills, one that not only engages learners, but is regenerative for teachers themselves.
This course is open to all teachers, working within any subject field, in either formal or non-formal contexts, who have an interest in experiential or holistic education.
on this course you will
- Learn about a Heads, Heart, Hands approach to learning
- Experience first-hand experiential and immersive learning techniques
- Try out creative facilitation exercises
- Be present in nature and consider how we can be guided by ecological principles within a subject field.
- Learn about complex systems and how we can use this knowledge to improve the spontaneity of our teaching..
- Have fun, meet like-minded teachers and be supported in your own professional development.
typical schedule for short courses
- Check-in to the room is between 3-3.45pm on the day of arrival. Check-out is 11am on the day of departure, although if travelling by public transport, luggage can be left at the Welcome Centre until the course has completed.
- Teaching generally begins at 4pm on the first day and ends at 2pm Fridays or 4pm Sunday (whichever is the last day of the course).
- The daily timetable can start at 9.30am and end around 9.15pm, with free time available at set times throughout the day.
- For residential participants breakfast is included, followed by a morning gathering and community work groups on weekdays, which are open to all participants and the college community. Non-residential participants can pay extra if they wish to have breakfast on one or more of the days.
- Lunch for all participants is between 1-2pm and supper is 6.30-7.30pm (both meals are included in the residential and non-residential course fee).
If you have any questions about your course schedule please contact shortcourses@dartington.org
TUTORS
Jonathan Dawson
Jonathan Dawson is a Schumacher College Fellow. For many years he was Programme Coordinator and Senior Lecturer for our Regenerative Economics programme. He has a deep fascination with the power of narrative and language to shape how we understand the world and as a potential source of radical change in the norms, values and behaviours of our societies.
Satish Kumar
Satish Kumar is the Founder of Schumacher College in the United Kingdom. He was Editor of Resurgence magazine for 40 years. This magazine was described by the Guardian newspaper as “the artistic and spiritual flagship of the Green Movement”. A former Jain monk, Satish Kumar went on an international pilgrimage for peace. He, with a friend, walked 8,000 miles from New Delhi to Moscow, Paris, London and Washington. Along the way he met Bertrand Russell and Martin Luther King. Satish is the author of ten books including his autobiography, No Destination. Other books include Elegant Simplicity, Soil, Soul, Society and Radical Love. Satish is a lifelong activist in the cause of environmental sustainability, social justice and world peace. He is the recipient of Goi Peace Prize 2022.
Rachel Musson
Rachel Musson is the founder and director of ThoughtBox Education https://thoughtboxeducation.com/#tscroll. As an international speaker, educator, facilitator and RSA (Royal Society of the Arts) fellow, Rachel is dedicated to fostering regenerative education and holistic wellbeing. With over two decades of experience as a secondary school teacher and curriculum designer, she champions the belief that education has the power to ignite positive change in the world. Rachel collaborates with global leaders and educators to drive policy reform, facilitates workshops and delivers keynotes on transformative education and the Triple WellBeing approach. Her commitment to empowering educators and students alike reflects her belief in creating a more compassionate, caring and connected world in which all life can flourish.
Jay Tompt
Jay Tompt leads Schumacher College’s Regenerative Economics postgrad programme. His professional experience is focused on leading and supporting innovation in regenerative business, community-led initiatives, and bioregional economies. As entrepreneur, executive, consultant, educator, activist and organiser, he has led, participated in, and researched a wide range of ‘solutionary’ projects in a variety of cultural contexts. He is alert for the adjacent possible and opportunities to add value.
Emma Kidd
Emma Kidd is a lecturer on Schumacher College’s Ecological Design Thinking postgrad programme. Emma initially trained in Contour Fashion Design at De Montfort University (BA Hons) and worked in South-East Asia as a designer and product developer for a wide variety of International brands. After witnessing first-hand the negative social & environmental impacts of profit-oriented, large-scale manufacturing and the take-make-waste approach of commercial design practice, Emma left her career as a designer and began to study and explore holistic alternatives.
After completing the MSc Holistic Science at Schumacher College in 2009, Emma focused her passion for wholeness & holistic thinking in her work as a writer (First Steps to Seeing, 2015; Floris Books), phenomenological researcher, lecturer and holistic ‘sustainability’ activist & practitioner.
She specialises in the practice of understanding life through lived experience (applied phenomenology) and the process of using a holistic approach to better understand the nature of nature, the nature of humans (phenomenology of perception) and the nature of human interactions & systems.
Robin de Carteret
Robin de Carteret is an educator, facilitator and consultant in participative education, complexity science and sustainability. He specialises in using experiential activities for investigation, learning and communication. Robin helps students shift from looking at the world through a purely linear and mechanistic lens, to one where we understand the world as a highly interdependent network of living systems. He has developed a set of interactive activities that model the complex dynamics within organisms, communities, organisations, eco-systems, economy & society. Participants gain an experiential understanding of some of the most important concepts for the 21st century, including:, including: emergent properties, interdependence, tipping points and resilience. He works with organisations, businesses, schools, colleges, universities, local authorities, and community groups. Robin has an MSc in Holistic Science from Schumacher College.
OUR LEARNING COMMUNITY
Our courses are part of the wider Learning programme at Dartington, and you will join a community of students on site studying at Schumacher College and Dartington Arts School as well as other short course participants, volunteers and visitors.
While you are here we invite you to take part in our learning community life by attending morning meetings, taking part in activities such as meal preparation and clearing, and evening social events. This is entirely voluntary, but participants tell us that taking part adds to their experience at Dartington.
accommodation
We recommend that if possible, you stay on-site during your course. All our courses are best experienced holistically: through studying, relaxing, eating and staying with other course participants, volunteers, staff and tutors.
When you book your course with accommodation this includes one of our hostel-style single rooms with shared facilities and easy access to your main learning space. They are the perfect base to rest your head, relax and recharge. You can find out more about the rooms here.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner are included throughout the duration of the course, each made with fresh, locally-sourced produce by our award-winning team.
Accommodation is available at a discounted rate for course attendees, and on a first come, first served basis only. Choose this option by selecting ‘Course Fee Plus Accommodation’ at checkout.
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optional: upgrade to a courtyard room
It is also possible, subject to availability, to upgrade your accommodation to a single or double en-suite bedroom in our beautiful and historic courtyard. Upgrade pricing is as follows:
For courses starting before 1/9/2023
- Single room with en-suite bathroom: additional £27.25 per night
- Double room with en-suite bathroom is an additional £43.60 per night
For courses starting on or after 1/9/2023
- Single room with en-suite bathroom: additional £31.07 per night
- Double room with en-suite bathroom is an additional £49.70 per night
If you would like to upgrade, please first book with residential option included, and then contact our Guest Services team on 01803 847150 or email guestservices@dartingtonhall.com to check availability. Our Guest Services department is open daily, 8am–8pm.
Should you decide to upgrade to our en-suite accommodation, please be aware that this is 20 min walk, or 3 min drive, to the Old Postern site, where some of our courses are held. There is car parking available near to all venues on the estate.
OPTIONAL: STAY ON OUR CAMPSITE
You may like to stay on our beautiful and relaxing campsite, amidst the stunning rolling hills and ancient woodlands of Dartington. Find out more about the campsite here.
Should you decide to stay on the campsite, please be aware that this is 10 min walk, to either Schumacher College or Dartington Hall, where our courses are held. There is car parking available near to all venues on the estate.
Book now
Begin your online booking below. You will receive an e-ticket for this event. You are welcome to email us at shortcourses@dartington.org or call us at 01803 847008 with any queries you have. Full Short Course T&Cs can be found here >
If you place a deposit, you will be contacted by us four weeks before the course start date to pay the outstanding balance. You will also be contacted with full details about the course before you arrive.
Please note that in most cases bookings for all our Short Courses close at midday on the Thursday before the course begins. This enables us to give you the best possible course experience and ensures all bookers receive the relevant course materials before they arrive.
Monday 26th August
