It goes without saying that the physical is part of reality. We wouldn’t get very far denying that. However, is the physical all there is? Many people these days would answer “yes” or “probably” to this materialistic reductionism. It is the trend of modern cultural life, particularly in the West, and it has destructive, deadening ramifications. Creeping into all aspects of society, this sentiment is the basis of materialistic-reductionism in education.
I find as a teacher that today’s youth are inclined to thinking materialistically in the absence of a holistic science. On the opposite end of the spectrum are religious fanatics, but they are no more helpful in guiding today’s youth as the materialists. Religious dogma and its problems, as we’ll later explore, are what materialism became the necessary reaction against. What, then, is the solution? How do we thread the needle of science and spirit in a way that accords with reality and properly orients today’s youth?
What Do We Mean by “Materialistic-Reductionism in Education,” Anyway?
Materialism starts by how we look at the world. Imagine if I looked at your child as only physical. (We can call this the earth element of observation). I observe their physical features, skin color, height, weight, the shape of their hands, their feet, etc. Now, imagine that’s all I pay attention to. It sounds like a doctor’s office, right? On the contrary, let’s say I start with that physical observation, and then take it to another level, as I’ll next explore.
A New Way to Look
Overcoming materialistic-reductionism in education starts with us. If the physical is the earth element, the formative force that shapes and sustains the physical is the so-called fluid element. In addition to the physical, let’s say I pay attention to the living, forming process in your child’s being. Are their muscles tone or soft? How is their face formed – is the jaw prominent, or are the eyes/nose/ears, or the cranium? How are they breathing? Is their face often flush with red blood, or is it pale? These clues give me indications as to your child’s temperament, aptitudes, and vitality. They also suggest how the child is receiving what I am teaching.
Next, I observe how they move and behave, how they speak, draw, write, etc. In my contemplation, I can even imitate and embody it. This gives me insight into what it’s like to be in their body. (The is the airy element which is in constant motion and transformation). Finally, I look for clues as to this child’s identity and destiny – what drives and motivates them, towards what they are moving. (The fire element). From this, I can imagine a future purpose that reaches back in time to draw that child towards itself. Then, I can reflect those observations back to the child to help guide them on their way.
None of this richness is available to me if I arrest my understanding of a child at the mere level of physicality. Physical characteristics give me important clues about deeper layers of the child, but they don’t fully describe who that child is. What the senses can impart is both necessary AND insufficient to form a complete picture of that human being and therefore guide me as their teacher. I must join imagination and intuition with physical observation. I have to become a holistic thinker, not a materialist-reductionist thinker.
So, Why is There Materialistic-Reductionism in Education?
Materialistic-reductionism in education is simply an outgrowth of how we adults do life. Modern people are emotionally driven into materialistic reductionism because we are answer-seeking beings. As soon as we can start making sense of the world, we notice there is much that remains a riddle to us. Yet, in the absence of holistic guidance by those who raise and educate us, we fall back on what we feel certain about. For the vast majority of us, that is what our senses, alone, tell us. We might even deny the reality of thinking, positing it as a mere semblance of a purely material process.
(In fact, there are scientists who try to find the origin of thinking in the same observational way as, for example, the origin of water leaking from a refrigerator. They ignore the fact that if thinking wants to understand its own origin, it must first think about it. Thereby, thinking can never leave thinking if it wants to understand itself.)
You can see now why I’m addressing this post to you, the parents and teachers, and not to the youth. The cycle will perpetuate itself if we don’t interrupt it.
The Danger of Materialism
Need I describe the problems with materialistic reductionism, or am I preaching to the choir? I’ve heard several people recently say to me that materialism is going to solve the world’s problems. Yet, with a little rational honesty, we can see how materialism is what created the majority of the world’s problems. Let’s start with racism. Fundamentally, it stems from the inability to see that beyond the color of our skin, we all want the same things and are endowed with similar enough capacities that make us all…well, human.
Next, let’s talk about the environment. Why is there so much environmental degradation these days? Is it because of people who acknowledge the unseen relationships between all things and act in ways to sustain the health of these relationships? Or, is it because of short-sighted human egotism? Like, chemicals manufactured by companies unable or unwilling to see the long-term effects of such substances on ecosystems? Glyphosate is a good example. A related, perhaps subtler, nuance of materialism in science is the overuse of synthetic, mineral fertilizers on soils. Over time, this has devastated soil health. Put another way, it has been killing the planet. Synthetic fertilizers make perfect sense if the physical is all there is. Unfortunately, the climate catastrophe being caused by them and other chemicals irresponsibly used tells a different tale.
Finally, what about economic exploitation? It’s the reason there is an alarming gap between the wealthiest and poorest in the world today. Once again, we can trace this back to an incomplete picture of reality. If this body is all I am, then what happens to you doesn’t affect me. Why should I care? Business becomes not the way to meet everyone’s needs but rather survival of the economic fittest. Screw the rest. Yeah, how well is that turning out? Should I continue or am I still preaching to the choir?
Where Did Materialism Come From?
Materialism developed as a counterbalance to religious superstition which controlled people’s minds until the Renaissance. This new approach was synonymous with empiricism which said that finding answers to the deepest human questions no longer relied on religious dogma. Now, people could observe the world themselves and form their own opinions, independent of the religious authorities.
This was a necessary development, and I’m not bashing religion, here. It’s just that things had gotten way too out of balance. By the 1400s, a strong impulse developed whereby common people were no longer satisfied having reality spoonfed to them by approved church doctrine. We now wanted methods whereby we could find answers for ourselves. Modern people don’t want to merely believe what is true anymore. We want to know it.
Empirical materialism accomplished this independence in us. However, the answer to religious dogma is not the complete and utter rejection of the spirit. This materialistic-reductionism has now become stuck, entrenched, and decadent. It did it’s job, and now it’s time to move on to a holistic science that acknowledges the reality of the unseen and develops human soul capacities to perceive it. We focus so much on developing new technologies, but what about our own inner capacities? We might term this growing necessity as “spiritual science.” Goethe, as well as Rudolf Steiner, PR Sarkar, and others did a great deal to bring this onto the planet.
The Rightful Place of Materialism in Education
This post is about materialistic-reductionism in education, and it hasn’t been a rosy presentation. However, materialism has its place. I hope by now you can understand that’s my intention. The physical is an absolutely necessary part of reality. If I were to wax poetic at this point, I would get into the deeply philosophical necessity of physical life in the evolutionary development of humanity. I would talk about why, starting with the Greeks, we had to, at one point, reject the notion of anything spiritual. (Alas, let that be post for another time.)
For now, let’s be clear that materialism in education has its place. It would do no good, especially for our middle and high schoolers, to keep talking about gnomes and fairies and nature sprites and never give them the opportunity to land, feet on the ground, right here in the density of mineral reality. It is necessary. After all, our intention is not to create a dogmatic, one-sided view of reality in our students. Rather, it is to raise them to become holistic thinkers. We can’t merely spend our days frolicking through fields and doing watercolor painting, necessary as that also is. We also need to perform legitimate experiments that allow them to observe the phenomena of the world and intuit the principles that make them go. That’s actually the only way to truly awaken holistic thinking – by combining sensory observation with intuition.
In such a process, they learn that thoughts are real things, not a mere illusory appendage to a purely physical process. They learn that unseen principles belong to the world, itself, a world of which they are a part. A world that permeates not only outer phenomena but themselves as well. In other words, they learn that the outside is the inside and vice versa. They are not separate from the world but are inextricably related to it. Just think how that would change how they engage social problems, do science, and conduct business in the future. Indigenous societies understood these things instinctively. Now, modern humanity has to understand them consciously and freely embrace them. You see? We lost the connection so we could regain it by choice and not because there were no other options.
Where Do We Go From Here?
The entire academic curriculum here at Enkindle Academy is designed to facilitate this holistic way of being in students. If you’re interested, we offer free sample lessons to “try before you buy,” so to speak.
The Creative Writing class offers an additional way to do this because it’s where science meets art. In a holistic science of the world, art and science cannot fully be distinguished because you rightly need both forces to do either, satisfactorily. The artist needs the objectivity of the scientist to create in harmony with reality. The scientist, by contrast, needs the artist’s imagination, inspiration, and intuition to fully penetrate reality. One fruit of this will be to extend an artistic and holistic sensibility into technology to create new things that help, and not desecrate, the world. It’s sort of like asking, who does our technology serve? Itself? Or the higher development of the human being? That’s a question many of our youth need to ponder.
Materialism will not save the world. Holistic science, which includes materialism in its proper place, will save the world.
How to Connect
Our Creative Writing Class meets weekly. We are always accepting new students, and enrollment is growing rapidly. When we have enough students, we open up new sections. Visit us at the following link to signup or get more info: https://enkindleacademy.com/live-creative-writing-for-youth
Enkindle Academy also offers prerecorded and live lessons for students in grades 5-9, including the hard sciences where this holistic thinking becomes especially useful.
Finally, our Teen Empowerment Class also meets weekly. We are always accepting new students. If you want your youth in a tightly knit, warm, and welcoming group of peers with a loving guide who keeps them focused on the good, come check us out. Visit us at the following link to signup or get more info: https://enkindleacademy.com/live-teen-empowerment-class.
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