By H Leopold
(Image credit: illustration by Gracia Lam)
The other day, I met with two learners – one is about to graduate and the other is in her first year at Springhouse. The older of the two has been apprenticing with me in the realm of curriculum design for at least 3 years; the younger learner was recently invited to apprentice with this older learner. Together, we form a powerful intergenerational team learning and evolving Springhouse’s curricular frameworks. This constellation also allows for an uninterrupted transference of experience and wisdom to the up-and-coming generations.
At Springhouse, we view education as a way to pass down values, knowledge and skills needed to build regenerative, life-giving culture. The intergenerational nature of the learning that takes place here is an essential aspect of this method of culture creation. Through practices such as staff-learner and learner-learner apprenticeships and mentorships like the ones described above; the integration of adult program participants into Day School offerings; and inviting community members to share their expertise and gifts with our teenagers, regenerative ways of being are passed down to our youth and strengthen the culture we are creating together.
Interested in learning more about vitality-centered education (VCE) in service to a regenerative culture? You can register for our end of year events, including a workshop on VCE at Springhouse, here.