TEACHING MINDFULLY.(Taoist approach)(Brief Article)

Can We Stop Beating our Heads against the Uncarved Block? "Give up learning, and put an end to your troubles," Chinese philosopher Lao Tsu instructs in the opening line of Tao Te Ching's twentieth chapter. By the middle of the semester, both students and faculty, overburdened and battle-worn, might be ready to agree, though for different reasons. In spite of earlier hopes that this semester might be different, familiar problems emerge in the classroom.

We straggle with getting students to come to class, read their assignments, and participate in discussions. We grow discouraged about our teaching abilities when students' attendance and attention seem to falter. Perhaps Lao Tsu is right, however. Perhaps this is precisely the time to stop straggling. "The Tao of the sage is work without effort," he reassures us. The more the sage gives and does for others, the greater his abundance. Here is a spirituality of teaching in which giving and doing prevent burnout, but how?

This way of teaching is quiet and yielding, watchful and courteous. The sage (like the student) is as simple as an uncarved block of wood, responding to, rather than manipulating, the learning process--for as Lao Tsu correctly observes, to use force only causes resistance.

 
   This is called marching without appearing to 
   move, 
   Rolling up your sleeves without showing 
   your arm, 
   Capturing the enemy without attacking, 
   Being armed without weapons. 

Chapter 69, Tao Te Ching

Teaching spiritually means arming ourselves by quietly and consistently being present, prepared to speak or to listen, to stray from the topic on an indirectly-related student-led tangent, to probe deeply into a narrowly-focused area of student interest, or to witness students working together to make connections between ideas.

Teaching spiritually requires a willingness to be ourselves, to be spontaneous, and to interact with each student personally. Paradoxically, the more we give to our students from our tree selves, the more we (and they) receive from the teaching experience. As Lao Tsu observed 2,500 years ...