Kurt Hahn’s Educational Concept Pui-wing LAI Chief Executive Officer The Hong Kong Award for Young People

Challenge and Opportunity Since 1956, AYP is talking about :

In late 90s ’, 聯合國教育科學及文化組織 (UNESCO) 指出，教育可分為 : - Formal Education ( 正規教育 ) - Informal Education ( 生活教育 ) - Non-formal Education ( 非正規教 育 )

In 2004 onwards, we talk about : Challenge for Achievement 渴望挑戰 理想實踐

Dr. Kurt Hahn - Educational Ideas - Experiential Learning

Origin of the Award Dr. Kurt Hahn’s Educational Concept = Educational Ideas + Experiential Learning “There is more in you than you think”

Biographical Sketch of Hahn 1.Born in 1886 in a wealthy Jewish family in Berlin 2.at the age of 17, Hahn got severe headaches which was diagnosed as the consequence of a heatstroke 3.in order to avoid bright lights and heat, Hahn went study at Oxford University in Great Britain

Biographical Sketch of Hahn 4.when the First World War broke out in 1914, Hahn was called home to serve as specialist for English affairs in the German Foreign Office 5.despite his job to gauge the popular opinion on the British side, Hahn started writing commentaries, holding lectures, attending international conferences to influence the political system 6.Hahn tried to persuade people to seek a negotiated peace with enemy countries and to bring the war to an end as soon as possible

Biographical Sketch of Hahn 7.in 1920, Hahn opened the school Salem and became the headmaster of this boarding school from 1920 to Hahn expanded the school to many branches 9.Hahn was actively engaged in political activities and was an outspoken opponent to Hitler and the rising Nazi regime 10.in March 1933, Hahn was imprisoned by Hitler

Biographical Sketch of Hahn 11.later on, Hahn was released through intervention of influential British friends and escaped to Britain in in 1934, a new boarding school, Gordonstoun, was set up in Scotland 13.Hahn publicized the horrors of the concentration camps and organized support for the resistance movement in Germany against the Nazi government 14.Upon the end of the Second World War, he flew back immediately to Salem to help restore Salem School

Biographical Sketch of Hahn 15. Hahn started to set up world renowned projects such as : -The Moray Badge (1936) -County Badge Schemes (1937) -The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (1956) -The first Outward Bound course (1941) -The Trevelyan Scholarship (1959) -The United World Colleges (1962)

Hahn ’ s Perception of the Society in his time : The Diseased Society In his time, -young people were exposed to a diseased society, a society that could not direct the impulses of adolescence towards goodness -people’s minds were fraught almost only with warfare and hostilities -people knew no more about conscience and compassion -the justified belief was to fight hatred with hatred

Hahn ’ s belief 1.Hahn believed in the goodness of mankind 2.Everyone can develop the ability of making correct moral judgement 3.It is a matter of whether a person may engage in a proper environment to gain such ability

Hahn ’ s perception on the aims of education 1.to develop children into moral beings 2.To cure, to mend a broken heart and to “right the wrong” 3.The most powerful counterforce against violence and indifference is compassion 4.To develop each person’s disabilities to their maximum potential

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Educational Ideas ‧ look for character first, intelligence second, knowledge third ‧ aim of education is to develop the ability to effect what a student has recognized to be right … young people should have the courage to do the right thing ‧ values like justice, love and peace cannot be learnt only from books or classes. Young generation ought to understand them directly from meaningful and relevant experiences ‧ learning of these values as a help to develop character is as important as absorbing pure factual knowledge ‧ young people possess good qualities like “enterprising curiosity, undefeatable spirit, tenacity in pursuit … above all, compassion”

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Educational Ideas ‧ normal adolescent is easily unbalanced, they are in need of opportunities where they can discover themselves, where they can find recognition ‧ young people should learn to respect and accept differences between people of different social classes and nations, they ought to receive “international education” ‧ students ought to learn to be alone, solitude was a time for students to reflect backwards and dream forwards. ‧ one had to learn to “defeat his defeatism”, it was as important to overcome a weakness as to develop strength

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Educational Ideas Declines in basic human qualities : ‧ decline of physical fitness due to modern methods of locomotion; ‧ decline of skill and care due to weakened tradition of craftmanship; ‧ decline of imagination and memory due to the confused restlessness of modern life; ‧ decline of self-discipline owing to the ever-present availability of pills, which tranquilize and stimulate; ‧ decline of compassion – spiritual death; == >> young people are inclined to think they are doomed to incapability, to callousness, recklessness, skepticism

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Educational Ideas Expectation of students : ‧ capacity to endure hardships, to face dangers, a talent for organization, prudence, a fighting spirit, presence of mind, and success in dealing with unexpected difficulties ‧ the power of carrying out what is recognized to be just ‧ need to be able to feel that as a people we are just and kindly ‧ on this consciousness depends our inner strength

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Educational Ideas The Seven Salem Laws - Give the children opportunities for self-discovery; - Make the children meet with triumph and defeat; - Give the children the opportunity of self-effacement in the common cause; - Provide periods of silence; - Train the imagination; - Make games important but not predominant and - Free the sons of wealthy and powerful from the enervating sense of privilege.

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Educational Ideas Four Antidotes - Fitness, Physical Training - Expeditions - Projects - Services Training through the antidotes, not training of the antidotes !!

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Experiential Learning - Experience + Learning - Thinking + Action - Experience as a past incident may be opened to further reflection, interpretation and after-thought - Things like the meaning of “honesty, sympathy, and compassion” ought to be grasped in first-hand experience - Justice, love and peace can be understood directly from meaningful and relevant experiences

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Experiential Learning - through experience, young people can feel wonder and astonishment, uncover the deeper layers of the human personality - through experience, young people can reflect and explore new insights, young people can come to new discoveries about themselves - through the experience from the four antidotes, adolescents can build up with courage, critical thinking, health, peace and compassion - Young people actually thirst for experience

Dr. Kurt Hahn > Experiential Learning - traditional education for stressing mainly information absorption often could not inspire the soul of young people nor to help develop character - a form of fresh youth experience – can “claim the whole man” - Reflection is essential in the process of experiential learning - Reflectiion is the actual critical thinking process that makes learning from experience possible, both unconscious and conscious learning.

> Thanks !! Dr. Kurt Hahn’s Educational Concept = Educational Ideas + Experiential Learning “There is more in you than you think”