He is one of the wisest men of all time. Since the time of the Bible, he is the only man to be celebrated by the three major Western religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. His name is Maimonides. A philosopher, rabbi, physician, religious thinker and logician, today this sage is considered among the greatest thinkers. The Secret Life reveals his ancient teachings in modern terms. In The Secret Life, you will discover true wisdom and success in every aspect of (...) life comes not from our public persona and life -- as so many believe -- but in our secret thoughts and actions. Maimonides shows how every person can find their true and best self, not only deriving happiness for themselves, but spreading that bliss to everyone they touch. The benefits of living the Secret Life are countless. Changing your approaches to giving charity, to seeking justice, to loving others, and to believing in yourself enough to find and act on your true calling will lead you to remarkable heights. You will find a new resilience against the difficulties and turmoil in life, a new inner power that will keep you focused on the things that really matter, and an inner peace few will ever have. The Secret Life is, quite literally, life changing. "Whatever you do should be done out of nothing else but pure love." -- Maimonides Jeffrey Katz is a lifelong student and teacher of rationalist religious philosophy. He became fascinated in his youth by his discovery of the ancient wisdom of Maimonides, and received rabbinic ordination while focusing on disseminating the ancient, life-changing wisdom he had uncovered. He is a practicing attorney, has appeared on national television on a broad range of issues, and has lectured widely. (shrink)

Get the most out of your year in Israel. The Israel experience has a natural rhythm, but it is easy to miss the big themes and even bigger opportunities if you don't have a road map. This book serves as a spiritual and intellectual guide during your year in yeshiva or seminary. Learning to Grow has very immodest ambitions: it is a guide to greatness during your year in Israel and beyond.

This companion to Elliot Dorff's three books on Jewish ethics -- Matters of Life and Death , To Do the Right and the Good , and Love Your Neighbor and Yourself -- is designed for group as well as individual study. Through suggested readings from Dorff's books, probing questions, lively discussion topics, and simple writing exercises, readers will be able to analyze and clarify their own positions on a host of controversial issues: sex, surrogate motherhood, adoption, family abuse, responsibilities (...) for charitable giving, the ethics of war, suicide, and euthanasia, and more. (shrink)

"The Wisdom of Life and Counsels and Maxims," by philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, offers a more accurate and realistic outlook on life than his student, Friedrich Nietzsche. While many disagree with Schopenhauer's renunciation of life, there is much to agree with in this book. Schopenhauer doesn't see a whole lot to celebrate in this vale of tears. His general view in "The Wisdom of Life and Counsels and Maxims" is summed up thus: Life is hell. Try to find a room furthest (...) from the flames. If you tend towards a sunnier view of things then you're very likely to find this book by the grandmaster of philosophical pessimism unduly cynical. But if you've pretty much had it with the world and seldom meet a man (or woman) you wouldn't rather see the back of, you'll be delighted to find a fellow traveler and find wit and solace in Schopenhauer's acidic view of this "wonderful gift of life." Though riddled with hard-nosed realism and misanthropy, "The Wisdom of Life and Counsels and Maxims" is positively entertaining and enjoyable. Schopenhauer's style is fluid, prosaic, and imaginative, unlike most German philosophy. In lieu of modern world events, it is probably more relevant a work today than ever before. Schopenhauer discusses an array of subjects, such as the emptiness of those things commonly pursued by the masses (money, status/position, vanity, sensual pleasure, etc.), and those most commonly ignored by most (temperance, good health, character, individuality, and developing one's mind). Small, fleeting pleasures notwithstanding, Schopenhauer casts an unflinchingly jaundiced eye on the experience of human life and doesn't sweeten the pill. For its bracing honesty alone, this book deserves its reputation as one of the greatest philosophical manuals of how to best live our lives ever written. (shrink)

Life satisfaction is a research hotspot in positive psychology in recent years. This study uses overseas students as subjects and attempts to examine the effect of place attachment and student life satisfaction on Mainland Chinese students’ word-of-mouth recommendations and their Ambassador Behavioral intention. A survey was systematically conducted in six institutions in Macao. The results of 312 valid data indicate that place dependence has a positive influence on place identity; place identity and place dependence have a positive influence (...) on student life satisfaction; student life satisfaction mediates the influence of the two dimensions of place attachment on WOM and AB intention. Recommendations are provided to improve overseas students’ life satisfaction in the study places. It helps to improve their sense of ownership and actively participate in the construction of the study places. (shrink)

On conduct of life and ethics of Islamic seminarians.

COVID-19 lockdown presented a novel opportunity to study the experiences of people attempting to maintain friendships in the context of worldwide, government-enforced physical distancing and lockdown. Here we report on an experiential, idiographic qualitative project with a purposive sample of Scottish students. Data was collected via one-to-one on-line interviews with nine student participants. Data was transcribed and analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Analysis highlighted three group-level experiential themes and associated subthemes. Participants’ shared experiences of maintaining friendships were reflected in (...) a dynamic process by which ‘changes to communication’ were associated with experiences of ‘effort and balance’ across friendships. Participants reported becoming particularly aware of the psychological processes involved in maintaining friendships, in turn, this was associated with ‘reflection and growth.’ These experiential findings resonate well with several longstanding classic theories; however, they also speak to the particularities of the context in which the study was conducted. They suggest the need for a pandemic psychology that moves beyond the typical focus on the direct impacts of infectious disease to address the wider psychosocial impacts with equal vigor. (shrink)

ContextPeople with mental disorders can acquire long-term disabilities, which could impair their functioning and quality of life (QoL), requiring permanent care and social support. Systematic data on QoL and functioning, which could support a better management of these people, were not available.ObjectiveTo analyze the QoL, level of functioning and their association with sociodemographic and clinical factors of people with mental disorders who underwent deinstitutionalization using assisted living facilities.MethodsA Cross-sectional study was conducted between July 2018 and July 2019, through interviews using (...) the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) to determine the QoL scores, and the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule (WHODAS 2.0) to determine the level of functioning. All adults (≥18 years old) with mental disorders, who underwent deinstitutionalization, users of assisted living facilities and assisted by the Psychosocial Assistance Centers III, in a city in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, were selected. For statistical analysis of the associated factors, Student’st-test was used for dichotomous variables and ANOVA for polynomial variables. Pearson correlation coefficient was used to measure the association between QoL and functioning scores.ResultsOut of 359 people who underwent deinstitutionalization with mental disorders, 147 met the eligibility criteria. The mean total score for the WHOQOL-BREF was 66.5 ± 13.4 and the mean score for WHODAS 2.0 was 10.4 ± 7.6. An association was found between people who were studying (n= 65.8; 95%CI, 63.5–68.1vs. n= 73.9; 95%CI, 67.5–80.3;p= 0.04) and better WHOQOL-BREF QoL scores or WHODAS 2.0 levels of functioning (n= 10.9; 95%CI, 9.6–12.2vs. n= 5.1; 95%CI, 2.5–7.7;p= 0.01). A weak negative correlation (r= 0.41) emerged between higher QoL scores and functioning improvement.ConclusionThis study indicates that the QoL of the sample is associated by their functioning levels, which, in turn, may reflect on their social interactions. Public policies that favor interventions increasing socialization of this population can result in better health outcomes. The QoL and functioning scores provide valuable insights to develop public policies more suited to this population profile. (shrink)

On the conduct of life and ethics for religious scholars and students.

The focus of my article is a unique place, the Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Massachusetts, which connects Yiddish culture with the American one, the experience of the Holocaust with the descendants of the survivors, and a modern idea of Jewishness with the context of American postmodernity. Created in the 1980s, in the mind of a young and enthusiastic student Aaron Lansky, the Yiddish Book Center throughout the years has become a unique place on the American cultural map. Traversing the (...) continents and crossing borders, Lansky and his co-workers for over thirty years have been saving Yiddish language books from extinction. The Center, however, has long stopped to be merely a storage house for the collection, but instead has grown into a vibrant hub of Yiddishkeit in the United States. Its employees do not only collect, distribute, digitalize and post online the forgotten volumes, but also engage in diverse activities, scholarly and cultural, that promote the survival of the tradition connected with Yiddish culture. They educate, offering internships and fellowships to students interested in learning Yiddish from across the world, translate, publish, and exhibit Yiddish language materials, in this way finding new users for the language whose speakers were virtually annihilated by the Holocaust. To honour their legacy, a separate project is aimed at conducting video interviews that record life testimonies of the speakers of Yiddish. Aaron Lansky’s 2004 memoir, Outwitting History, provides an interesting insight into the complexities of his arduous life mission. Today, the Center lives its own unique life, serving the world of academia and Yiddishkeit enthusiasts alike. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:248 HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY be taken from a philosophical point of view. Since it is not certain whether the author of the Prolegomena was or was not a Christian (p. xlix), "god" should not be capitalized, and the translation of T&~ia 5~l~ttovo'f~l~taTa as "God's creation" at IV. 15. 6 is actually misleading. Moreover, for no apparent reason, 0~oX07tz6gis translated as "metaphysical" in the first four chapters, but as "theological" (...) thereafter. Inaccuracies are very few indeed. "Ungrateful" is peculiar for o~5~5t• at I. 2. 25, and so is "adapted state" for ~to~tTe[a~ ~no~ae0g at I. 5.35; X. 26. 38, 40, and 44; at II. 10. 11, there is no need to translate o~Te&0t~6)g bu~yovxctL as "they do not aim at accurate expression," and on p. 32, line 1, "as yet" is not in the Greek of the Prolegomena, although it should have been, if the Anonymous had quoted correctly from Plato, Phaedrus 229 E. But this is trifling criticism of a work which leaves nothing to be desired in any other respect, and which displays the same high qualities of scholarship which we have come to expect of the author on the basis of his earlier achievements. MARTIN OSTWALI) Swarthmore College The Fountain of Life (Fons Vitae). By Solomon ibn Gabirol (Avicebron). Specially abridged edition, translated from the Latin by Harry E. Wedeck, with an Introduction by Theodore E. James. (New York: Philosophical Library, 1962. Unpaged introduction, 133 pp. $4.75.) The romance of the nineteenth-century discovery, by Salomon Munk, that "Avicebron's" Fons Vitae, a major source of neoplatonic thought in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, was actually the work of the eleventhcentury Hispano-Jewish poet, Solomon ibn Gabirol, and has often been retold. It is, indeed, a remarkable story. Perhaps its most noteworthy feature is that it reveals how closely alike Muslim, Jewish, and Christian philosophers were; by implication, then, it indicates that theological considerations were of less importance in medieval philosophy than is suggested by most historical accounts. Although the story of The Fountain of Lqe has now become an oft-told tale, the work itself has never been available in English dress. The present edition remedies this situation in part. It presents Tract III of the original text, a section dealing with the existence of simple spiritual substances. Harry Wedeck's translation is lucid and readable. Theodore E. James's introduction is useful for the beginning student but too elementary to be of much use to a more advanced reader. It is good that there is now this much to recommend to our students; we may hope that the day will come when BOOK REVIEWS 249 larger sections of the work will be translated-preferably not from the Latin, but from the Arabic original. JOSEPHL. B~u Columbia University Commentary on the Metaphysics of Aristotle. By St. Thomas Aquinas. Trans. by John P. Rowan. (Chicago, Illinois: Henry Regnery Company, 1961. Pp. xxiii + 955.2 vols., boxed, $25.00.) Generally speaking, the two Summae of St. Thomas, long available in English translation, contain all that is most personal and most profound in his philosophical thought. Nonetheless, it is quite impossible to get a fully adequate conception of St. Thomas' place in the history of western thought from a consideration of his theological writings alone. Hence, by translating St. Thomas' Commentary on the Metaphysics of Aristotle into English, Professor J. P. Rowan has provided the non-Latin reading student of the history of philosophy an invaluable service. For it is in his r61e as Aristotelian commentator that we see St. Thomas creating for the Schoolmen a version of Aristotle which served to render the Stagirite's thought into terms which became fundamental to the philosophical defense of Christianity. Further, by keeping in mind the fully-developed notions of St. Thomas on the existence of God and the nature of being as these are given us to understand in the Summae, the reader becomes better enabled, by a critical reading of Thomas' Commentary, to grasp the sense in which the Saint's theological writings are said by his enthusiasts to represent a "completing" and "perfecting" of... (shrink)

Sermons, chiefly on the conduct of life for Islamic scholars and students.

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Fulfilling Mitzvot through the Practice of Lovingkindness and WisdomDavid J. GilnerSince it has been more than forty years since I last wrote a paper in comparative religion, I have chosen not to attempt a scholarly paper. Rather, after a biographical sketch, I will discuss examples of Jewish texts that underpin my choice to pursue a path that includes practices drawn from the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism, and explain (...) how I plan to teach these practices within traditional Jewish settings.I grew up in Brooklyn, New York, in a Jewish family that identified with the Conservative movement. When I turned five, I was sent to a modern Orthodox yeshiva. For three and a half hours each morning, first five, then six days a week, I studied a comprehensive Jewish curriculum—taught in modern Hebrew—which included Bible, commentaries, Talmud, history, grammar, and the laws and customs of Ashkenazic Jewry. At fourteen, I left the yeshiva to attend a nondenominational Christian prep school. This seemingly radical change in schools and religious traditions occasioned no significant intellectual conflicts or spiritual anxieties. By fourteen, I sensed that religion was something people were born into; it was one of the cards life dealt you at birth.My sophomore year at Emory University saw the beginning of my interest in Buddhism. I began to practice Sōtō Zen sitting (zazen), and, in my readings, stumbled upon the koan Mu, which occupied my attention in and out of meditation for several years. I became a religion major and was particularly interested in modern Japanese religions. However, my advisor discouraged me from pursuing this interest in graduate school and suggested I build further on my strong traditional Jewish education, which is how I came to Hebrew Union College in 1972 to pursue a PhD in biblical and ancient Near Eastern studies.It was at that time that I began to practice Transcendental Meditation, and, subsequently, the TM Sidhis program, a practice that took, on average, three hours per day, and four and a half hours on days when I did group practice. Not finding a job teaching Bible led me to library school, after which I returned to Hebrew Union College in 1977 to work as a librarian. I became involved in interfaith community outreach, and lectured, led Bible study groups, and conducted Passover seders at local [End Page 27] churches, toward the goal of enhancing interfaith dialogue and understanding in the community. At this time I was fortunate to become friends with Paul Knitter, then a professor at Xavier University.In 1997, after twenty-five years of dedicated twice-daily practice, it became clear to me that I was "attached" to my TM meditation program and that this attachment was hindering my growth. I put my TM Sidhis practice aside and went back to zazen. Soon, I became associated with the Dzogchen organization led by Lama Surya Das, and trekchö became my basic practice. As a member of the online "three-year mandala program," I received a cassette-based education in various Tibetan meditation practices, which included my first experiences with visualization, as part of Tara and Machigma practices.In 2001, I learned of many unfilled requests sent to Hebrew Union College by small congregations asking for students to lead High Holidays services, so I volunteered. For the past ten years, I have served as the High Holidays rabbi at Congregation Tikkun Olam in Woodstock, Illinois. The phrase tikkun olam, often translated as "repairing the world," has become popularized in Jewish culture over the past two decades.In 2003, a friend sent me a teaching tape by Lama John Makransky on loving-kindness practice. My immediate gut reaction was that everything else I had done for thirty-five years was preparation for this teaching. I attended several courses in which Lama Makransky taught practices to cultivate innate lovingkindness and wisdom, and in 2007 I was privileged to attend the week-long course in which he taught his then forthcoming book Awakening through Love: Unveiling Your Deepest Goodness. Since then, I have attended other courses taught by Makransky under the aegis of the Foundation for Active Compassion. Within the realm of Ati Yoga, I think it... (shrink)

From the New York Times bestselling author Derrick Bell, a profound meditation on achieving success with integrity. As one of the country's most influential law professors, Derrick Bell has spent a lifetime helping students struggling to maintain a sense of integrity in the face of an overwhelming pressure to succeed at any price. Frequently asked how he managed to be so extraordinarily successful while never giving up the fight for justice and equality, Bell decided to spend his seventieth year (...) writing a book of insight and guidance. The result, Ethical Ambition , is a deeply affecting, uplifting, and brilliant series of meditations that not only challenges us to face some of the most difficult questions that life presents, but dares to offer some solutions. Using incidents from his own life, Bell also looks to literature, history, and other contemporary figures who have refused to compromise their beliefs. In chapters that explore passion, faith courage, inspiration, humility, and relationships, Ethical Ambition address the most fundamental issues of life. (shrink)

The purpose of the article is to study the value orientations of student youth in the context of the transformation of national identity and national consciousness in the conditions of Russian armed aggression. The empirical basis of the article was formed by the results of the authors’ sociological research ‘Transformation of National Identity and Consciousness Among Student Youth of Ukraine Under the Influence of Russian Military Aggression’, conducted by employees of the Social Expertise Department of the Institute of Sociology of (...) the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, and the secondary analysis of the annual sociological monitoring ‘Ukrainian Society: Public Opinion in Ukraine After 10 Months of War’. The authors empirically confirm the fact of a sharp increase in national consciousness among student youth, who demonstrate a high level of readiness to serve their country, take an active part in public life, and want to be useful to their country during the armed struggle against the aggressor country. In the conclusions, the authors state that in the Ukrainian youth environment among students, a new type of national self-identification is widespread, the basis of which is the interdependence of norms of thinking and ideas about origin. (shrink)

In this review, we describe some of the central philosophical issues facing origins-of-life research and provide a targeted history of the developments that have led to the multidisciplinary field of origins-of-life studies. We outline these issues and developments to guide researchers and students from all fields. With respect to philosophy, we provide brief summaries of debates with respect to (1) definitions (or theories) of life, what life is and how research should be conducted in the absence of an accepted (...) theory of life, (2) the distinctions between synthetic, historical, and universal projects in origins-of-life studies, issues with strategies for inferring the origins of life, such as (3) the nature of the first living entities (the “bottom up” approach) and (4) how to infer the nature of the last universal common ancestor (the “top down” approach), and (5) the status of origins of life as a science. Each of these debates influences the others. Although there are clusters of researchers that agree on some answers to these issues, each of these debates is still open. With respect to history, we outline several independent paths that have led to some of the approaches now prevalent in origins-of-life studies. These include one path from early views of life through the scientific revolutions brought about by Linnaeus (von Linn.), Wöhler, Miller, and others. In this approach, new theories, tools, and evidence guide new thoughts about the nature of life and its origin.We also describe another family of paths motivated by a” circularity” approach to life, which is guided by such thinkers as Maturana & Varela, Gánti, Rosen, and others. These views echo ideas developed by Kant and Aristotle, though they do so using modern science in ways that produce exciting avenues of investigation. By exploring the history of these ideas, we can see how many of the issues that currently interest us have been guided by the contexts in which the ideas were developed. The disciplinary backgrounds of each of these scholars has influenced the questions they sought to answer, the experiments they envisioned, and the kinds of data they collected. We conclude by encouraging scientists and scholars in the humanities and social sciences to explore ways in which they can interact to provide a deeper understanding of the conceptual assumptions, structure, and history of origins-of-life research. This may be useful to help frame future research agendas and bring awareness to the multifaceted issues facing this challenging scientific question. (shrink)

The present work aims to efficiently carry out life-death education for college students, improve their psychological problems, and reduce suicide accidents by combining LDE with Dance Movement Therapy. DMT is a psychosomatic cross therapy that treats mental or physical diseases through dance or improvisation. Firstly, this paper introduces LDE and DMT and designs the activities of DMT intervention. Secondly, the relationship between DMT and LDE is analyzed. Finally, a questionnaire survey is conducted on the research objects. The research objects (...) are divided into the experimental group receiving DMT intervention, the control group participating in sports dance courses, and the benchmark group. The research data show no significant difference in interpersonal skills and emotional psychology among the three groups. The DMT intervention group has substantial changes in other factors except for the conflict control ability before and after the intervention. In addition, the questionnaire survey results after the intervention demonstrate that the DMT intervention group gets a significantly higher score in the interpersonal relationship, interpersonal relationship building ability, moderate rejection ability, self-disclosure ability, and emotional support ability. Therefore, DMT intervention positively impacts college students’ interpersonal relationships. After the sports dance course, there are differences in the total score of interpersonal ties and scores of interpersonal relationships building ability, self-disclosure ability, and emotional support ability in the control group, but with no significant difference in moderate rejection ability and conflict control ability. Therefore, compared with traditional psychotherapy methods, the DMT method reported here is conducive to releasing pressure and alleviating physical and mental anxiety. The research content provides new ideas for psychological education in colleges and universities and contributes to improving college students’ suicidal tendencies and helping college students grow up healthily. (shrink)

The case for dialogue -- Increasing moral capital through moral imagination -- The art of ethical dialogue -- Intelligent spirituality in business -- Spirituality in (and out) of the classroom -- Listening to the anxious atheists -- Beyond the flat world metaphor -- Dialogue as a restraint on wealth -- The limits of dialogue.

Some studies show that athlete students are more likely to engage in health-risk behaviors with negative health consequences, while others suggest that they lead a healthier life than their non-athlete peers. Given these inconsistent results, this study aims to compare health behaviors, depression, and perceived health status between athlete and non-athlete students, and explore the associations between health behaviors and health outcomes. An online questionnaire survey including Heath Habits Scale for five health-risk behaviors and five health-promoting behaviors, Patient (...) Health Questionnaire-9, and 5-point scale for perceived health status was conducted in Beijing Sports University in March 2021. Data from 372 athlete students and 252 non-athlete students aging from 18 to 22 were included in this study. Chi-squared tests and t-tests were used to determine differences between athlete and non-athlete samples, and logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the associations of health behaviors with depression and perceived health status. The significance level was p < 0.05. The results show that compared with non-athlete students, athlete students perform better in health habits, report lower proportion of depression and higher proportion of good health. Health behaviors, such as getting adequate sleeping, participating in vigorous physical activity, overeating, and smoking, were significantly associated with health outcomes of athlete students. The findings may contribute to the better understanding of health behaviors in athlete students and warrant continued attention on mental health and health habits in this population. (shrink)

The inspiring true story of a teacher's experiences with her students and the life lessons she learned that can help others find joy and success. Crash Course chronicles the life lessons that Kim Bearden has learned during an award-winning career in education that has spanned three decades. Kim has taught more than 2,000 students, and each has shown her something about the world and the abundant capacity for love, resilience, and appreciation that we all possess. By sharing her (...) students' stories, she teaches their inspiring lessons to us all. Throughout the ups and downs of her professional and personal life, Kim found that her students were the light that illuminated her path; they were her sanctuary in the storm. From her challenges as a first year teacher, to her triumphs as the cofounder of the highly acclaimed Ron Clark Academy, Kim shares how children can teach each of us the importance of building relationships, abandoning fear, embracing one's unique gifts, and living with passion. Full of honesty, humor, heartbreak, and humanity, Kim's experiences show how children can help any one of us, despite life's obstacles, find the joy and significance in both our personal and professional lives. (shrink)

_The Weight of Things_ explores the hard questions of our daily lives, examining both classic and contemporary accounts of what it means to lead 'the good life'. Looks at the views of philosophers such as Aristotle, the Stoics, Mill, Nietzsche, and Sartre as well as contributions from other traditions, such as Buddhism Incorporates key arguments from contemporary philosophers including Peter Singer, Martha Nussbaum, Robert Nozick, John Finnis, and Susan Wolf Uses examples from biography, literature, history, movies and media, and the (...) news Gives a fresh perspective on the hard questions of our daily lives An engaging read; an excellent book for both students and general readers. (shrink)

This study seeks to investigate the perceptions of elementary school 4th grade students related to the lesson and teachers of religious culture and moral knowledge via metaphors. In this study, the phenomenological design, one of the qualitative research designs, was used. Data was analysed through content analysis, and the study group was comprised of 234 elementary school 4th grade students. The sampling of the study was determined through criterion sampling, which is one of the purposeful samplings. The data (...) of the study were collected via a semi-structured form composed of two questions asked as “Religious culture and moral knowledge lesson is like … because …” and “Religious culture and moral knowledge teacher is like … because …”. The analysis of metaphors was conducted considering the stages including data encoding and extraction, the compilation of sample metaphor image, the development of themes/categories, the configuration of data based on codes and themes, the reliability and validity analyses of data, carrying out quantitative data entries and analyses and interpreting findings of the study. Considering the results of the study as a whole, it was determined that the metaphors developed by elementary school 4th grade students were largely positive related to the lesson and teachers of religious culture and moral knowledge. Summary: Metaphors are tools that try to clarify how people see life, the environment in which they live, phenomena, events and objects with different metaphors. Metaphor can also be described as meaning or experiencing something according to something else. It can be said that metaphors are mental images that help individuals to perceive their environment and to illuminate complex structures. Metaphors are tools that describe abstract events, facts, principles and rules using concrete expressions, examples and similes. Some of the basic functions of metaphors can be counted in the fact that a large number of data, revealing, interpreting, transferring information, discerning new knowledge and eliminating uncertainties. Metaphors have the characteristics of being simulation tools that make complex structures understandable, diversify perceptions about education, describe the roles of teachers and reveal the views of teachers and students about education.The aim of the current study is to examine the perception and reactions of 4th grade Elementary School students about the lesson and teachers of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge through metaphors based on their experiences. The metaphors produced for the teacher and the lesson have the potential to give important ideas about the students' perceptions about educational activities. From this point of view, the aim of this study is to analyse the students’ perspectives about education and teaching practices by questioning the meaning that the students develop in their emotions and thoughts about the lesson and the teacher of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge.There is no scientific study relating students’ perceptions of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge lessons and teachers. This makes the current study unique. Considering that the perceptions of the students are formed especially during the elementary and secondary school periods, it can be said that the perceptions of the students about the lessons and teachers at early ages are necessary and important. It is thought that this study will contribute to the literature in terms of students' perceptions about a lesson and the teacher of the lesson by means of metaphors. It is thought that the fact that metaphors produced by the students in the scope of this research are answers to the questions of “what kind of teacher” and “what kind of lesson.”The current study used the phenomenological pattern among qualitative research designs. The study group consists of 234 elementary school 4th grade students. The study group was determined by criterion sampling method. Data was collected through a structured form consisting of two questions (“Religious culture and moral knowledge lesson is like … because …” and “Religious culture and moral knowledge teacher is like … because …”.) and the data obtained in the research was analysed by content analysis. Analysis of participants’ metaphors was done by taking into account the steps of coding and sorting the data, compiling the sample metaphor image, developing the themes/categories, arranging the data according to the codes and themes, conducting validity and reliability analysis of the data, quantitative data entry and analysis, and interpreting the findings.In the research, it was found out that the students produced 46 metaphors related to the lesson of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge and the most frequently repeated metaphor related to the lesson was “the love of Allah” metaphor. It was determined that the metaphors produced in the category of the lesson of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge were gathered in 6 categories and the category with the highest frequency was the category of “Peaceful lesson”. Regarding the teachers of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge, it was found out that the participants produced 52 metaphors and the most frequently repeated metaphor related to the teacher was the metaphor of “Hoca” (teacher). The metaphors produced for the teacher of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge were gathered in 7 categories and the category with the highest frequency in these categories was “the Peaceful Teacher” category.Metaphors produced in relation to the lesson of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge can be considered as snapshots of the aims, content, learning-teaching processes and measurement-evaluation activities of the lesson. The metaphors produced about the lesson can determine the direction of the attention of preparers and decision makers in these subjects by pointing to the importance of the lesson, the importance that the student attach to the lesson, their emotions towards the lesson, the students' interests and expectations of the lesson. Metaphors produced by students in this study can be evaluated as answers given to the question of “what kind of lesson?” Metaphors produced about the teacher of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge are important tools that reveal who the teachers are, where they stand, how they teach and how they are defined. The metaphors produced by the students can be considered as definitions from another point of view, which will enable the teacher to recognize himself/herself in many ways and to recognize him/herself more impartially. In this study, metaphors produced by the students can be evaluated as answers to the question “what kind of teacher?” When the results of the research are evaluated as a whole, it is seen that the 4th grade students' metaphors about the lesson and teacher of Religion Culture and Moral Knowledge are generally positive. In this context, it can be said that the students have positive perceptions and thoughts about the lesson and the teacher. The less negative metaphors and explanations show that the students also have negative feelings and thoughts about the lesson and the teacher. Considering the fact that students' positive feelings and thoughts about the lesson and the teacher have a significant effect on the success of the students, precautions should be taken to eliminate negative perceptions of the students by evaluating the negative metaphors about the lesson and the teacher of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge in detail. (shrink)

In what ways is students’ participation in school related to their participation and becoming subjects across the school context and other contexts in which they participate? This is the question analyzed in this paper, based on observations of, and narratives and perspectives provided by, three 15-year-old ethnic minority boys and their teachers at a school in Denmark. Drawing upon Davies’ concept of teaching-as-usual, I explore exclusions and marginalization inside school before exploring how these can be seen as connected to, (...) and seemingly having an impact on, the lives the students lead outside school, with an understanding of this connection rooted in Holzkamp’s concept of conduct of everyday life. In this regard, I make use of concepts of recognition ) and viable life in order to point to how a lack of such within the school tends to drive the students away from the school context, while simultaneously driving them towards other contexts outside school, with gang related street communities being a particularly potential one. (shrink)

The unique wisdom of Judaism comes from the Talmud and the Judaic sages' other ancient writings that preserve the tradition of the originally oral Torah, or Teachings of Moses. Sometimes surprising - "better sincere sin than hypocritical virtue" - and always penetrating and helpful - "who are rich? those who are happy with their lot" - the wisdom of the oral Torah is set forth on more than one hundred subjects, arranged alphabetically, in their sources' own words, here rendered in (...) clear and easily readable English. This is the "how-to" book for people who think deeply about everyday life: facing death of a loved one, the duties and rights of women and men together, busy-ness versus real achievement, deceit, gossip, discretion, virtue, honor, forbearance, forgiveness. (shrink)

"In this distinguished volume, Lewis Mumford discusses the ultimate ethical and religious issues that confront modern man and offers a new orientation, directed to the renewal of life and the re-integration of modern civilization"--Back cover.

Background: In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of a mindfulness program including Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction on the mental health of student teachers when offered at their educational institution in a real-life context.Methods: A parallel randomized controlled trial was conducted among self-selected student teachers at a Danish undergraduate program for teacher education in the autumns of 2019 and 2020. Participation was not recommended in case of clinical depression or a diagnosis of psychosis or schizophrenia, abuse of alcohol, drugs, (...) and/or medicine. Randomization was performed by a Statistician who was blinded to the identity of the students. Data was collected using self-reported questionnaires. The primary outcome was a change in perceived stress 3 months from baseline. Secondary outcome measures were symptoms of anxiety and depression, well-being, resilience, mindfulness, and thoughts and feelings during rest. The effects were analyzed according to the intention-to-treat principle using mixed-effect linear regression models. Mediating effects of mindfulness skills on the mental health outcomes were explored using structural equation modeling.Results: The study group included 67 student teachers with 34 allocated to the intervention group ; and 33 students allocated to a waiting list control group. At baseline, mean Perceived Stress Scale scores were 18.88 in the intervention group and 17.91 in the waiting list control group. A total of 56 students completed the questionnaire at a 3-month follow-up. Statistically significant effects of the intervention were found on perceived stress, symptoms of anxiety and depression, well-being, and on three of seven resting-state dimensions. No effects were found on resilience or mindfulness. Statistically significant mediated effects via resting-state dimensions were found.Conclusion The findings suggested that offering a mindfulness program at an undergraduate program for teacher education could significantly improve the mental health among self-selected students within 3 months. Results of mediation analysis supported the hypothesis that some of the effects might be explained by reduced distracting thoughts.Clinical Trial Registration: [www.ClinicalTrials.gov], identifier [NCT04558099]. (shrink)

Publication date: 30 March 2017 Source: Author: Viacheslav Oleksenko In a highly technological post-industrial society the quality of education is an important factor in providing such a level of life and professional competency of a person that would satisfy both the demands of an individual and the state. The quality of the whole higher education is influenced by the quality of students' knowledge which is acquired at educational classes. Development of studactive classes has brought forward the problem of research (...) of their efficiency, in particular in the aspect of potential quality of knowledge. The results of the experiment are outlined, the main aim of which was to identify the effect of studactive classes on knowledge quality of university students. Monitoring of quality of students' knowledge at studactive classes is realized. It is revealed that students who were taught in a studactive way have better features of knowledge quality comparing with those who were taught in a traditional way. It is proved that knowledge quality of university students can be improved through implementing studactive classes into the pedagogical process. The study was conducted in Ukraine. (shrink)

Chapter 1 Welcome to A Kids Mensch Handbook What is a mensch, anyway? How can I be someone people respect? What's A Kid's Mensch Handbook all about? ...

In 2008 Science Magazine and the American Academy for the Advancement of Science hosted the first ever Dance Your PhD Contest in Vienna, Austria. Calls for submission to the second, third, and fourth annual Dance Your PhD contests followed suit, attracting hundreds of entries and featuring scientists based in the US, Canada, Australia, Europe and the UK. These contests have drawn significant media attention. While much of the commentary has focused on the novelty of dancing scientists and the function of (...) dance as an effective distraction for overworked researchers, this article takes seriously the relationship between movement and scientific inquiry and draws on ethnographic research among structural biologists to examine the ways that practitioners use their bodies to animate biological phenomena. It documents how practitioners transform their bodies into animating media and how they conduct body experiments to test their hypotheses. This ‘body-work’ helps them to figure out how molecules move and interact, and simultaneously offers a medium through which they can communicate the nuanced details of their findings among students and colleagues. This article explores the affective and kinaesthetic dexterities scientists acquire through their training, and it takes a close look at how this body-work is tacitly enabled and constrained through particular pedagogical techniques and differential relations of gender and power. This article argues that the Dance Your PhD contests, as well as other performative modalities, can expand and extend what it is possible for scientific researchers to see, say, imagine and feel. (shrink)

Schools have been the main context for physical activity and sedentary behavior interventions among adolescents, but there is inconsistent evidence on whether they also improve dimensions of the health−related quality of life. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a school-based active lifestyle intervention on dimensions of HRQoL. A secondary aim was to verify whether sex, age, and HRQoL at baseline were moderators of the intervention effect. A cluster-randomized controlled trial was conducted at three control and (...) three intervention schools in Florianopolis, Brazil. All students from 7th to 9th grade were invited to participate. A school year intervention, designed primarily to increase PA and reduce SB, included strategies focused on teacher training on PA, SB, and nutrition, and availability of teaching materials related to these contents; environmental improvements ; and education strategies, with the availability of folders and posters regarding PA, SB, and nutrition. Participants and the research staffs were not blinded to group assignment, but a standardized evaluation protocol was applied at baseline and after the intervention using the KIDSCREEN−27 to assess HRQoL across five dimensions. Mixed linear models were performed to evaluate the effect of the Movimente intervention on the five HRQoL dimensions. Of the 921 students who answered the questionnaire at baseline, 300 and 434 completed the study in control and intervention groups, respectively. The results revealed no significant effects of the intervention on any HRQoL dimensions. A reduction of the school environment dimension was observed in both the control and intervention groups. Sensitivity analyses showed that students in the highest baseline tertiles of HRQoL in any dimension had a reduction in their respective scores from pre- to post-intervention in both school groups. In conclusion, our results demonstrated no intervention effect on HRQoL dimensions and those students with the highest levels of HRQoL at baseline on all dimensions reduced from pre to post-intervention.Clinical Trial RegistrationThe trial is registered at the Clinical Trial Registry. (shrink)

In this, his third book on modern ethics for JPS, Elliot Dorff focuses on personal ethics, Judaism's distinctive way of understanding human nature, our role in ...

Instead of simply following the current neoliberal mantra of proclaiming economic growth as the single most important factor for maintaining well-being, Education and Schmid's Art of Living revisits the idea of an education focused on personal development and the well-being of human beings. Drawing on philosophical ideas concerning the good life and recent research in positive psychology, Teschers argues in favour of shifting the focus in education and schooling towards a beautiful life and an art of living for today's (...) class='Hi'>students. Containing a thorough discussion of the ideas of contemporary German philosopher Wilhelm Schmid, this book considers the possible implications of developing a more humanistic and life-centred approach to educational policy, research and practice, showing that Schmid's concept of Lebenskunst provides a firm philosophical basis for this endeavour. Among others, this book draws on analytical and continental traditions to challenge current views and assumptions in regard to education and the role of schooling for contemporary societies. As a result, Teschers' work is sure to spark a debate about the direction of educational policy and practice in the 21st century. Education and Schmid's Art of Living is essential reading for academics and students with an interest in education. Given the importance of such topics as the relationship between education and society, teacher education and how best to structure schools and learning environments, Teschers' work will appeal to academics and students in a diverse range of fields, including education, philosophy, sociology and psychology. (shrink)

In contrast to mainstream theories focusing on adolescent developmental deficits, the positive youth development (PYD) approach highlights adolescent developmental plasticity and potentials. There are rich empirical research and review studies showing that PYD attributes promote adolescent well-being. However, the existing literature shows several limitations. First, while there are many Western studies, Chinese studies are sparse, particularly studies in mainland China. Second, most PYD studies are cross-sectional studies with data collected at one single time point. Third, researchers in different Chinese contexts (...) seldom employed validated Chinese scales assessing different domains of PYD attributes. Fourth, few studies have examined the relationships between PYD attributes (measures of eudaimonic well-being) and life satisfaction (measure of hedonic well-being) and hopelessness (measure of negative well-being) in a single study. Finally, the role of life satisfaction or hopelessness as a mediator of the relationship between PYD attributes and psychological well-being is unclear. To explore the importance of PYD attributes to Chinese adolescent psychological well-being, we conducted a longitudinal study with two waves of data collected from junior high school students in mainland China ( N = 2,648). At both times, validated measures of PYD attributes, life satisfaction, and hopelessness were employed. Results showed that PYD attributes concurrently and longitudinally predicted life satisfaction and hopelessness with small effect sizes. Cross-lagged panel analyses showed that while Wave 2 life satisfaction did not serve as a mediator of the relationship between Wave 1 PYD attributes and Wave 2 hopelessness, Wave 2 hopelessness served as a mediator of the link from Wave 1 PYD attributes to Wave 2 life satisfaction. In view of the paucity of research findings in this area, the present findings clarify the association between PYD attributes and hedonic well-being (indexed by life satisfaction) and negative psychological well-being (indexed by hopelessness) in Chinese adolescents. (shrink)

Plato, in his dialog Charmides, presents the question of how society can determine whether a person who claims superior expertise in a particular field of knowledge does, in fact, possess superior expertise. In the modern era, society tends to answer this question by funding institutions (universities) that award credentials to certain individuals, asserting that those individuals possess a particular expertise; and then other institutions (the journalistic media and government) are expected to defer to the credentials. When, however, the sequential reasoning (...) and theorizing and conclusion-stating of generation after generation of credential-bearing experts (i.e., scientists) leads to the assertion of the truth of statements that large segments of society find to be in conflict with the statements of persons who have earned credentials of expertise bestowed by an alternative institutional structure (i.e., religious teachers), representatives of the people are put to a choice. And when the conflicting statements present substantial implications for the moral and sexual behavior of people in the society, addressing the conflict brings into play not only the highest intellectual speculations and analyses, but also the most animal emotions and motivations. This paper, taking the form of a dialog, presents a scientist (Avram Codosia) named after an ancient Jewish patriarch and makes him a supplicant to a U.S. Senator (Helen Astartian) named after a pagan goddess. The stakes turn out to be not merely financial and intellectual, but personal and moral, involving the scientist's son (Isaac), an art student, and the senator's niece (Halia), a philosophy student. In a four-phase encounter, the paper hopes to offer some innovative observations on age-old issues and to stimulate productive new thinking on questions that too often seem to be debated by means of repetitions of the same old points. (shrink)

The author reflects on his experience as a medical student to draw out larger life lessons about perseverance, diligence, responsibility and the ethical conduct of life in general.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of cell phone dependence on mental health among undergraduates during the COVID-19 pandemic and further identify the determinants that may affect their mental health in China.MethodsThe data were collected from 602 students at a medical school in Shanghai via an online survey conducted from December 2021 to February 2022. The Mobile Phone Addiction Index and Depression Anxiety Stress Scale were applied to evaluate CPD and mental health, respectively. Independent sample t-test and one-way analysis of variance (...) were employed to compare the means of continuous variables among categorical groups. Correlations between continuous variables were detected using Pearson's correlation analysis. Univariable and multivariable logistic regressions were employed to identify the determinants of mental health.ResultsAmong the 402 eligible students, 73.88% were women with an average age of 20.19 ± 2.36 years. On average, the DASS score was 32.20 ± 11.07, the CPD score was 36.23 ± 11.89, and the cell phone use duration was 7.67 ± 3.61 h/day. CPD was found to have a negative effect on mental health among college students in Shanghai. Additionally, cell phone use duration, age, being senior students, faculty-student relationship, insomnia, tobacco use, obesity, and life satisfaction were clarified as contributing factors to mental health among college students.ConclusionHigh degree of CPD could have a negative effect on college students' mental health, which might lead to some psychological problems. Appropriate actions and effective interventions are highly needed to prevent severe psychological injuries among college students in China. (shrink)

On the conduct of life for Ulama; while speaking publically; collected articles.

This book examines Philo’s understanding of the acquisition of virtues and the avoidance of vices using the Greek concept of piety as a central virtue in his ethical discourse. Naveros exceptionally shows how Philo construes his understanding of living ethically within both the Hellenistic Jewish and Greek traditions.