Supporting Children and Youth Through Spiritual Education

Book excerpt: Across academic circles over the last few decades, the interest and inquiry on spirituality continues to broaden. Currently, the school system in the United States and many Western countries put their focus on academic achievement at the expense of preparing their students’ inner cores for skills they will need to deal with a more complex and challenging world to come. Supporting Children and Youth Through Spiritual Education provides a platform for researchers and experts in the field of spirituality in children and youth to voice the urgent need for an educational system that truly nurtures the whole child. The book also considers the need to remove the misunderstandings about the terms “spirituality” and “religion” among those who work directly with children and youth. Covering key topics such as religion, cognitive development, and spiritual needs, this reference work is critical for principals, administrators, industry professionals, researchers, scholars, practitioners, academicians, instructors, and students.