Transpersonal education

Abstract

The field of transpersonal education was originally discussed in the mid-1970s, aiming to unite the various domains of human experience (i.e. cognitive, affective, psychomotor) through a series of principles and practices (Moore, 1975; Roberts & Clark, 1976). There has been a paucity of research in the area, furthermore the field has become strongly associated with postgraduate courses (e.g. Rowe & Braud, 2013), opposed to investigating how transpersonal education may be applied to the early years and compulsory schooling sector. Recently, there have been attempts to redefine transpersonal education to provide a balanced focus within compulsory schooling (Buckler, 2011; 2013), with initial research suggesting that the field has cross-cultural interest. This paper extends research into the concept through analysing current publications in the field, while also deriving international perspectives from participants. To conclude, a discussion of the UK context is provided where an opportunity is highlighted for transpersonal psychologists to lead future development.