The Japanese educator, Tsunesaburo Makiguchi (1871-1944) starts his value-creating pedagogy with the following thought, which might be a good quote with which to start my first blog post.

Creation of value is part and parcel of what it means to be a human being. Human beings do not have the ability to create material; but they can create value, and it is in the creation of value that the unique meaning of human life lies. (Bethel 1973: 49)

For several years I have been writing on the topic of Soka or Value-creating education in publications that are largely catered to an academic audience. I hope that pushing myself into the unfamiliar territory of blogging will turn out to be a positive experience to engage in conversations with a wider audience on topics discussed in my recent book, Value-Creating Global Citizenship Education (Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2018).

Reference

Bethel, D. M. (1973). Makiguchi the value creator: Revolutionary Japanese educator
and founder of Soka Gakkai. Tokyo: Weatherhill.

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Published by Namrata Sharma, Faculty, Consultant, UN Expert

Dr. Namrata Sharma is on the faculty at the State University of New York, USA, and an expert with the United Nations Harmony with Nature Knowledge Network (UN HwN). She is an international education consultant and has served on the Boards of several professional organizations in India, USA, and Europe. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Delhi University, SRCC, India; a master’s degree in education from Soka University, Tokyo, Japan; and a Ph.D. from the University College London – Institute of Education (IOE), UK. She worked as faculty at the University of Nottingham in the UK before her move to the US. She has authored several books, research papers, and articles. Dr. Sharma has specialist interests in Global Citizenship Education, Sustainability Education, International and Comparative Education. In her ongoing research work she is engaged in drawing meaningful linkages between teaching the UNESCO-led initiatives of Global Citizenship Education and Sustainability.