Education from a Deeper and Multidisciplinary Perspective: Enhanced by Relating to Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Based on Mindfulness, Self-Awarenes

Have you ever thought deeply about the general goals of education? What ideal education could an individual receive? Would education only have a narrow focus on a specific career path, or can character development that results in a deeper perception of reality give one the capacity to see the connectedness of various systems of this world, as suggested in the notion of systems thinking? Do we have a better form of education than what we have currently? In this book, the author attempts to answer these questions, identifying some of the less obvious limitations of our current educational, pedagogical, and social practices. In what he terms authentic education focusing on mindfulness, self-awareness and emotional intelligence that results in integrated social-emotional learning, the author presents a deeper, broader approach to education. Learners get the opportunity to mindfully self-author their learning and development paths throughout life by developing an agile, growth mindset. In this integrated approach, individuals embark on a process leading to enhanced creativity, wisdom and overall well-being. Better, more holistically educated human beings in this way become solvers of the world's most difficult problems with clearer minds, while demonstrating more empathy, compassion and content, and are passionate about working for the greater good. This education system can provide solutions, directing our planet toward sustainability.This second edition of the book Education from a Deeper and Multidisciplinary Perspective: For a Sustainable Development of the Neurodiverse Society: A Futuristic View, published just over five years ago, is an extension with around 30 percent more content than the first version. In the new version, additional discussions were included: the areas of the social and emotional learning (SEL), emotional intelligence, mindfulness/meditative/attentional-training practices, empathy/compassion/kindness, neuroplasticity, epigenetics, self-transcendence, systems-thinking, growth mindset, self-authorship, resilience, and so forth. Most of these topics were only very briefly mentioned in the first edition. However, they have become increasingly widespread in education-related industries and other business areas alike in the recent past. Many references for these topic areas were provided in the book, even though many others not listed here are available in digital and printed formats around the world. Such increasing interests in the mentioned topic areas, and their relatively newly identified connection to general education and learning over the last decade or so speak for the much-needed educational transformation urged in this book in order for us to direct our societies to sustainability in an evidence-based manner. Additional references can also be found on the author's website at http: //chandana-watagodakumbura.net/.This book is intended for anyone who is interested in deeply understanding what education is all about. However, there would be much food for thought, especially for educators in general, parents, tertiary education students, and educational policy-makers. Generally, it is felt that there was not much literature available on integrated views of education from multidisciplinary perspectives, even though we could find much in individual domains. When we conceptualise such an integrated meaning to education, it gives us deeper and broader perspectives. This book is an outcome of the author's quest for better educational experiences/transformations, based on his decades of mindful experiences as a student and academic and strong belief that there are better ways in which we can provide education to our learners, possibly with life-changing impacts, for everyone in this world, in general