We know that a sense of “belonging” is essential: people feeling like they belong not just creates conducive conditions for them to grow, but making them feel like a part of something also encourages them to become active contributors in it, because they matter.
I explore “belonging” from inside-out, from the perspective of individuals.
what if we thought of belonging as the way that we make sense of ourselves within our worlds?
The stories we tell about ourselves and our identities, and the ways these stories affect how we think of our place within the world. I wonder then if we can foster belonging by learning to tell these stories better.
can we learn how to belong better by changing the way we place ourselves in the world?
Looking at our narratives as versions of our meaning-systems, we can use several forms of meta-cognitive and reflection tools to encourage re-framing of these narratives.
if yes, how do we teach (for) it?
I experiment with this idea in many ways. One example of this is the following curriculum I designed for the class Interdisciplinary Education: Preparing Students for our Contemporary World.
