Getting to the Heart of the Matter

The research I did for my Master's degree at Fresno State involved the school-wide discipline strategies that were being implemented at the middle school I was teaching and coaching at.  When I first started teaching, I noticed that something was missing in the schools where I was working.  The discipline systems seemed ineffective for most of the students I taught.  These involved out-of-school suspensions for minor class disruptions, or expulsion for fighting, and also just general punishment-related actions and little if any positive forms of discipline strategies.  After almost two years of researching these thoughts, I came to a conclusion that one of the main things that was missing from my school district was a respect for the "heart" of the students.  The students were taught academic standards, and punished for misbehaving, but there was no general concern for their hearts (or what some would call their spiritual development).

Some would argue that school's should not be concerned with the spiritual development, or heart, of young people.  I completely disagree with that.  Most adults are unwilling to go into the territory of the heart because many of them are unfamiliar with how to live from their own hearts.  Nevertheless, any adult who has an impact on young people (teachers, coaches, parents, pastors, mentors, counselors, etc.) should be addressing children at the heart level.  This should not be the only thing that is focused on, but it should be a considerable part of the holistic approach to child development.  Jay D'Ambrosio, a teacher and author in Pittsburgh, did a great job outlining the need for adults to address heart issues in adolescents in his book "Rethinking Adolescence."  He wrote, "Every day in this country, students drop out of school, get suspended, get into fights, try drugs, steal, cheat, lie to their parents, and betray friendships.  We are losing them.  Why?  What have we not given them?  The answer is that we have not taken the time to connect with them at the heart level."

Scott Larson and Barry Brendtro cover this topic well in their book "Reclaiming Our Prodigal Sons and Daughters."  They said, "Modern youth are suffering from a deep spiritual hunger.  Yet most schools are so narrowly preoccupied with academic achievement and superficial behavior that they fail to meet the most basic emotional and spiritual needs of their children.  Likewise, many courts are no longer committed to meeting the needs of our most difficult children.  Even professional counselors may not know how to speak to the hearts of the youth they serve.  Now, as the frantic pace and complexity of modern life upsets our balance, we strive to correct our course and rediscover a purpose for living.  Such has always been the case with our most troubled youth who find little hope in their lives and are compelled at a young age to ask deeply spiritual questions.  Today, even secular researchers recognize the importance of integrating the spiritual dimension into a holistic approach to positive youth development.  Concepts such as virtue, faith, and forgiveness are taking center stage as we realize the emptiness of a do your own thing world."  The also go on to say, "The missing ingredient in most of our efforts with young people at risk has been the spiritual dimension."

I'd say this relates to LAMP in that we train our mentors to learn what is appropriate to cover with students in terms of heart and spiritual issues, but we don't want them to ignore those areas.  In fact, we don't want mentors to worry too much about academic or behavioral outcomes with their mentees.  The mentees really just need caring adults to engage them at the heart level, an area that is often overlooked by most adults in their lives.  From this perspective, mentoring fills a huge void in the lives of young people.  It also helps to fill this void for school personnel who have so much on their plates.  After all, all of the knowledge and good behavior in the world does not mean much at all without finding one's purpose in life (a heart issue).