Taoist Teaching

8) Be Careful with Words.  Competition in the classroom is something the Taoist tradition would discourage.  By encouraging some and not others, competition could be inadvertently set in place.  Encourage all or none/

9)  The Material is Fleeting, the Spiritual is Everlasting. Help your students to learn about families, religions, relationships, different cultures.  These last forever, textbooks change.

10) Do not be Authoritarian.  Try to teach each student to become their own authority in what they learn, how they learn it.  By giving power to others, one reaps more back.

11) Turn non-being into Utility.  The Taoist concept of "wu-wei" is likened to an empty vessel.  The empty space in a cup is very important if one wants to fill it.  Taoism teaches people to be empty vessels-that having a space of nothing is important.  In teaching, a bit of "down-time" provides a needed break from the stresses of the day or just a time of reflection and contemplation.

12) Control input to the Senses; avoid Confusion and respond to Inner Depth.   Tuning out extra noise can help us concentrate and see what is important.