At Maharishi School students make connections between all the surface details and the big ideas.

What does it mean to “think deeply?”
by Maharishi School at Maharishi School website blog
27 May 2018

Think Deeply – What Does It Mean?
As humans, we are all capable of advanced and deep thoughts. It’s part of what makes us human. There have been many different theories or gurus or instructors that show us a way to think more deeply than we previously were able to do. Some people are drawn to one way of deep thinking over the other. Of course, we have our preference too. We love the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique.

But! What does it mean to think deeply in terms of school curriculum? How does that change the way we educate our students? What does it mean to corporately, as a group, seek to think deeper? Let’s try to answer these questions.

What Thinking Deeper Means to Us
To us, thinking deeper means going beyond what is happening right now. That means we take time to show the interconnectivity of everything around us. We take time to think past the next assignment, the next class period, the next school year. We think in terms of success far past high school, into adulthood, and even after we are finished living this life.

We want to connect learning to application. What good are our scholastics and achievements if we can’t use them past our classes? This is why we teach Science of Creative Intelligence, an interdisciplinary course that reaches outside the classroom to show how observable and interconnected the things we learn truly are.

SCI teaches our students that math isn’t just equations but the rhythm by which the earth shifts, the birds sing, and flowers bloom. It shows us that chemistry isn’t something that exists within a test tube but is found in life itself, all around us. Students make connections between all the surface details and the big ideas.

We have a saying, “stretched not stressed,” for our students. We want to see them challenged, to set expectations for themselves, then to exceed those expectations. We provide opportunities for this in our rigorous AP exams and Honors classes.

In SCI classes, students learn that the laws of real-world science are the same laws that guide human growth. For example, one of the principles is: Every action has a reaction. In science, we see this in literally everything.

If temperatures rise on our planet, that means drastic changes for many species. A small change in one part of the world can lead to a ripple effect globally as in the butterfly effect. In the same way, every action has a reaction in our lives. The words we use, the actions we take, and the education we embrace all have an effect.

By understanding this principle in depth, students see the power they carry and are able to better understand the mechanics of not only the physical world but also the mechanics of their behavior and life. They learn these simple but powerful truths starting in Kindergarten and continue to find them useful and visible throughout their lives.

Thinking Deeply Into the Future
More than anything, we want to prepare our students to weather the storms their lives will present and to come out on the other side successful, resilient, and better prepared for next time. Whatever goals our students set for themselves – college, career, life – we believe the depths of their thoughts and the ability to live a balanced life will be their launching point for success.

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