Our grantees & partners:

    Do you want to restore humanity in education?

    Do you want to turn schools into children's favorite places to be?

    Do you want to become an agent of educational change?

    Join the Community of IDS Agents of Educational Change!

    Ideas

    Are we mature enough to become people? Holistic approach to education

    Johann Friedrich Herbart, a German educator and philosopher, wrote in 1806: “A part can be measured on the whole, it…

    28 April 2023

    Interviews

    Pasi Sahlberg: We hold on to traditional ideas and methods, but the world has changed. Everything has changed. Schools should reflect this

    Interview with Pasi Sahlberg, one of the creators of Finland’s phenomenal education reform, professor of education policy at the University…

    20 April 2023

    Interviews

    Jo Johnson: School should teach how to make space between one’s thoughts

    An interview with Jo Johnson, a teacher from Grand Haven, Michigan (US), who teaches math, industrial arts, and woodshop, and…

    12 April 2023

    Interviews

    Dr. Ryan Bramley from the University of Sheffield: If teachers don’t care for young people’s feelings, wants, and needs, then that crucial element of education gets missed out. 

    Interview with Dr. Ryan Bramley from the School of Education at the University of Sheffield, a grantee of the first…

    06 April 2023

    Interviews

    Human Restoration Project: If we start with humanity within the school, then we can expect to see humanity in the world outside

    Interview with Nick Covington and Chris McNutt, co-founders of the Human Restoration Project, a non-profit organization promoting human-centered school education,…

    27 March 2023

    Grants

    The second phase of the Holistic Think Tank program is launched. HTT awards the next tranche of grants to its partners

    We are preparing to launch the second edition of the Holistic Think Tank grant program for two partner organizations –…

    24 March 2023

    Interviews

    Fab Foundation: We need to transform schools before we lose children entirely

    Interview with Sherry Lassiter, President and SEO of Fab Foundation, and Rodney Williams, who works there as a Program Manager….

    Sherry Lassiter and Rodney Williams from Fab Foundation

    17 March 2023

    Interviews

    HTT executive director in a press interview: The student-teacher relationship will no longer be a hierarchical one

    Justyna Pokojska, an executive director of HTT and Ph.D. in sociology, gave an extensive press interview for the “Dziennik Polski”…

    21 February 2023

    Summit

    HTT Summit 2023. We present the agenda of inspiring workshops

    At the HTT 2023 Summit at Ohio State University, Columbus, attendees will not only hear lectures by global education experts…

    15 February 2023

    Summit

    HTT Summit 2023: a great venue and an agenda full of inspiring activities. See you on March 4!

    The HTT educational summit at Ohio State University, Columbus, US, is coming soon (March 4). On the agenda, among others,…

    10 February 2023

    Interviews

    Prof. Dominika Dudek: I dream of schools that teach students how to deal with stress

    Interview with Prof. Dominika Dudek, psychiatrist, president of the Polish Psychiatric Association, head of the Department of Psychiatry at Jagiellonian…

    30 January 2023

    BOOK REVIEW

    Book review: Smartphones Epidemic by Manfred Spitzer

    The book of Manfred Spitzer provokes thoughts about the impact digitalization bears on our existence. According to the author, one…

    09 January 2023

    educational program HTT

    An innovative educational project is being launched. Holistic Think Tank invites up to 100 school teachers to join it

    Holistic Think Tank aims to create a common base of lessons’ scenarios built on the values from the What School…

    03 January 2023

    Ideas

    The price of success. Is Korean “education fever” a warning or an inspiration?

    As recently as the 1950s, South Korea’s economy was not too different from those of sub-Saharan African countries (calculated by…

    29 December 2022

    Grants

    Digital competence’s awareness, cooperation, and sense of empowerment. Our grantees point to the most important values in education

    Three grantees are working with us to develop and implement an interdisciplinary subject (IDS). And while they share a mutual…

    21 December 2022

    Research

    Toward the „thriving” relationships in Polish schools

    The amount of studying imposed on students is a systemic problem, not the teachers’ idea – says one of the…

    09 December 2022

    Grants

    IDS GRANTS SUMMARY: to design Interdisciplinary Subject

    Introduction Holistic Think Tank’s mission is to make schools around the world raise learners ready for the challenges of the…

    29 November 2022

    Research

    Zimbabwe: Hopes of the teachers and dreams of the students

    Schools ought to teach what is relevant and applicable in the day-to-day interaction in life, either at work or in…

    29 November 2022

    Research

    Philippines: The world’s awakening. Mankind is beginning to understand that the future starts with education

    Currently, various countries all over the globe – following the global educational trend that emphasizes 21st-century competencies – have undertaken…

    29 November 2022

    Research

    Kenya: lessons learned. What should we pay attention to while introducing the education reform

    In 2015, Kenya began introducing a new holistic and interdisciplinary curriculum. Its premise – to raise a generation that will…

    29 November 2022

    Grants

    Designing interdisciplinary lessons: an inspiration toolkit

    As a result of research conducted by HTT in order to develop new educational solutions, we announced an international competition…

    24 November 2022

    Grants

    The University of Sheffield on the way to IDS curriculum

    23 November 2022

    Research

    HTT RESEARCH SUMMARY: different countries share the same dream of a better school

    1. Introduction The Holistic Think Tank aims to improve the functioning of schools worldwide by moving away from the traditional…

    18 November 2022

    Research

    How to make schools catch up with the 21st century?

    Today’s students need a multi-dimensional set of skills: the ones for both their present and future lives, abilities they can…

    07 November 2022

    Research

    When more is less

    The dominance of private education, overprotective parents helping children with their homework, and numerous tutors – this approach to education…

    07 November 2022

    Research

    Kids always want to know more, but teachers hit systemic obstacles

    Most teachers dream of education that will develop students’ talents, show them how to resolve problems, communicate efficiently, analyze sources…

    07 November 2022

    Research

    School is a miniature society

    South Korean participants in the HTT research project see school as a community that reflects the society in general. By…

    17 October 2022

    Research

    “Emotional touch with creative design” – Inspiration from Korean interdisciplinary approach to education

    STEAM education tries to integrate the learning experience, with a focus on connecting the subjects of science, technology, engineering, mathematics,…

    17 October 2022

    Research

    Brazilian vision of education – socioemotional skills in the forefront

    The core of the Brazilian curriculum fosters ten general competences that contribute to the holistic formation and education of children.…

    17 October 2022

    Summit

    Join education experts at the HTT Summit in Ohio (4.-5. March 2023)

    10 October 2022

    Film

    See and feel the heart of education all over the world

    10 October 2022

    Towards humanization of school curricula

    10 October 2022

    Analysis

    The essence of the change is to go beyond the comfort zone.

    “There is one world – let’s learn to look at it as a whole, through the lens of various subjects,…

    10 October 2022

    Grants

    My media. My power. My world.

    As one of the Holistic Think Tank grant program beneficiaries, the University of Sheffield, has prepared its own concept of…

    09 October 2022

    Research

    “School should not just be a four-walled classroom”

    Teachers who took part in the HTT research project in Brazil dream of a student-centered and  reality-based education that inspires…

    29 September 2022

    Research

    What Should Schools Teach? A Phenomenography of School Environments

    What kind of skills and knowledge should be taught in schools for the world’s better future – this was the…

    27 September 2022

    Research

    South African schools on the path to interdisciplinary education

    South African participants in the HTT research project stressed the importance of holistic development of students which is most successfully…

    27 September 2022

    Research

    South Africa: Schools are not isolated entities

    “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world” Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom…

    27 September 2022

    Analysis

    Interviews

    Galina Zenin: “Music provides the children with an opportunity to learn about the world in a holistic way by being wholly engaged”

    In an old photo Galina’s head is adorned with a huge white bow, she is wearing a short brown dress…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    Talks

    Prof. Magdalena Ślusarczyk: “Nowadays it is not easy to talk about universal values, because we live in a world of their pluralism”

    Professor, we are really grateful for this opportunity to talk to you. For us, Holistic Think Tank, it is really…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    Educational journey into the unknown begins with leaving the familiar port

    We sometimes hear the expression of a rather melancholic notion that we were, in fact, born too late to have…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    School should stress the mutual permeability between various fields of study, along with the permeability of values

    Children starting off on their educational journey ought to be provided with opportunities to develop in many different directions. Emphasis,…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    Talks

    Interdisciplinary School Subject (IDS): The point is to do inquiry based learning

    Holistic Think Tank recently awarded a research grant to Fab Lab Foundation for creating a new interdisciplinary subject. Today we…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    Approaching the global issues  based on interdisciplinary knowledge, values, and skills

    Education for global citizenship, in its critical rather than “soft” version, invites students to question existing social order and to…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    What kind of citizenship should be taught at school?

    Functioning in a relationship with the state should be an important part of the life of each and every one…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    The role of the school is to teach how to learn

    “What is the purpose of the school?” – this question seems to have an obvious answer. The objective of the…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    “Mathematics is something more than a subject based on the data”

    Travelling through different places allow for observing rich fauna and flora, describing the landscape and recording the most beautiful views.…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    Holistic Think Tank Methodological Manifesto

    1. A methodology to match the approach to the world and to education At Holistic Think Tank we are primarily…

    21 September 2022

    Analysis

    Communication triad – is a mature educational dialogue possible?

    Communication is a basic tool of knowledge transfer in a school situation. The child and the adult communicate with each…

    20 September 2022

    Analysis

    Computational thinking as a fundamental skill used by everyone by the middle of the 21st Century

    We all agree that the school should not only impart knowledge, but also help develop specific skills. The catalog of…

    20 September 2022

    Analysis

    “Empty Pedagogy, Behaviorism, and the Rejection of Equity” – Chris McNutts diagnosis on the educational reality.

    The use of techniques based on the achievements of behaviorism stirs rampant emotions among education specialists. It is worth remembering,…

    20 September 2022

    Analysis

    The question returns like a boomerang: How to make pupils want to learn?

    The Holistic Think Tank team has been working for many months on an international research project on primary school education.…

    20 September 2022

    Talks

    Maciej Winiarek: “We need to flip the classroom relationship and put the student in the center of the education system”

    “I think we should increase the potential of children now, which will enable them to take responsibility for their own…

    20 September 2022

    Analysis

    Does homeschooling teach what schools do not?

    Statistics indicate a growing interest in homeschooling among many members of the public. In Italy, over the past two years,…

    20 September 2022

    Analysis

    Neither education nor production systems are tailored to develop 21st century competences

    Today we face the reality of modern society: neither education nor production systems are tailored to develop 21st century competences.…

    20 September 2022

    Inspirations

    Holistic approach in education

    A list compiled by the Holistc Thnik Tank researchers – Jan Bazyli Klakla and Katarzyna PajÄ…k-Załęska – based on preliminary analyses and…

    20 September 2022

    Ideas

    What School Should Teach Research: Case Study of Philippines (Summary)

    The school in focus is located in one of the biggest and wealthiest cities in the Philippines. It was established…

    08 September 2022

    Research

    What School Should Teach Research: Case Study of Poland (Summary)

    The research aim of the project is an investigation into a particular school environment along with the roles played by…

    08 September 2022

    Podcasts

    "Education is the mos powerful weapon you can use to change the world" - said Nelson Mandela. In Holistic Think Tank, we belive that a change in education system is possible. And we know how to do it.

    In this podcast, you will meet people from all over the world, who not only believe but just work on education change.


    Predispositions in learning music, math, physics and logic (Episode 8)

    Christoph Drösser has a graduate degree in mathematics and has written numerous general interest books, covering topics as varied as music and the brain, math, physics, logic, and weather. This German science journalist is based in San Francisco and we speak with him to find out about some fascinating connections between different school subjects and our abilities and predispositions in learning and studying these subjects. Please join our listening!

    Changes in the curriculum in Latvia – what do educators think about the new reform? (Episode 7)

    The Latvian Ministry of Education and Science is proposing a number of changes to the current approach to education in order to develop, approve and successively introduce a curriculum that would develop value-based knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary in the 21st century. This project is called “Competency approach in the curriculum” or School 2030 (Skola 2030). Today we are talking to educators about how this reform works in practice.

    Interdisciplinary school subject by fabfoundation (Episode 6)

    Holistic Think Tank recently awarded a research grant to Fab Lab Foundation for creating a new interdisciplinary subject. Today we are joined by Monika Aring and Larry Hulbert from Fab Lab Foundation. The topic of our conversation is the interdisciplinary subject (IDS), its implementation and education reform.

    What is the biggest constraint in school? (Episode 5)

    The Theory of Constraints is a methodology for identifying the most important limiting factor (i.e., constraint) that stands in the way of achieving a goal and then systematically improving that constraint until it is no longer the limiting factor. This theory is used in many fields, we will concentrate on education. Today we are joined by Maciej Winiarek, an expert in critical thinking, former director of the TOCFE (TOC for Education) Foundation in the USA for Poland, co-founder of the non-public Thinking Zone school in Gdańsk, a Family Lab trainer, educator, publisher, blogger, presenter and certified tutor.

    Media literacy helps to foster critical thinking and creativity (Episode 4)

    Media literacy education has been of high interest in Ukraine since the 2014 annexation of Crimea. The study of propaganda has become increasingly important, especially with the rise of fake news and disinformation during the current war in Ukraine. Today we are joined by Maryna Dorosh, a media literacy expert from Ukraine and we are talking about how media literacy can help children identify reliable sources and filter through the noise to get at the truth.

    Peaceable schools in the Netherlands (Episode 3)

    Educating for peace in times of war – the problem suddenly becomes very topical again. Today we are joined by Dennis de Vries, director of the Peaceful Education foundation from Utrecht to learn more about peaceful schools and their programme.

    IB Education – Parent perspective (Episode 2)

    Today we are joined by Tomasz Wlazlo, a parent from Poland, who, while living in various countries, was looking for a good international education for his free daughters. We will talk about the challenges and strengths of the International Baccalaureate education programme from the parents’ point of view.

    Education systems around the world: United States of America (Episode 1)

    Today we are joined by Agatha Panait, an educator from Chicago and we talk about the American education system. We discuss social emotional learning as the idea for a multidisciplinary model of teaching, about the relations between teacher and parent, about the American model of school and curricula.