Why Beauty Is Needed in Education Now More Than Ever

Abstract

Children and young people are living in the most difficult of times. Indeed, they have experienced many events that many of us could not even fathom 10 years ago. With the global pandemic, significant natural disasters due to climate change and human impact as well as civil unrest and conflict the world is a complex and challenging place. How then do young people best deal with these hardships? And how can we as educators, support them to build resilience and care? Also, how can young people be best prepared for an uncertain future in the world of work? This book has hopefully shown how teaching aesthetic literacies can support the holistic development of the child. Aesthetic literacies have been proven to be important for social and emotional development, as well as our wellbeing and mental health. This chapter therefore provides a number of propositions for educators to consider so that teaching aesthetics becomes a critical component of learning in schools and hence best prepares students for an unpredictable future.