Students at the Center

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At the heart of the Circle are the students. This is in harmony with the Jesuit concept of cura personalis, or care for the whole person that is central to what we do as educators. It is also aligned with other work we value like that of Henry Jenkins Links to an external site.who believes that learning in a participatory culture includes low barriers to engagement; support for sharing creations with others; informal mentorship; learners’ faith that their own contributions matter; and a feeling of connectedness with others.

This aspect of connectedness is particularly important in online learning spaces that can feel isolating if not designed with thoughtfulness. Parker Palmer (2009) reminds us that, “Good teachers possess a capacity for connectedness. They are able to weave a complex web of connections among themselves, their subjects, and their students so that students can learn to weave a world for themselves” (p.11).