Invitation to the 10th Annual Soka Education Conference

Dear SESRP supporters:

For the past nine years, the Soka Education Student Research Project
(SESRP) – a student- run entity at Soka University of America (SUA) –
has organized a Soka Education Conference held on campus in Aliso Viejo,
California.  This year’s conference marks the 10th
anniversary of Soka Education Conferences and thus is a very special
conference, expanded to 3 days in length and hosting a selection of
highly distinguished Soka and humanistic education scholars as featured
speakers. We seek to celebrate the progress made in Soka Education
research over the past 10 years and look forward to the future direction
of Soka Education in the upcoming decades. The conference has long been
a venue for students, alumni, and professionals to share their research
on Soka Education, an expanding educational philosophy based on
Tsunesaburo Makiguchi’s philosophy of value creation. While we will
continue to delve into the details of Soka Education, this year we will
also recognize and explore other humanistic pedagogies for the purpose
of re-envisioning the role of education as it exists in our society. We
cordially invite you and your colleagues to join us in our endeavor at
the 10th Annual Soka Education Conference to be held February 15th-17th, 2013 at Soka University of America.

We are excited to invite Dr. Winston Langley, Provost at the
University of Massachusetts Boston, as our keynote speaker this year.
His fields of interest include human rights, international relations,
religion, and international political power structures. Dr. Langley’s
publications on human rights have received numerous awards, including
Choice Outstanding Academic Book Award and Gustavus Myers Center for
the the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights Award for Outstanding Book on
Human Rights in North America. Currently, he is working to deepen the
culture of research and the quality of a student-centered education
as Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. In addition, Dewey
scholars Jim Garrison and Larry Hickman will be holding a discussion
pertaining to their dialogue on social progress, democracy, and
education with SUA Founder Daisaku Ikeda. Two of the founders of SESRP,
Simon Hoffding and Gonzalo Obelleiro, will also be presenting their
research on the concepts of value creation and creativity.

Throughout the conference, 15 presenters, consisting of students of
various levels, alumni, educators, professionals, and more, will share
their studies, experiences and applications of Soka Education and
humanistic education in traditional and non-traditional spheres.
Presentations cover a wide variety of topics including the role of
knowledge in texts of educational constructivism, creating value through
documentary film, the use of dialogue in early childhood education,
peace education through drama, education in restorative justice, value
creation in refugee-migrant education, and teacher education in India.
In addition to Makiguchi, presentations will also refer to educational
theorists and philosophers like John Dewey, Mikhail Bakhtin, Lev
Vygotksy , Daisaku Ikeda and Maria Montessori.

To address and critically consider the issues facing contemporary
educational practices, we sincerely hope to develop connections and
networks between SESRP and professionals in education or those
interested in such topics. We hope that you will consider attending the
2014 Soka Education Conference and furthering your understanding of Soka
Education.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us at sokaec10@gmail.com.

Sincerely,

Soka Education Student Research Project