Holistic Learning and Education for Sustainable Development

Abstract

This chapter examines the implementation of holistic learning in virtual space and presents it as a humanistic approach to ensure students' democratic participation in online and distance learning. While education for sustainable development (ESD) envisions active and engaged learners, students struggled to engage in online and distance learning (ODL) during the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. This study examines the holistic learning curriculum, tokkatsu—which originated in Japan—and discusses its prospect for nurturing responsible and active learners. In tokkatsu, students participate in nonacademic activities where they learn to take the initiative, have dialogue, and collaborate as responsible members of the community. This chapter presents an application of the tokkatsu in virtual space, taking a case from Indonesia. It describes the contextualized case of tokkatsu to build a community of learners in the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic and how challenges in the digitalization of the classroom were overcome.