Quakerism and the 5 Pursuits
During Snack time, the kindergarteners often ask to watch Hootie’s House, a one-episode puppet show, made by a Quaker School Drama teacher in New York. It’s Hootie’s first day of Kindergarten, and Hootie is learning the Quaker testimonies (SPICES) which are the values Quakers live by. As the video references joy, kindness, and justice-oriented learning and living, I connected the SPICES to Gholdy Muhammad’s Five Pursuits.
* Simplicity Peace Integrity Community Equality Stewardship
* Identity Skills Intellect Criticality Joy
* Simplicity Peace Integrity Community Equality Stewardship * Identity Skills Intellect Criticality Joy
In working at a Quaker school, I’ve come to hold the testimonies (Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community, Equality, and Stewardship) dear to me, because I think being mindful of the testimonies as I plan lessons and approach conversations with students has helped slowed me into a more intentional and progressive educator, alongside Gholdy Muhammad’s Five Pursuits (Identity, Skills, Intellect, Criticality, and Joy). Quakerism and Gholdy Muhammad’s Five Pursuitsare rooted in a shared belief that education is fundamentally about nurturing the whole human being. At the heart of Quakerism is the principle that every person carries an Inner Light, a unique dignity and brilliance that deserves recognition and cultivation. This deeply aligns with Muhammad’s focus on Identity, as both frameworks insist that children must be seen, valued, and understood for who they truly are. Quaker pedagogy calls teachers to notice “that of God” in every learner, which mirrors Muhammad’s charge to help students explore who they are culturally, intellectually, and emotionally. The emphasis on silent reflection and communal listening in Quaker practice also resonates with the Skills and Intellect pursuits: students learn how to listen deeply, think expansively, and engage thoughtfully with ideas and with one another. In Quaker schools, inquiry is valued, as truth is understood as something discovered through experience and shared reflection. This also parallels Muhammad’s goal of developing students’ intellectual and critical capacities through rich, meaningful learning.
The Quaker testimonies of Community, Equality, Peace, Integrity, and Stewardship align closely with Muhammad’s pursuit of Criticality as well, which asks students to question power structures, understand justice, and act in ways that honor the humanity of themselves and others. Quaker pedagogy encourages learners to consider not only what is true, but what is right—inviting them to take responsibility for the well-being of their community and the world. This reflective moral engagement is foundational to students becoming critical, justice-oriented thinkers. Most beautifully, both Quakerism and the Five Pursuits place profound value on Joy—not as superficial happiness, but as a spiritual, intellectual, and communal flourishing. In Quaker education, joy emerges from belonging, purpose, simplicity, and shared humanity. In Muhammad’s framework, joy is a form of resistance and a necessary condition for deep learning. Together, these traditions affirm that classrooms should be places where children feel loved, where their identities are honored, where their minds are challenged, and where they experience the joy of being in community. Through this lens, teaching becomes an act of care, liberation, and collective possibility.
