Leland (2015) states the 2014 Oxford definition of “mindfulness is, “a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations””. Mindfulness is a term used to describe a “particular kind of attention that is characterized by intentionality, present moment focus, and non-evaluative observation of experience” (Broderick & Jennings, 2012, pp 111-126). “Regularly practicing mindfulness may allow elements of conscious and less conscious experience to be perceived from a decentered, decontextualized, and more accepting stance” (Zelazo, P. D., & Cunningham, W.,2007, pp 135-148). Mindfulness not only creates a safe environment for the students, but it also effects students with disabilities and overall strengthens the classroom and the learning occurring within.
Why Be Mindful for a Teacher?
A lot of teachers’ issue with mindfulness is, how do they mindful often and get through the entire curriculum? Many teachers see the usefulness in mindfulness but feel if they were to be mindful in their classroom every day, that there would be no chance of covering all necessary materials. Teachers often “struggle with the day-to-day challenges of classroom management, differentiation, fostering relationships with children's families, and completing a heavy workload of documentation imposed by policy makers.” Unfortunately, a lot of teachers also must choose between which practice is best and the practice assigned (Buchanan, T. T, 2017, pp 69-74). Research has makes it evident that teachers have many sources of stress. Kyriacou (2001) reports that “the main sources of teacher stress stem from teaching students who lack motivation; maintaining discipline in the classroom; confronting general time pressures and workload demands; being exposed to a large amount of change; being evaluated by others; having difficult or challenging relationships with colleagues, administration, or management; and being exposed to generally poor working conditions” (Montgomery & Rupp, 2005, pp 458-486). Mindfulness practices are proposed as a means of promoting teacher resilience, SEC (person-centered social and emotional abilities), and well- being and increase their ability to support students (Grant, 2017). Those who practice mindfulness bring attention, compassion, non- judgment, and acceptance (Grant, 2017). Teachers who practice mindfulness regularly are able to care better for their students and are able to manage their classroom more effectively and compassionately.
Why Be Mindful for a Student?
Mindfulness not only benefits the teachers but also the students. As cited in Grant (2017), teachers model compassion and awareness and therefore promote the social and emotional development of their students. Allowing a student to be mindful and take time to truly focus and excel in that topic will create a safe and comfortable environment for the student and may even lead a student to look forward to going to school. In Docksai (2013, pp 8-10), Greenfield states “what kids really need is not for us to tell them to focus or relax, but to give them the specific tools to be able to do those things on their own. We can enable our children to better regulate their attention and emotions. We can help our students learn to focus their attention on the task at hand, to be more sensitive to others’ needs, and to manage natural feelings of anxiousness or worry.” These teachers need to give these students the opportunity and the resources for them to be mindful and enable them to experience the endless benefits of mindfulness. “Mindfulness can help students learn new, healthier responses deeply enough that they rewire their automatic impulse systems; with practice, students learn to increase the time between impulse and action and learn healthier problem-solving skills and behaviors in reactions to emotional distress” (Leland, 2015, pp 19-24). Mindfulness has been found to be an effective means to address bullying in schools as well. “Accompsett Middle School in Smithtown, New York, initiated a mindfulness program for students and staff and found it had a considerable impact on bullying. After starting a character- building program that included teachings in mindful attention, the school found that bullying was reduced by improving students’ behavior and self-regulation, reducing peer-to-peer conflict, and nurturing positive social skills including compassion, patience, empathy, and generosity” (Leland, 2015, pp 19-24). Teaching a child to truly focus on one task at a younger age will benefit the individual in the long run. “Although research with adolescents is more limited, some studies have documented improvements in attention skills; social skills for students with learning disabilities; sleep quality; well-being in adolescent boys; and reductions in anxiety, depression, somatic, and externalizing symptoms in clinic-referred adolescents” (Broderick & Jennings, 2012, pp 111-126).
Effects on Classroom and Learning
“Mindfulness training has been shown to enhance memory and concentration while reducing “mind wandering” or daydreaming. It also may help boost students’ academic performance” (Docksai, 2013, pp 8-10). Mindfulness practices have been used for thousands of years but, these practices may be more relevant today given the technology heavy environments in which the students today are growing up with. “They have multiple competing demands on their attention at all times, much of it entertainment/ multimedia focused and coming from a plethora of communication devices. Learning to ground oneself and to concentrate on the present moment, as mindfulness training does, can be critically important skills for young people to develop so that they do not get overwhelmed” (Docksai, 2013, pp 8-10). Benefits from mindfulness also include a more positive mood and immune system functioning, reductions in depressive relapse, greater empathy, reductions in substance abuse, and reduced stress (Broderick & Jennings, 2012, pp 111-126). Some benefits seen is that mindfulness is helpful in the moment of learning and also in more future-focused skills. By maintaining a calmer view of the present, students are able to improve their study habits, planning, and organizational skills (Broderick & Jennings, 2012, pp 111-126). Mezzacappa states “Since children spend so much time in schools, schools play an important role,” he said. “Teachers and other school staff need to have strategies and tools to accomplish this goal [and] address stress and adversity.” A majority of a students’ life is spent in school therefore teachers must take into consideration how these children are feeling and look for a possible solution. Maybe look towards mindfulness. “Mindfulness helps students improve their self- awareness, identify their feelings, and control their reactions. Students who can process their feelings positively tend to behave better in class, take turns, play fair, and share” (Rodgers, 2014, pp 60-63).
Effects on Those with Disabilities
“The United States Centers for Disease Control reports that 14.7% of school-aged children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (2014) and 11% are diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder or ADHD (2013)” (Leland, 2015, pp 19-24). “Mindfulness is also a potential aid for the increasing numbers of young people who struggle with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders (ADHD). Frequent mind-wandering is a key symptom of this category of learning disorders, along with accompanying problems of impulsiveness and failure to read social cues. Phillips does not claim that mindfulness training will by itself be the solution for every young person with an attention-deficit condition, but he does suggest it as a way to help them cope with their more problematic symptoms” (Docksai, 2013, pp 8-10). “Other research has shown instruction in mindfulness benefits individuals who fall along the autism spectrum: incidents of challenging, disruptive, and overly physical behavior were reduced as individuals learned to better control their reactions to stressful situations” (Leland, 2015, , pp 19-24).
Ways to be Mindful
Many schools have begun implementing mindful practices and found that they help students cope with many challenges—not only ADD/ADHD, but also anxiety, depression, substance abuse, eating disorders, and low self-esteem. “In 2009, The University School of Nashville middle school’s director Jeff Greenfield visited two schools in California where all the students were regularly training in mindfulness practices. Interested in how beneficial the mindful activities were, the school began to dedicate the first five minutes of every school day to learning and practicing techniques of focused attention. Many of the school’s teachers keep up the practice, while others have incorporated supplemental methods that help students relax and focus during stressful situations, such as sports games and tests” (Docksai, 2013, pp 8-10). Mindfully teaching the students rather than teaching the student mindful skills is a key element for the integration of mindfulness into K-12 education (Meiklejohn et al., 2012, pp 291-307). Learning to BREATHE is a universal prevention program designed to be put into secondary education settings. “The program aims to increase emotion regulation, improve stress management, and promote executive functions in order to promote well-being and support learning. The program includes instruction in the practice of mindful awareness and provides opportunities for group and individual practice. The six major themes of the L2B curriculum are built around the BREATHE acronym. BREATHE expresses the importance of body awareness, understanding and working with thoughts, understanding and working with feelings, integrating awareness of thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations, reducing harmful self-judgments and increasing acceptance, cultivating positive emotions and integrating mindfulness into daily life and the overall goal of the program, to cultivate emotional balance and inner empowerment through the practice of mindfulness, an advantage referred to as gaining the “inner edge”” (Broderick & Jennings, 2012, pp 111-126). Mindfulness is found to be positively affect an individual both in and out of the classroom. More than 250 hospitals and universities around the world are starting to offer mindfulness-based treatments for emotional and behavioral problems. “Agencies such as the U.S. National Institutes of Health continue to fund studies documenting mindfulness’s potential health benefits, according to Mindful Schools, a foundation that runs mindfulness training programs in elementary, middle, and high schools throughout the United States” (Docksai, 2013, pp 8-10).
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