SESSIONS FOR EDUCATORS
"We can have the best curricula available, train teachers in teachnque and theory, but our students will be unsafe and our programs hollow if we do not provde opportunities for teachers to develop their own souls, their hearts, their own social and emotional intelligence." -- Rachel Kessler
The past few years has seen a convergence of evidence supporting the effectiveness of programs that utilize mindfulness skill training in reducing stress and promoting mental health. Studies have shown that those parents, child and youth support professionals, and educators who received mindfulness training had reductions in stress and anxiety and had significant increases in self-compassion, mindfulness and personal growth. In addition, improvements in relational competence, empathic concern, forgiveness and care giving competence were found.
Mindfulness is a foundation for education; mindfulness training provides the optimal conditions for learning and teaching and also supports all pedagogical approaches.
Experiential and participatory
Mindfulness Professional Development Training for Educators is designed to improve health and well-being, providing essential self-care tools. Educators can achieve immediate benefits for themselves and also receive support in the implementation of mindfulness skills in their professional life. The programs are customized to fit the timetables of the participants involved.
Through lecture, demonstration, and experiential guided instruction in basic mindfulness practices, our workshops examine how mindfulness practice can be applied by those working with children, youth and their families: educators, social workers, youth workers, guidance counselors, and child support service professionals.
White Paper on Integrating Mindfulness Training in Education
A recently-published white paper points to the benefits of providing mindfulness training to educators and provides recommendations for further research and implementation. Entitled Integrating Mindfulness Training into K-12 Education: Fostering the Resilience of Teachers and Students the paperwas published online March 2012 by Springer Science+Business Media.
To explore this important white paper further:
- Download the complete white paper (19 pages);
- Read the executive summary; or
- Read an interview transcript with lead author John Meiklejohn, LICSW.
Further Information
For further information on current research, see: The Association for Mindfulness in Education http://www.mindfuleducation.org/research.html
VIDEO
Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn's
Mindfulness In Education
July 2013