Research Summary: Do mindfulness techniques have a place in school?
Mindfulness techniques and programmes are becoming more and more popular, being used in a wide range of fields including education at all levels. There is growing evidence that they help people to be focused on the present moment, stabilise their emotions and aid general well-being. Yet the mindfulness phenomenon is not without its problems. ‘Mindfulness’ practice tends to operate outside its original context of Buddhist philosophy and meditation. Cruder versions of ‘mindfulness’ that are designed to increase people’s ‘effectiveness’ – popularly known as ‘McMindfulness’ – are contrary to the original spiritual nature of mindfulness practices. For the author, mindfulness needs to be reconnected to its spiritual roots if its benefits are to be fully realised. However, in relation to RE, this could be seen as a problem in itself. What are the purposes of using mindfulness techniques in RE? Pupils cannot be asked to practise Buddhism, except in a Buddhist school. General notions of increasing their attention are not, specifically, in RE’s domain. The discussion should prompt RE teachers to consider their purposes carefully and critically.
Researcher
Terry Hyland
Research Institution
Free University of Ireland, Dublin
What is this about?
- Why are mindfulness techniques becoming more and more popular, in a range of settings (medicine, education, industry, etc.)?
- What are the connections between original Buddhist mindfulness practices and the secular versions of ‘mindfulness’ offered today? What is ‘McMindfulness’?
- How can mindfulness be reconnected to its original spiritual roots, for its benefits – especially in education – to be more fully realised?
What was done?
This is a critical, scholarly essay, reviewing different aspects of the popularity of ‘mindfulness’ in education systems, pointing out problems and setting out conclusions and questions for educational professionals to consider.
Main findings and outputs
- Mindfulness practices – e.g. sitting still, silently concentrating on the inward and outward breaths – are becoming more and more popular in a range of settings (medical, educational, industrial). This is because there is growing evidence that they can decrease stress, improve people’s general sense of well-being, and so on.
- In education, mindfulness practices have been found to improve focus and awareness, increase responsiveness to student needs, enhance classroom climate – and support readiness to learn, strengthen attention and concentration, reduce anxiety and enhance social and emotional learning.
- Modern, secular mindfulness programmes tend to emphasise the experience of being in the present moment. However, in the original context of Buddhist meditation and philosophy, this was linked to emphases on memory and morality that are now overlooked. Taking mindfulness out of its original context has tended to lead to a simplified, partial version of it.
- ‘McMindfulness’ is one consequence of this tendency. In industry, workers’ attention span is improved so as to increase productivity; in the US army, soldiers on ‘mindfulness’-based fitness training programmes learn to become more alert and effective .
- For the author, if mindfulness recovered its original spiritual roots, it would have the potential to do a great deal of genuine good in education. It might help learners to gain a sense of their own minds, a capacity for insight and reflection that could enhance any activity. It could be seen as a dimension of learning.
Relevance to RE
The discussion of ‘mindfulness’ provided in the article is balanced, critical and wide-ranging. It invites RE teachers to be critical about whether or not mindfulness techniques have a place in their lessons. The issue is problematic. Several questions in particular arise:
- In many ways it is hard to separate mindfulness practices from their Buddhist origins. RE teachers need to be very clear about what their purposes are if using mindfulness techniques. The possibilities for misunderstanding are strong; charges of indoctrination might follow.
- Educationally speaking, teachers need to be very clear about their purposes are. Some teachers champion mindfulness techniques as aiding pupil concentration, lowering stress, leading to better educational outcomes, etc. It needs to be borne in mind that these were not the original purposes of Buddhist mindfulness techniques and are also not exclusively matters for RE. Thus, RE teachers need to exercise care, so as not to misrepresent Buddhism to children, or to accept responsibility for a ‘mindfulness agenda’ in school on the vague grounds that it has religious or spiritual associations.
- At worst, ‘McMindfulness’ in school – attempting to alter pupils’ psychological states in order to boost the school’s ‘results’ – needs to be resisted as unethical.
Generalisability and potential limitations
The research offers a balanced, considered view of the ‘mindfulness’ phenomenon. The points presented are worthy of careful consideration by all teachers, because they represent – and prompt – critical professional reflection over whether or not mindfulness techniques should form part of pedagogy or general educational provision.
Find out more
The Limits of Mindfulness: Emerging Issues for Education, British Journal of Educational Studies 64.1 pages 97-117 (published online 22 June 2015), 10.1080/00071005.2015.1051946