Related Research and Articles
Related Research and Articles
Bridging the Distance: Relational Mindfulness Practices for Connection and Compassion in Online Education
Given rising levels of social isolation, disconnection, and concerns about mental health, the learning needs of many students today must also address their minds and hearts. Online learning environments particularly need to use technology to skillfully bridge gaps in connection. Mindfulness practices that involve focusing awareness on oneself in connection with others, known as relational mindfulness, can be a conduit for students to better understand themselves and each other in creative and productive ways that have the potential to powerfully enhance any learning spaces, especially online learning. Here, we introduce relational mindfulness as a set of wellbeing practices for educators to bring into their classrooms in a variety of ways to promote embodied learning, connection, and compassion for oneself and others in virtual and in person settings. To ground these practices, we draw on the first author’s autoethnographic, firsthand experience as a mindfulness student and teacher trainee in the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC), and later, as a mindfulness teacher. We also use data from interviews conducted with experts who teach relational mindfulness online at UCLA’s MARC. Synthesizing this data, we conceptualize and explore the dynamics, applications, and mechanisms connected to relational mindfulness to promote wellbeing in educational settings, for students individually and within online learning communities, collectively. We provide practical takeaways for educators to effectively build these practices into their online classrooms and technological instructions to do so, at a variety of skill levels and developmental stages. Thus, sharing a vision for educational spaces, whether virtual or in person, to become spaces of compassion and connection. Teaching students to not just feel and think for themselves but for and with others too. Ultimately, educating generations of learners and leaders who are prepared for life and ready to rise to the challenges of our time.
Gruber, N. & Henriksen, D. (2024). Bridging the Distance: Relational Mindfulness Practices for Connection and Compassion in Online Education. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 32(1), 59-97. Waynesville, NC USA: Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education. Retrieved March 27, 2024 from https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/223931/.
Examining the transprofessional competencies of mindfulness teachers across clinical, organizational, and educational settings
What are the key competency domains for mindfulness teachers and their associated teaching activities and performance indicators?
This paper explores mindfulness-based teaching and learning (MBTL) as an emerging field of transprofessional practice spanning educational, organizational, and clinical professions. Recognising the need for a more robust set of transprofessional MBTL teacher competencies to serve this emerging specialization, the authors developed and validated the Mindfulness-Based Teaching and Learning – Teacher Competency Framework (MBTL-TCF). Building on the pre-existing Mindfulness-Based Interventions-Teaching Assessment Criteria (MBI-TAC), the researchers developed a teaching framework for mindfulness specialists to reflect teacher agency, autonomy, and self-determination consistent with the purposes, traditions, and effects of what MBTL teaches: that is, mindfulness. The paper presents the sequence of construct, face, and content validation procedures, including the alignment of the MBTL-TLC with Dreyfus and other teacher competency frameworks from a range of sectors and countries. Finally, using an adapted Delphi process, a six-member international expert panel plus one diversity reviewer were invited to review and refine the emerging framework. The resulting MBTL-TCF presents 12 competency domains with associated activities and performance indicators.
MacPherson, S. A., Grabovac, A. D., Collins, E. J., Heah, T., Rockman, P., & Winston, D. (2022). Transprofessional competencies across clinical, organizational, and educational professions: the case of mindfulness-based teaching and learning (MBTL). Professional Development in Education, 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1080/19415257.2022.2143863
Exploring the impact of mindful awareness practices (MAPs) on executive functions in elementary school children
For children, aged 7-9 years old, how does participating in Mindful Awareness Practices (MAPs) impact executive functioning, compared to a control group?
A school-based program of mindful awareness practices (MAPs) was evaluated in a randomized control study of 64 second- and third-grade children ages 7–9 years. The program was delivered for 30 minutes, twice per week, for 8 weeks. Teachers and parents completed questionnaires assessing children's executive function immediately before and following the 8-week period. Multivariate analysis of covariance on teacher and parent reports of executive function (EF) indicated an interaction effect between baseline EF score and group status on posttest EF. That is, children in the MAPs group who were less well regulated showed greater improvement in EF compared with controls. Specifically, those children starting out with poor EF who went through the MAPs training showed gains in behavioral regulation, metacognition, and overall global executive control. These results indicate a stronger effect of MAPs on children with executive function difficulties. The finding that both teachers and parents reported changes suggests that improvements in children's behavioral regulation generalized across settings. Future work is warranted using neurocognitive tasks of executive functions, behavioral observation, and multiple classroom samples to replicate and extend these preliminary findings.
Flook, L., Smalley, S. L., Kitil, M. J., Galla, B. M., Kaiser-Greenland, S., Locke, J., Ishijima, E., & Kasari, C.. (2010). Effects of Mindful Awareness Practices on Executive Functions in Elementary School Children. Journal of Applied School Psychology, 26(1), 70–95. https://doi.org/10.1080/15377900903379125
A feasibility study on mindfulness meditation training in adults and adolescents with ADHD
For adolescents and adults with ADHD, is mindfulness an appropriate intervention to address symptoms of ADHD and associated impairments?
This study tested the feasibility of an 8-week mindfulness training program for adults and adolescents with ADHD. Twenty-four adults and eight adolescents with ADHD enrolled in a feasibility study of an 8-week mindfulness training program. The majority of participants completed the training and reported high satisfaction with the training. Pre-post improvements in self-reported ADHD symptoms and test performance on tasks measuring attention and cognitive inhibition were noted. Improvements in anxiety and depressive symptoms were also observed. Mindfulness training is a feasible intervention in a subset of ADHD adults and adolescents and may improve behavioral and neurocognitive impairments. A controlled clinical study is warranted.
Zylowska, L., Ackerman, D. L., Yang, M. H., Futrell, J. L., Horton, N. L., Hale, T. S., Pataki, C., & Smalley, S. L. (2008). Mindfulness meditation training in adults and adolescents with ADHD: a feasibility study. Journal of attention disorders, 11(6), 737–746. https://doi.org/10.1177/1087054707308502