Hey Blog!
Today I am beginning my free inquiry project for my EDCI 336 class. For this project we were tasked with investigating and learning about something we are either passionate or curious about. After bouncing around a few ideas, I decided to focus my project on learning about mindfulness techniques. Below is my project planning so far 🙂
What is Mindfulness?
The Cambridge Dictionary defines mindfulness as “the practice of being aware of your body, mind, and feelings in the present moment, thought to create a feeling of calm.” Essentially, mindfulness is the practice of living in the here and now! Living in the present moment with acceptance of your thoughts and feelings while refraining from judgement. It is simply, noticing your internal state but without letting it become all consuming.
Why Mindfulness?
I chose mindfulness as my passion project because it is not something I currently excel in, but it is something that I believe would have a very positive affect in all aspects of my life. The start of this new teacher education journey is very exciting, but it also raises a familiar feeling in me that I have been aware of throughout most of my schooling – anxiety. This feeling is something I have nearly always faced throughout my academics and at times it gets the better of me. I want to provide myself the tools to be able to combat these feelings and take more control over my own thoughts and prevent any negative impacts it could have on my learning!
Mindfulness in Schools:
Another key motivating factor to investigate mindfulness strategies is the promise it holds for helping students and teachers. Below I have linked a TEDx Talk video highlighting why the practice of mindfulness should be fundamental in school settings.
The video notes the alarmingly high rates of mental health concerns in students, missed days of schools among children due to stressors, and the increased number of children on pharmaceuticals due to mental health issues. In Canada, mental health concerns among youth have been increasing. In 2024 Stats Canada reported that previous youth mental health statuses declined from “good, very good, or excellent” to “fair or poor” for 21% of the population between 2019-2023. Another briefly mentioned topic in the TEDx Talk was the decline in teacher well-being. In Canada we are currently facing a major teacher shortage and teacher burnout is a widely discussed topic in many of my courses. Psychology Today attributes teacher burnout to many factors including lack of support resources, student behavior, heavy workload, low compensation, and stress.
How Mindfulness Can Help Students and Teachers:
The EdCan Network reported that implementation of student mindfulness in schools promotes:
- “Improved attention, executive functioning (e.g. planning, problem-solving, self-regulation, etc.), kindness, compassion, empathy, and perspective-taking”
- “Increased academic achievement and Social Emotional Learning (SEL)”
- “Decreased levels of stress, anxiety, and depression”
For teachers EdCan Network states that mindfulness practices promote:
- “Increased levels of caring, enhanced relationships with students, and strengthened resilience”
- “Decreased levels of stress, anxiety, depression, and teacher burnout”
My Project Plan:
My intention for this project is to implement a new mindful habit weekly into my daily routine to see the progress and mindset shift I can make throughout the course of this semester. Not only will this help level up my personal life and mental well-being, but it will also provide me with a toolbox of mindfulness practices and activities that I can implement into my future classrooms to better serve my students as an exceptional teacher.
Let me know if you have any recommendations for mindfulness strategies or activities I should look into for my project ♡
See ya next time Blog!