Table of Contents
What is Meditation?
Meditation is a type of mental exercise where the participant either attempts to focus on a single thing, focus on nothing, or simply remain in a calmer less reactive state for a period of time. There are a wide variety of meditative practices that often have their roots in ancient religious practices from respective locations and cultures.
The purpose of most modern meditation is to increase mental clarity and focus, feel more peaceful, and reduce anxiety by focusing on the present. Meditation is often used as a tool in larger mindfulness practices that also include breath work and yoga.
These practices work in the brain by lowering the activation of the brain’s frontal cortex, which is the center of decision making and reasoning. This part of the brain can often get overstimulated with worry or anger, especially in the busy modern world. By having participants focus on simpler physical stimuli like feelings and sounds, it quiets the mind and helps the participant consider the present moment over future worries or past regrets.
Meditation has been shown by neuroscience research to have a large number of benefits including reduced anxiety, improved hope for the future, and even reduced physical pain in sufferers. (Behan) (Sumter et al.) (Monk-Turner) While it may not have any direct educational benefits, these reductions in stressors and the boost in encouragement can unblock struggling students and help teachers be more effective in the classroom.
Is Meditation Religious?
No, meditation is not necessarily religious. While the roots of meditation trace back to its religious uses in practices like prayer and zen, modern meditation has no inherent religious connotation. Modern meditation is based in scientific research and is practiced by religious and non religious people for its practical health benefits.
Can Meditation be Beneficial for Young Children?
Children seem to not be able to sit and focus on tasks for very long, so would meditation really work well for children? While it may seem like fighting a losing battle, meditation is highly beneficial for children, especially today’s children who are hyperstimulated with the internet and television.
Meditation is exactly what their overstimulated brains need every once in a while so that they can learn to settle themselves down and focus when they need to. Mediation research on children has shown that meditation helps children control themselves. According to the study, meditation can “induce plastic changes in brain function and structure, supporting prosocial behavior and academic success in young people.” (J. Davidson et al.)
One of the main benefits of meditation is reduced stress. Because school can be very stressful, and stress limits the brain’s ability to learn new information, adding in meditation practices can help students destress and be better able to learn or remember what they have learned for a test. (Center on the Developing Child)
Does Meditation Have Any Risks?
While meditation may seem a completely risk free activity, there actually is one case where it can have adverse effects. According to a recent study, some people, especially those who have experienced trauma, can reexperience traumatic events and have increased anxiety after meditation. (Goldberg et al.)
People suffering from severe anxiety or PTSD often have strategies to distract their brains from the traumatic events they have experienced. Meditation quiets the mind, turning off these distractions and can lead to negative thought pattern spirals in some people.
While this is not a reason to not practice meditation, teachers should keep an eye on any students who have known traumas just to make sure they are doing ok, during and after the practice. Sometimes, meditation can help students break down barriers and deal with traumas in the long term, but this should be done with the help of a psychologist rather than in a room full of their peers.
Should Teachers Practice Meditation?
Teachers should absolutely pick up a meditation habit as it has multiple benefits not only for the teacher’s personal health, but the health of their classroom as well. Teacher burnout is at an all time high and meditation can help bring peace in the chaos of today’s school environment.
Recent research showed that a teacher’s stress levels were correlated with their student’s stress hormones. (Oberle and Schonert-Reichl) The more stressed the teacher reported they were, the higher their students tested on measures of cortisol, a major stress hormone.
So not only can teachers reduce their own stress by practicing meditation, but this effect will spread to their classrooms, helping model a zen attitude for their students as well. Additionally, having a solid practice of meditation will help teachers be able to better teach meditation in their classrooms should they choose to implement it.
How Can Teachers Implement Meditation in Class?
Meditation can be implemented in class in several different ways, depending on the comfort level the teacher and students have with meditation and the time that can be allowed.
It is important to not make meditation activities mandatory. Meditation can be a bit awkward and vulnerable, especially for highly sensitive teens. If they are feeling embarrassed or angry, they will not get any of the benefits anyway. Instead, just make it a class habit and slowly more and more kids will start feeling comfortable to join in as they see their classmates meditating.
1: Use meditation as a transition activity to “set the tone” for class.
Meditation does not necessarily have to be “taught” to be useful as even a few quiet minutes at the beginning of class reading, napping, or meditating can set the tone for a calm class period. While not all of these activities are true meditation, the goal of meditation is to help settle and calm the overactive mind which all of these activities can help with.
It can also be useful to have a quick meditation session before a big test which could include the teacher giving guiding prompts for a body scan meditation or breathing exercise. There is no other time where students could use a quick boost of focus and a reduction in anxiety more than right before a test.
2: Use meditation to teach science.
If schools have the time and desire to implement meditation, students will be better able to understand the techniques and learn healthy stress management strategies that they can take with them after graduation.
Meditation fits very well into a science class as teachers can not only give the practical tool of meditation to the students, but teachers can teach students about the areas of the brain that are involved and how meditation changes the levels of various neurotransmitters.
3: Use meditation to improve students’ physical intelligence.
Additionally, PE or health class is another great opportunity to practice meditation. Coaches or PE teachers can not only discuss the health benefits and science of meditation, but also add in a focus on sports. Meditation helps students learn to focus and visualize, which is a very important skill in sports.
When their coach tells them to “keep their eye on the ball” or “imagine yourself hitting it out of the park”, students will understand better what is meant and be better able to use their improved executive function skills to follow through. It can also be connected to weight training as meditation can help create a mind-muscle connection to more efficiently train.
Conclusion
Regardless of whether the teacher uses it as a quick transition activity or whether it is mindfully implemented in curriculum, meditation has clear benefits that are objectively helpful for students as well as teachers. Meditation can help students destress from their stressful tests and grades as well as give them a tool to self regulate in the future.
Meditation can be presented in a variety of ways, but in the end, it is simply a way to help students be better aware and focused on what they are doing. Whether that be a sports game or a math test, being able to center oneself for a tough task is a useful and practical skill for any student regardless of their post graduation plans.
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References
“Toxic Stress”. Center On The Developing Child At Harvard University, 2022, https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/key-concepts/toxic-stress/.
Behan, C. “The Benefits Of Meditation And Mindfulness Practices During Times Of Crisis Such As COVID-19”. Irish Journal Of Psychological Medicine, vol 37, no. 4, 2020, pp. 256-258. Cambridge University Press (CUP), https://doi.org/10.1017/ipm.2020.38.
Goldberg, Simon B. et al. “Prevalence Of Meditation-Related Adverse Effects In A Population-Based Sample In The United States”. Psychotherapy Research, vol 32, no. 3, 2021, pp. 291-305. Informa UK Limited, https://doi.org/10.1080/10503307.2021.1933646.
J. Davidson, Richard et al. “Contemplative Practices And Mental Training: Prospects For American Education”. Child Development Perspectives, vol 6, no. 2, 2012, pp. 146-153. Wiley, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1750-8606.2012.00240.x.
Monk-Turner, Elizabeth. “The Benefits Of Meditation: Experimental Findings”. The Social Science Journal, vol 40, no. 3, 2003, pp. 465-470. Informa UK Limited, https://doi.org/10.1016/s0362-3319(03)00043-0.
Oberle, Eva, and Kimberly A. Schonert-Reichl. “Stress Contagion In The Classroom? The Link Between Classroom Teacher Burnout And Morning Cortisol In Elementary School Students”. Social Science &Amp; Medicine, vol 159, 2016, pp. 30-37. Elsevier BV, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.04.031.Sumter, Melvina T. et al. “The Benefits Of Meditation Practice In The Correctional Setting”. Journal Of Correctional Health Care, vol 15, no. 1, 2009, pp. 47-57. Mary Ann Liebert Inc, https://doi.org/10.1177/1078345808326621.
