UST Mindfulness Meditation in Teaching Resources
In an article in our Synergia December 2013 issue Dr. Bill Brendel, associate professor in Organization Learning and Development, wrote extensively about the mindfulness movement and some ways in which faculty can facilitate mindful practice with students:
Some professors have even started to facilitate mindfulness practice with students at the beginning of each class because they concur with the pedagogical principle, that “…reciprocity and attunement with students supports their development and contributes to social and emotional learning” (Schoeberlein & Sheth, 2009, p .37). For each of these professors, incorporating mindfulness into routines also provides a practical way of rediscovering the joy of serving students for the first time, every time.
Last summer, Dr. Vanessa Cornett-Murtada and I facilitated a workshop for professors on strategically integrating mindfulness into teaching. Frankly, we were shocked by the results. Thirty professors in attendance developed what seemed like an infinite list of ways to be mindful in serving students before, during, and after class. Here is a summary of just some of the ideas that were generated and are now being practiced by this growing community:
Grades and Assessments
Awareness of Students in Classroom
Teaching Mindfulness in and out of the classroom
Additional Mindfulness Meditation Teaching Resources
The Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education: http://www.acmhe.org
On recent neuroscience studies of brain activity: Raichle, M. E. (2010). The Brain's Dark Energy. Scientific American, 302(3), 44-49.
Toward the Integration of Meditation into Higher Education: A Review of the Research by S. L. Shapiro, K.W. Brown, and J.A. Astin from http://www.colorado.edu/ftep/events/eventdocs/documents/ShapiroResearchReport.pdf
Contemplative Pedagogy resources from Vanderbuilt University's Center for Teaching: http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/teaching-activities/contemplative-pedagogy/
Examples of ways to incorporate contemplative practice into the classroom: http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/teaching-activities/contemplative-pedagogy/#activities
Project for Mindfulness and Contemplative Practices (PMC)
Community, Healing, Reflection, Curiosity, Creativity, Balance, & Patience
To create a safe space for supporting and educating the UST community in meditative and contemplative practices by:
- Offering free, weekly mindfulness and movement meditation sessions open to students, faculty, and staff.
- Facilitating others in expanding their personal practice through a variety of resources, including: coaching, information sessions, and meditation media library.
- Coordinating meditation retreats.
- Serving as a resource for integrating contemplative practices into research and pedagogy.
- Serving as a community of practice, celebrating the growth and possibilities that have been actualized by UST members through mindfulness and contemplative practices.
- Maintaining close relationships with local initiatives that aim to awaken the mind, heart, and body to the present moment.
- Developing a rigorous, interdisciplinary academic curriculum related to contemplative studies.
MMT BOOKS IN THE FDC LIBRARY