RESEARCH
One in twenty students in the United States is diagnosed with a learning disability. This can cause anxiety, and a lack of confidence as well as create social barriers(Malobeuf-Hurtubise, Joussemet, Taylor, &Lacourse, 2018). Over 2 million students were expelled or suspended from a public school in the 2013-2014 school year (National Center for Education Statistics[NCES],2019). Many students in elementary education are struggling with stress, anxiety, self-esteem issues and depression (Eggleston, 2015). So why not implement a universal curriculum to ensure a firm emotional and social foundation and help facilitate the academic standards for which we strive? Common Core standards were implemented to ensure all students are taught the same information in the same grade throughout the country (corestandards.org). Similarly, a universal mindfulness curriculum could be beneficial to the emotional and social development of students(Eklund, O’Malley, Meyer, 2017).
Review of the Literature
There are several themes that emerged when researching the implementation of mindfulness-based practices in elementary education. Qualitative data was the most prominent form of data collected(Zenner, et al. (2014). The view of students and teachers on mindfulness-based practices in education varied based on gender roles, socioeconomic status, and how the mindfulness practices were implemented. Practices were implemented in diverse time frames, ranging from 6-week terms to school year-long practices. Rating scales for data collection also differed from study to study. Overall, I found that students reported feeling more confident, and teachers reported significant improvement in students’ attention spans. Although many reports were positive, a consensus among many of the studies seems to be that more research is needed as well as consistency in the above factors(Droutman & Reid, 2017).
Mindfulness practice is a form of stress relief that works in a universal way to help people deal with life. There are many factors that could prevent mindfulness from working in the way it was designed. In elementary school settings, female students reported liking mindfulness practices more than male students. Students who are in lower socioeconomic areas have achieved greater success with mindfulness practices than students in more affluent districts. Finally, the implementation method of mindfulness practices plays a drastic role in the way mindfulness is perceived. Students with diagnosed learning disabilities struggle in academic areas such as math, reading, and writing. They also struggle in social-emotional learning such as self-regulation and engagement. Students with diagnosed learning disabilities reported that mindfulness interventions made them more aware of their differences and caused more of a barrier among their peers. This could lead to students' ability to self assess and regulate if addressed in a positive way. Thus determining that although the students became more aware, they also developed skills such as self-evaluation (Malobeuf-Hurtubise, et al. 2018).
People may also have negative feelings about mindfulness practices in general, which could prevent them from utilizing mindfulness in its designed format. In my research, I found that schools in lower socioeconomic areas found mindfulness practices more useful for students with behavior and self-regulation issues. This could be because these schools are used in research for the companies that create the mindfulness training. They are provided with free curriculums to implement and data is collected based on their experiences. More formal research is needed, but anecdotal reports suggest that mindfulness practices are beneficial to students with learning disabilities (Haydicky, Wiener, Badali, & Milligan, 2012).
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It is my recommendation, as an expert on mindfulness and yoga strategies in the classroom, that schools take into consideration that mindfulness-based training could in fact aid in students’ academic growth, mental health, and community-building skills. There are many different curriculum-based teachings that could benefit students as well as teachers. Classroom dynamics, implementation methods, and bias do need to be considerations when implementing these strategies. It is the teacher's and district's responsibility to determine the best methods for their particular community of learners. Mindfulness could be utilized in short 5 min a day segments or could be incorporated into the academic curriculum. Consistency is key in all aspects of education mindfulness included(Droutman, et al. 2017).
Mindfulness interventions and gender roles
Mindfulness interventions and socioeconomic status
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Mindfulness interventions and implementation methods
Mindfulness interventions for students with learning disabilities