Role of Mindfulness Practices in the College Classroom

The following study examined the effect of mindful practices on college student attitudes and learning comprehension using two sections of an introductory biology course taught by the same instructor. One section used lecture complemented with active learning formats while the other section additionally included mindful practices. Comparisons were made between the students’ surveys and quiz/exam scores. Students in the mindful section also kept journals. Results showed no significant differences in quiz and exam scores between the two groups; however, students in the mindfulness section found value in the practices both in and outside the classroom. Students reported a gain in their attitude towards the value of mindfulness practices as well as the use of mindfulness practices and reported a decrease in anxiety levels. Students identified these practices as helping them with focused attention, peace, and relaxation. At the end of the semester, over 90% of students agreed that mindfulness has a valuable place in the college classroom.

Women, smartphones and the workplace: pragmatic realities and performative identities

This paper explores the ways that a sample of professional women use smartphones to manage their personal activities and work responsibilities. It reveals a number of specific, mindful practices used to convey and enable accessibility, professionalism and responsiveness to colleagues and clients, showing how smartphones are used to shape and maintain professional identities. At the same time, women also choose to set boundaries to ensure that the immediacy enabled by their smartphones does not encroach upon their personal relationships in undesirable or unpredictable ways, and to allow them to choose when to engage with work while outside the office. The paper reveals the nuances of smartphone use in this group of women, demonstrating various approaches to managing a potentially disruptive communications device to professional and personal advantage

Women, smartphones and the workplace: pragmatic realities and performative identities

This paper explores the ways that a sample of professional women use smartphones to manage their personal activities and work responsibilities. It reveals a number of specific, mindful practices used to convey and enable accessibility, professionalism and responsiveness to colleagues and clients, showing how smartphones are used to shape and maintain professional identities. At the same time, women also choose to set boundaries to ensure that the immediacy enabled by their smartphones does not encroach upon their personal relationships in undesirable or unpredictable ways, and to allow them to choose when to engage with work while outside the office. The paper reveals the nuances of smartphone use in this group of women, demonstrating various approaches to managing a potentially disruptive communications device to professional and personal advantage

A Qualitative Study of a Mindfulness-Based Intervention in Educational Contexts in Chile: An Approach Based on Adolescents’ Voices

The application of mindfulness-based interventions in school settings has increased considerably in recent years, showing that differences between the characteristics of programmes can impact on the receptivity and effectiveness of mindfulness training. However, few studies have explored the learning process from the perspective of the children and adolescents who participate in mindfulness practice. The goal of this paper is to analyse the subjective experience of a group of adolescents following the completion of a mindfulness-based intervention developed for schools in Chile. The intervention studied is the “.b curriculum”, which is part of the Mindfulness in School Project (MiSP) developed in the UK. Twenty adolescents participated in semi-structured interviews within their school, in which three key areas were explored: pedagogy, perceived effects, and mechanisms of action, each of them being analysed from the perspective of thematic analysis. The results support the view that pedagogy is a very relevant consideration in the implementation, development, and efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions within the school context. We propose that the inclusion of structure, contents, process/mindful practices, and teachers’ expertise provides the pedagogical-relational framework required for students to successfully develop mindfulness skills, which enables them to experience their cognitive, emotional, and somatic effects. These effects are linked to self-regulation strategies, based on paying attention to one’s somatic experience with kindness and curiosity, which works as an attentional anchor. It is hoped that these results will contribute to the spread of mindfulness research in adolescents in Latin America, thus facilitating cross-cultural and international comparisons.

Introduction

The chapter introduces the central theme of the book, the spirited and its sub-themes of journeys and transformations. The subject of animation studies and its expanding areas of inquiry provide a multi-dimensional platform in exploring the themes concerned. The volume of fourteen essays is divided into five sections: Mindful Practices, Creation and the Spirited Process, Objects, Spirits and Characters, Inspirations from the Spiritual-Cultural Realm, Comics and Children’s Literature: Their Transformative Roles, Buddhist Worldviews, Interactions and Symbolism. The introduction posits that the universal theme of the spirited necessitates and warrants multi-faceted perspectives and analyses from scholars, artists, educators, and practitioners contributing from different geographical-cultural backgrounds. The related subjects in discussion include paintings, comics, children literature, folklore, religion, philosophy, and psychology.. It also stresses the idea of the spirited as tied to the broader aspects of mental health, spirituality and creativity. In short, it lays out the humanistic views of the book project.