Presenter: Tina Stern
Parallel Session 2, 11.55am-12.35pm
All students, irrespective of their course of study, will require at various stages high levels of self-awareness, emotional regulation and cognitive control. Students can experience intense pressure during demanding times, such as: when preparing for exams, presenting to audiences, writing to deadlines, performing on stage, or being assessed in clinical environments (Regehr et al., 2013). Students are consistently expected to demonstrate motivation and persistence to build knowledge and develop skills.
This presentation will aim to:
- share findings from an evaluation project exploring the benefits of using mindfulness skills in the learning environment
- promote discussion on the benefits of supporting students to develop mindfulness skills
- help lecturers recognise the role of mindfulness in developing life skills and essential nursing qualities
- support educators to consider ways in which they can introduce mindfulness to students
This presentation will summarise a project exploring how students may be supported to use mindfulness skills to enhance learning. A small study by Stern (2015) invited a group of 28 first year nursing students for two practice development workshops. The students were introduced to the nature of mindfulness, acquainted with the mindfulness skill of focussed breathing, and engaged in a five-minute breathing exercise prior to the role-play activities of the session. All students were invited to reflect on the qualities associated with mindfulness skills. Six students were later selected to further discuss their views and experiences of mindfulness in the clinical learning environment. Most students identified a number of benefits and reported their caring and compassionate values as strengthened and communication skills enhanced. The views expressed were about qualities beneficial to their personal and professional development.
Attention to one’s experience, simply noticing what you are doing now, sounds easy. However, in practice, it is often challenging with constant distractions and interruptions inherent to daily life. Yet, students who are able to focus and pay attention to their thoughts, emotions and routines deepen their experience. When students are mindful they are able to engage as reflective learners from a theoretical, personal, practical, and critical perspective: seeing situations from multiple viewpoints and thinking about what they are doing while they are doing it maximises learning (Seigel, 2007).
Introducing mindfulness to students is an idea worthy of exploration: incorporating mindfulness skills to the student journey may equip them with strategies to help with stress and anxiety, and enhance their learning.
References
- Kabat-Zinn, J. (1994) Mindfulness Meditation for Everyday Life. London: Piatkus.
- Mindfulness for Students http://mindfulnessforstudents.co.uk/resources/
- Regehr, C., Glancy, D. and Pitts, A. (2013) Interventions to reduce stress in university students: A review and meta-analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders. 148, 1-11.
- Siegel. D. (2007) The Mindful Brain: Reflection and Attunement in the Cultivation of Well-Being. New York: Norton.
- Stern, T. (2015) Mindful learning. New Vistas. 1: 1, 16-19.
If you have any comments, or questions about this session or any related resources you would like to share please post them below using the comment box.