Contemplative Education Commons^™

Labyrinthine Routes To Meditation: Contemplative Pedagogy And Instructor Self-Care, Natalie Mera Ford

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

In the pandemic- and post-pandemic era, new as well as exacerbated work-life stressors have led academia to recognize the vital role wellness plays in teaching and learning. While most institutional and pedagogical response has understandably focused on students’ holistic health, this essay promotes increased instructor self-care as a necessary complement to supporting learners in higher education. By practicing meditative exercises drawn from contemplative pedagogy, faculty and instructional staff can create synergy between mindfulness strategies that we might invite students to try and our own attention to the whole self outside class. As the essay’s case study shows, labyrinth walking in …

Evolving Design Critique For A Changing Industry, Sejin Hwang, Amy Ai, Leo Bang, Yuchen Chen, Kathryn Chen, Tiffany Chang, Stephen Jiang, Chloe Jo, Eileen Lee, Nicole Lu, Ray Liu, Kevin Wei, Elaine Zhang, Ellano Zhou

Student Work

This class serves as an exploratory practice in response to existing studies evaluating critique environments in the design industry. Previous studies identified three key limitations in the critique process: (1) a lack of experience for novice designers working with non-designers when reviewing their work, (2) an ineffective final review structure, and (3) a need for a more constructive and engaging feedback-sharing environment.1 To address these challenges, the course was designed to “critique” critique activities and develop strategic solutions to transform the way design work is reviewed, analyzed, and critiqued. The course was part of a pilot fall semester program called …

Mindfulness 101: Integrating Mindfulness Into The First-Year College Curriculum, Shelley Linso

Mindfulness Studies Theses

The college experience offers young people unique opportunities for personal growth and academic development. However, it is widely recognized that college and university students suffer from unprecedented rates of anxiety and depression. Mindfulness, often defined as paying attention on purpose, moment-to-moment, without judgment, has the potential to not only reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression but also to promote flourishing. By integrating mindfulness into the first-year college curriculum, educators facilitate students’ abilities to a) better understand their emotional responses so that they might navigate stress, relationships, and challenges with greater ease, b) better recognize their strengths and weaknesses, and make …

Imagining Better: Requiring Trust And Imagination In Formal Engineering Education, Sneha Rathi, Jacqueline Handley

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

Teachers and students bear the brunt of enacting K–12 engineering while having little input into engineering practices or values. In this reflective essay, a high school engineering teacher and an engineering education researcher reflect on a class bridging engineering and social justice. We describe the development of politicized trust with each other and students while partnering around shared commitments at a predominately Black school (e.g., Vakil et al., 2016). We also explore challenges in decentering conceptions of engineering derived from depoliticized, exclusionary practice. We demonstrate an urgent need to center educators and students from marginalized identities in formal engineering education.

Autoethnographic Action Research As A Contemplative Practice: Awareness And Transformation Of Inner And Outer Selves, Jiju Varghese, Bal Chandra Luitel, Niroj Dahal

The Qualitative Report

Contemplation as a spiritual practice has taken various forms across different religious traditions and regions worldwide. Over the years, various contemplative practices have evolved and become popular even outside religious traditions to promote the well-being of all for inner and outer selves’ transformation. In education, many scholars worldwide have expounded on the benefits of contemplative practices in the classroom for students and teachers. Contemplative practices have penetrated research practices in the form of contemplative inquiry considering performative, philosophical, and artistic transformations, where researchers enter into a deep, thoughtful, and reflective introspective journey to see the connection between what is seen …

The Laughing Buddha: The Education Of Compassionate Leaders Through Improvisational Play, Belinda Chiu

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

With an urgency to build a generative future, educational systems do not have a choice but to pay attention to how and what we train our future leaders. Yet there is still a gap as leadership studies are often relegated as a “soft” skill, rather than integrated as technical knowledge critical to the holistic effectiveness of a tertiary education. As a result, there is often a disconnect between students immersed in the idealistic bubble of the academy and graduates navigating life outside. Inquiry- and reflective-based methods of contemplative practices may be critical for leaders to avoid short-term, short-sighted decisions that …

Empowering Students Through Questioning: Enhancing Literacy And Metacognition With The Kylene Beers’ 3 Big Questions Strategy, Soumi Chakraborti

2024-2025 Bill Martin Jr. Yearbook

This summary paper shares key ideas from one of the sessions at the 17th annual Bill Martin Jr.Symposium. The presenter focused on using questioning to promote critical thinking among students while engaging with nonfiction text and finding evidence to support the primary claim. The session focused on Kylene Beers’, a renowned author and educator, “The 3 Big Questions’ strategy” to encourage inquiry and reflection, facilitate knowledge construction, and foster transferable skills across disciplines. Literacy educators are always looking for ways to empower their students to be critical readers of text as they think deeply about what they are reading. Students …

Wildful (2024) By Kengo Kurimoto, Maughn Gregory

Middle Grades Books

Kengo Kurimoto’s graphic novel Wildful explores the transformative power of nature and deep attention. Poppy is struggling with her mother’s depression after her grandmother’s passing. Initially absorbed in digital distractions, Poppy is drawn into the wilderness when her dog, Pepper, chases a fox. She meets Rob, a boy who teaches her to observe nature with curiosity and respect—tracking animals, noticing patterns, and sitting in silence. Poppy learns that being in nature can assuage generational grief through a renewed sense of wonder and connection.

Artificial Intelligence In Pharmacy Education: Balancing Technological Advances And Ethical Concerns Among Aspiring Pharmacists, Ubada Aqeel, Shibu John

Health Professions Education

Background Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming healthcare, including pharmacy practice, by enhancing access to information, reducing errors, and supporting decision-making. However, its integration into pharmacy education remains underexplored. This study investigated pharmacy students' perceptions of AI's impact on their profession and the need for curriculum reform. Materials and Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 245 Bachelor of Pharmacy (BPharm) students from Jamia Hamdard, India. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire covering knowledge, perceptions, and opinions on AI in pharmacy. Responses were analyzed using non-parametric tests, including the Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis H tests, to examine group differences. Exploratory …

Wondrous Uncertainty: Transforming Student Educational Experiences Using Restorative Practices, Zachary C. Schafer

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

One of the primary purposes of education is to help students make sense of their lived experiences. In the process of becoming, students navigate multiple relationships (school, peers, adults, and with self). These relationships often cause conditions of uncertainty which can be managed and transformed using restorative practices in tandem with the academic disciplines taught in school. Over the last decade this has been my inquiry puzzle, “As educators, how can we embrace uncertainty with students as a way of helping to empower them through their dignity, with the academic disciplines as a lens through which relational learning occurs in …

Welcome Back: A New Beginning For The Intersections Journal, Mary F. Rice

Intersections: Critical Issues in Education

In good faith, we are proud to publish this very short issue this month, containing this editorial explanation and with an invitation to submit articles, essays, artistic works, book reviews, and more. It would also be excellent for those who are interested in this project aimed at continuing to make space for critical social justice work to sign up to review and provide feedback and response to authors. The issue also has an excellent essay about language work and the revitalizing it through podcasting with Dr. David A. Wilson and a book review of This Will Not Be Generative by …

Mental Health And Police Response Criminal Justice Training Curriculum, Richard Watkins

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

This course is designed to introduce criminal justice students to responding to calls involving residents with mental illness. It will instruct students to recognize indicators of mental illness as required by the Minnesota Peace Officer Standards and Training Board learning objectives. Indicators of said mental illness will be instructed based on the DSM-5 manual to acclimate students in this area. Students will be exposed to current levels of response as well as services offered by current Minnesota Police Officers. Dealing with residents in mental health crisis and the use of force will also be addressed. Students will also learn about …

A Longitudinal Analysis Of Navigating Ethical Reflections Through The Evolution Of Information Profession Dreams, Rahmi Rahmi, Rusdan Kamil

Proceedings from the Document Academy

This study presents a longitudinal analysis of the ethical reflections and evolving professional aspirations of students in the Information Profession course at Universitas Indonesia. Through reflective writing exercises, 192 students explored their future career goals and addressed ethical challenges related to professional documentation, focusing on issues such as privacy, integrity, and responsibility. Using corpus analysis tools like AntConc, the research tracked changes in ethical concerns as students progressed in their studies, revealing an increasing awareness of ethical complexities, particularly in roles like archivist and data analyst. These findings offer valuable insights for developing profession-specific ethical guidelines for information professionals.

A Qualitative Study Of Iranian Efl Teachers’ Perceptions Of A Digital Diversified Education, Seyed Mohammad Reza Marvasti Zadeh, Azizollah Dabaghi Varnosfadrani Advarnosfadrani, Mohammad Amiryousefi

The Qualitative Report

Because Iran is a country of learners of diverse languages, socio-economic classes, genders, and ages, digital diversified education seems appropriate to address needs in English language education. However, there is a notable gap in research on teachers’ perceptions about this type of education. To fill this gap, this study aimed to investigate the perspectives of Iranian teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) regarding a diverse digital education. Data were collected via an open-ended survey with 30 EFL teachers, both male and female, who were selected through convenience sampling. Analysis revealed several key themes, including the utilization of diverse …

Re-Imagining Professional Learning For Teachers: A Reflection On The Transformative Experience Of An Organic Inquiry., Desiree J. Gilbert Dr

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

Challenged, frustrated and motivated by my observation and sense that learning experiences are often designed and facilitated with an emphasis on criticality over creativity, I engaged in PhD studies to explore the question, How can expanding my understanding of creativity and its connection to learning assist me to re-imagine professional learning for teachers so that their learning experiences are enhanced? In this article I discuss how my practice as a professional learning facilitator for teachers transformed through this study. In particular I describe my experiences and findings from my open exploration of creativity as a phenomenon and how the organic …

Exploring The Curriculum Potential Of The Welsh Word Cynefin By Examining Its New Materialist And Contemplative Pedagogical Resonances, Dylan Adams

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

Cynefin is a key word in the new curriculum for Wales. Yet it is a word that is difficult to define. It has no direct English translation and originates from Welsh hill farming where it was used by farmers to describe how sheep would form a mysterious attachment to different parts of common land. Subsequently, it has come to be associated with a person’s relationship to a place, where they feel at home. This article examines how the concept of cynefin potentially resonates with posthumanist and contemplative pedagogical perspectives. In doing so, it aims to answer the question, “how could …

Things Fall(Ing) Apart: Deconstructing Humanism For History Teaching In A Posthumanist Society, Lou Ellis Brassington

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

Abstract

This study is a reflective analysis of the discursive construction of the social studies and the teaching of history from medieval scholasticism, through Enlightenment humanism, and into our posthumanist landscape. As an exploration of the foundations of Western thought, with an emphasis on humanism as it has historically affected construction of the social studies, this investigation focuses on theorists, praxis, curriculum development, and teacher identity. My research examined the pedagogical and curriculum choices for the teaching of history along with the intersection of the humanities and humanism from the Enlightenment through the criticalities of the 20th century, and into …

Teaching The Grateful Dead, Happenings, & Spontaneous Pedagogy, Ryan Slesinger

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

To teach a course on the Grateful Dead I developed a praxis I call “spontaneous pedagogy” that pairs academic rigor with flexible curriculum details to enable creativity and engagement among students in a truly studentcentered classroom. The pairing of spontaneous pedagogy with the Grateful Dead course worked well because the subject emphasizes improvisation, which initially inspired and—during the course—paralleled my praxis. I had developed this praxis previously, implementing it each semester from 2007 to2010 for one Composition II unit on definitional arguments entitled, “The Nature of Reality.” Students were asked to define what they consider as real and apply that …

Becoming Trauma- Informed Parents And Educators, Stephanie M. Petersen

Masters Projects

Trauma exposure may have a negative impact on students within the K-12 setting. Whether through first and secondhand accounts, trauma may affect students in areas that can lead to academic, psychological, and social emotional developmental concerns. Lasting impacts of trauma can affect cognitive, affective, behavioral, psychological, relational and self-attribution domains, and can lead to psychiatric disorders such as anxiety, borderline personality disorder, depression, etc. (O’Neill et al., 2010, pg. 190). When the brain is affected by neuroanatomical and neurophysiological changes a child’s language is impaired, which affects their ability to comprehend ultimately leading to effects on a child’s ability to …

Storywood: Collaborating With Opaque Unknowable Others Through Oil Painting, Tanya J. Behrisch

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

This paper demonstrates the use of contemplation and arts-based research (ABR) to explore intersubjectivity between myself and other opaque beings. Through a walking meditation, I experience an affective encounter with a plywood board found lying on a beach. The board radiates agency and mysterious stories about its passage through the world. Drawing on philosopher Tim Lilburn’s concept of permeable attention and Bennett’s theory of vibrant matter, I discover the storied nature of the damaged board and resonances between its stories and my own. By practicing perceptual openness, I discern vitality shimmering beyond the visible surface of the board. During my …

"A Life Altering And Special Journey": The Lasting Impact Of Mindfulness On Semester-Long Study Abroad Participants, Ana Conboy, Kevin Clancy

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

Education abroad is held up as a high-impact practice with the potential to engage college and university students in a transformative learning experience (Kuh, 2008). The Institute for International Education (IIE) reports that 347,099 U.S. students received academic credit for study abroad during the 2018-2019 academic school year (IIE). Extensive research into student learning gains abroad have demonstrated that developing student metacognition, or one’s ability to be intentionally self-reflective, is central to transformative learning in the study abroad experience (Vande Berg et al., 2012; Zull, 2012). Consequently, international educators are continually searching for pedagogies (praxis) to facilitate metacognitive learning within …

Emotional Capital And Compassionate Educational Space: Reflection On One Undergraduate Course, Katerina Bodovski

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

In this essay, I reflect upon my experience of creating and teaching a new undergraduate course, Students, Parents, Schools. I look at the course content and process through the lens of emotional capital. While being one of the themes in the course, emotional capital is also developed for the students within the class itself. I identified four aspects of the course that can be linked to building emotional capital: bringing focus to oneself; encouraging students to capitalize on their own experiences; building meaningful connections; and creating a non-punitive environment. I discuss each of the aspects, illustrating them where appropriate …

"A Life Altering And Special Journey": The Lasting Impact Of Mindfulness On Semester-Long Study Abroad Participants, Ana Conboy, Kevin Clancy

Languages and Cultures Faculty Publications

Education abroad is held up as a high-impact practice with the potential to engage college and university students in a transformative learning experience (Kuh, 2008). The Institute for International Education (IIE) reports that 347,099 U.S. students received academic credit for study abroad during the 2018-2019 academic school year (IIE). Extensive research into student learning gains abroad have demonstrated that developing student metacognition, or one’s ability to be intentionally self-reflective, is central to transformative learning in the study abroad experience (Vande Berg et al., 2012; Zull, 2012). Consequently, international educators are continually searching for pedagogies (praxis) to facilitate metacognitive learning within …

The Impact Of A 4-Domain Wellness-Initiative Curriculum On Internal Medicine Resident Physicians, Esha Vallabhaneni, Luigi Cubeddu, Ryan Petit, Fernando Poli, Premal Patel, Cynthia Rivera

HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine

Background

There is a trend toward fostering well-being, or the state of being happy and healthy, within the medical community. Historically, resident physicians have faced high rates of distress during training. A structured well-being curriculum in residency programs may shift residents' mindsets from survival and resilience to one centered on purpose, engagement, and joy.

Methods

An original well-being curriculum was administered to residents in person at a single institution every 5 weeks for approximately 10 well-being workshops, totaling around 20 hours of curriculum exposure during every academic year. The well-being curriculum was divided into 4 domains: cognitive distortions and problematic …

Toward Pedagogies For The Future To Address The Climate Crisis, Edward J. Brantmeier

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

This exploratory article offers contemplative learning exercises that foster connection and intuition in order to promote adaptive intelligence and anticipatory knowing to address the uncertain future related to climate crisis. The author provides personal snapshots and reflections regarding the impact of the climate crisis and explores hopeful paths for everyday action. In specific, the article suggests that everyday revolutionary acts such as slowing down, practicing humility, and aligning economic choices with core values can make a difference. Drawing on a critical pedagogy of place, the author suggests that connection to the ecological places we inhabit matters much in our efforts …

Proceedings Of The Ursinus Colloquium On Liberal Education: Curriculum Matters, Paul Stern, Stephanie Mackler, Laura Desisto, Diane Skorina, Dini Metro-Roland, Dale Brown, Meghan Brodie, Tonya Krouse, Paul Stob, Gundolf Graml

Ursinus Colloquium on Liberal Education

Introduction • Opening remarks: Curriculum matters! • Curriculum matters: pedagogical considerations • Why should we read? To grapple with complexity • Why should we read? An experiential perspective • Why should we read? A view from prison education • What should the reading do for us? • Curriculum in a material world • The place of reading in a curriculum that matters • Concluding remarks • List of participants

Ursinus Colloquium On Liberal Education: Curriculum Matters, Paul Stern, Ursinus College

Ursinus Colloquium on Liberal Education

This program for Ursinus College's second Colloquium on Liberal Education provides an outline of the open questions, panel discussions and activities of the two-day event.

Can Leadership Classes Help Women In Construction Embrace Vulnerability Early In Their Careers?, Crystal Giselle Martinez

Construction Management

This study investigates how a vulnerability lesson, integrated into a construction management university course, impacts women’s comfort levels in showing vulnerability in their early careers. It also examines the perceptions of individuals on the subject of vulnerability prior to taking the class expressing societal norms in relation to vulnerability and leadership in relation to vulnerability. Pre- and post-surveys, utilizing the Likert scale and free responses, were used to gather data from students enrolled in a leadership-focused class at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Findings reveal that while vulnerability is seen as vital for leadership, gender challenges persist, shaped …

Programas De Ell Dentro Del Área De Fredericksburg, Va: Una Descripción Y Justificación Para Su Defensa, Natalie Buchanan

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

El propósito de esta investigación es analizar y discutir los desafíos comunes que los estudiantes aprendiendo Inglés como segundo idioma (para aquí y delante ELL) experimentan en Virginia. Con el fin de lograr este objetivo, realizaré entrevistas a varios maestros de ELL en las Escuelas Públicas de la Ciudad de Fredericksburg para discutir los problemas y desafíos que estos programas experimentan. Con mis hallazgos espero abogar por la comprensión de estos temas y sugerir ideas para ayudar a desarrollar programas de ELL más eficientes para la población actual de K-12 de ELL del 10% en las escuelas públicas de Virginia …

Book Review: Meditation In The College Classroom By Steve Haberlin, Jing Lin

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

Book Review: Meditation in the College Classroom by Steve Haberlin

Reviewed by Jing Lin