A Recent Study Shows Teachers "Finding Peace in a Frantic World" Through Mindfulness Courses

In today’s fast-paced world, it’s common to have feelings of stress, uncertainty, and burn out – especially for teachers navigating in-person and online learning. Thankfully, there are research studies being conducted on the benefits of implementing mindfulness in your life, as well as in the classroom. A new research study involving more than 200 teachers from across the UK investigated how their experiences and levels of stress, mental health and burnout were impacted by participating in either self-taught or instructor-led mindfulness exercises. The study’s findings suggest that the more intensive trainer-led mindfulness programs produced better results for teachers compared to those that were self-taught; however, both methods produced advantageous results in terms of reducing stress, anxiety, depression, and burnout.

The Benefits of Instructor-Led Courses

With most practices, having an instructor, trainer, or group to work with can be highly motivating and beneficial to your journey. Taking a mindfulness course or workshop can give you valuable hands-on experience when it comes to practicing mindfulness – which is an element that self-taught mindfulness may lack (think doing at-home workouts vs. having a knowledgeable personal trainer). Importantly, however, is that mindfulness is a lifestyle and a journey. No matter how you practice it, it will be beneficial. If doing it independently is what works for you today, that is just fine. If you are ready to join a class, we are here for you, too. The most important factor in bringing mindfulness to others is your own personal practice. Consistency leads to embodiment of mindfulness which is different from modeling behavior. When you set time aside each day for mindfulness, you will be able to share an understanding of mindfulness with others in your life from not only your head, but also your heart and body. If you’d like to explore more mindfulness resources, we invite you to join one of our community workshops or ongoing programs to further your education in mindful living.