Hockerill Mindfulness 2014-15 – Report

Hockerill Anglo-European College Innovation Programme
Mindfulness – a Novel Approach to Supporting Student
Mental Well-being
Sept 2014-July 2015
After a small group of interested staff members attended a series of Mindfulness training
sessions conducted by David Rycroft of Mind with Heart in the summer term of 2014, it was
decided that the introduction of Mindfulness to our students could be a most beneficial
addition to our pastoral provision across the school.
Consequently, from September 2014, a Mindfulness club was established which was offered
twice weekly to all students in the school; Mindfulness sessions were introduced twice
weekly in the evenings for boarders; and eight interested teachers agreed to take part in a
pilot project to introduce a 3-minute Mindfulness starter in a selected number of classes.
The students have responded very positively to these opportunities, and have shared their
experience through short interviews, which are available on the school system at:
X:\PASTORAL & EXTRA-CURRICULAR\Mindfulness\Research Project\video interviews
In addition, in May 2015 Hockerill hosted a ‘Mind with Heart’ 3-day training workshop for
educators all over Europe, in which eighteen participants including nine from Hockerill,
came together to learn how to implement the ‘Connected with Myself’ programme. It was
deemed to be a great success, and will be followed with a similar workshop next year on the
‘Connected with Others’ programme.
We hope to build on the initial success of the Mindfulness pilot programmes to broaden the
number of teachers and students who are using Mindfulness to promote a calm and
focussed attitude within the classroom and throughout the school. We will also be
incorporating Mindfulness into our new Year 7 Well-being curriculum; continuing it as a CAS
option in the Sixth Form; and training interested Year 12 students to be able to lead
Mindfulness amongst their peers and junior students.
In this way, we hope to be able to better support students in coping with the many
demands of life within Hockerill, and give them a tool which they can access throughout
their lives to help them remain calm, sustain their attention, and be able to focus.
Student Feedback from Sixth Form Students:
‘Mindfulness in essence was pure concentration. An activity both simple and incredibly hard at the
same time. I believe mindfulness helped me increase my focus and concentration without needing
an extra cup of coffee, a skill which I am sure will come in handy in the future. Most importantly
though, it was one of the most relaxing activities during a time of stress and work.’
‘Over the past few Mindfulness sessions I attended, I clearly noticed how I improve in focussing only
on my inner self whilst blocking out any noise from my surrounding. In the last week, I came to the
Meditation with a bad headache. Fortunately, when I started to concentrate on breathing and
"clearing" my mind from all the thoughts and feelings which had bottled up during an academically
stressful half term, my headache almost disappeared at least for this very half an hour. ‘
‘After the first five “Mindfullness” sessions, I already notice a little improvement in my meditating
skills. Now, I can focus better, I am able to use the time to fully reflect on myself and enjoy the
meditations more and more. As I am rather busy person, they give me a little, important time of
relaxation for my mind whilst I still concentrate on what comes to my thoughts and how I can
control these mental processes.’
‘In Mindfulness, I have discovered how much thirty minutes of calm can improve a situation and
relieve the mind of stress and preoccupation. Since the beginning of this activity I have noticed that I
have more self-control and I am more positive on the whole. I try to participate regularly although I
have had to miss it a few times due to other engagements, but I then spend at least a quarter of an
hour in a calm environment to make up for the session. When I come out of a session, I feel that my
thoughts are more orderly and I am able to perform a task more effectively. I will continue attending
the evening mindfulness sessions since they are of great benefit to me.’
‘We then had a reflection as to what we thought of our mindfulness session. I thought that my mind
seemed a lot clearer after the session and I also was surprised to find myself more alert rather than
tired and relaxed which I thought I would feel like.’
‘I find it very unfortunate that we have not had mindfulness this term, do to unavoidable
circumstances. I really enjoy this activity and look forward to continuing it. I have started trying to
meditate by myself again, and found that I have been far more successful this time due to the
techniques we have learnt. I have also learned different techniques from my own research. I find
that performing mindfulness shortly before I go to sleep allows me to have a far more refreshing and
restful sleep. I aim to start performing shorter sessions more frequently throughout my day, as I feel
it aids my concentration, alertness and general mood.’
‘CAS Mindfulness has helped me gain understanding of meditation and by extension allowed me to
focus more and improve my productivity. It was a relaxing experience and help my creativity as new
thoughts and ideas often formed after clearing my mind in a meditative state. Though it was hard to
focus at first, I quickly gained skill in the techniques required for zen meditation. We practiced
breathing, how to clear your mind, and eventually I learnt how to break away focus. It became very
theraputic.’
‘I found mindfulness a really relaxing and helpful task, I actually have been practicing it to help me
focus and relax around my school work when I feel over whelmed. I feel like I have really developed
an understanding of how my mind works and how i can further myself by relaxing and taking the
time to think things through.’
The Mindfulness Project
On the 23rd February Hockerill A-E College began the Mindfulness Project with eight
teachers volunteering to do a 3-minute mindfulness session at the beginning of each lesson
with their nominated classes (see table below). The teachers followed the script devised by
‘Mind with Heart’ (attached). We began evaluating the project with a questionnaire every
fortnight, but after a number of weeks, felt that the format was not best suited to our
school environment and our students. We then decided to use a summative questionnaire
to gather qualitative data about the students’ experiences during the period of the
Mindfulness project (attached), and an additional questionnaire to gauge the impact of the
mindfulness starter on the lesson from the teachers’ point of view.
Teacher
Year Level
Subject
No. in class
Alison McCulloch
Tony Hill
Lynne Baradeau
Anne Rajakumar
Alison McCulloch
Anne Rajakumar
Marie-Lorraine Cunin
Helen Johnstone
Chip Kaufman
Marie-Lorraine Cunin
Anne Rajakumar
Marie-Lorraine Cunin
Helen Johnston
Chiara Perrone
Year 7
Year 7
Year 8
Year 8
Year 8
Year 9
Year 9
Year 9
Year 10
Year 10
Year 10
Year 11
Year 12
Year 13
Wellbeing 7H
Maths MA4
English 81Y/
Japanese 8JA1
Well Being 8H
Japanese 9JA1
French 9LF2
English 92X/En
Maths 10Ma5
French 10LF1
Japanese 10Ja1
French 11 LF12
English121AS2/En
Maths SL
23
27
25
17
24
17
29
26
15
28
17
12
14
19
Mindfulness Scripts
Mindfulness of sensations in the body : a 3-minute guided exercise
This exercise is to cultivate three qualities of mind :
- relaxation (or abiding spaciously)
- stability (or sustained attention)
- awareness (or clarity)
In mindfulness, we are tuning the mind so that it is ready and functioning well.
I invite you to adopt the posture of mindfulness.
Feet parallel and flat on the floor.
Hands resting lightly on the knees.
Rolling the shoulders slightly back to create a sense of openness and strength in the
upperbody.
Keeping the spine straight and upright.
The body is at ease and majestic, like a mountain.
And keeping the eyes open, with a soft gaze down into the space in front of you.
So, sit comfortably with your back straight, body at ease – stable like a mountain - and eyes
open.
Breathe naturally, mouth very slightly open. Remember, we are not trying to change
anything. Just at ease and aware of what is happening in the present moment.
Now place your attention on any sensations in the body. You can start by focusing on one
area,
• the feet, noticing any sensations of contact with your shoes and the floor / OR
• the hands, rubbing them together like this. Keep going. And now resting them on the knees,
noticing any sensations.
Now open up awareness to any sensations arising throughout the space of the body.
If you are getting distracted or caught up in thoughts, release and relax as you breathe out. If
you are getting dull or bored, refresh your alertness, and refocus your interest in any
sensations. Let’s continue for a short while in silence.
Now release any method or focus...remaining spaciously in the present moment....And
coming back together as a group.
© 2014 Mind with Heart mindwithheart.org Mind with Heart is a registered charity. Company No: 7870089 Charity No: 1148811 Page 5/6
Mindfulness of breathing: a 3-minute guided exercise
This exercise is to cultivate three qualities of mind :
- relaxation (or abiding spaciously)
- stability (or sustained attention)
- awareness (or clarity)
In mindfulness, we are tuning the mind so that it is ready and functioning well.
I invite you to adopt the posture of mindfulness.
Feet parallel and flat on the floor. Hands resting lightly on the knees.
Rolling the shoulders slightly back to create a sense of openness and strength in the upper
body.
Keeping the spine straight and upright.
The body is at ease and majestic, like a mountain.
And keeping the eyes open, with a soft gaze down into the space in front of you.
So, sit comfortably with your back straight, body at ease – stable like a mountain - and eyes
open. Breathe naturally, mouth very slightly open. Remember, we are not trying to change
anything. Just at ease and aware of what is happening in the present moment.
Now place your attention on sensations in the belly, noticing the rise and fall with each inand out-breath. While staying relaxed, placing the hands on the belly can help focus
attention.
Notice any movements as you breathe in. And as you breathe out.
If you are getting caught up in thoughts, release and relax as you breathe out.
If you are getting dull or bored, refresh your alertness, and refocus on the movements of the
breath. Let’s continue for a short while in silence.
Now release any method or focus...remaining spaciously in the present moment....And
coming back together as a group.
© 2014 Mind with Heart mindwithheart.org Mind with Heart is a registered charity. Company No: 7870089 Charity No: 1148811 Page 5/6
Mindfulness Project Student Questionnaire
Please circle the appropriate option:
Male
Year 7
Female
Year 8
Year 9
Year 10
Year 11
Year 12
Year 13
Without thinking too much about the question, circle the smiley face which corresponds to
your initial reaction to the question; then answer with as much detail as you can in the box.
Q1. What did you know about mindfulness before you started doing it in class?
Q2. How do you feel while you are doing mindfulness?
Q3. Since you began doing mindfulness in class, have you noticed any changes in your
school life?
Q4. Since you began doing mindfulness in class, have you noticed any changes in your
relationships with friends and family?
Q5. Since you began doing mindfulness in class, have you noticed any changes in your
sleeping patterns?
Q6. Since you began doing mindfulness in class, have you noticed any other changes in your
life? Please explain
Q7. Since you began doing mindfulness in class, have you practised mindfulness in your own
time? If yes, please tell us when, where and how often.
Q8. Would you like to continue to do mindfulness at school? Please tell us why.
Q9. Did you feel that you had enough guidance when doing mindfulness? Please explain.
Q10. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Mindfulness Project Teacher Questionnaire
Please circle the appropriate option:
Name:____________________________
Mindfulness Classes:______________________________________________________
Q1. How did you find implementing the mindfulness sessions? Did you have enough
guidance?
Q2 How did you feel the students responded to the mindfulness starters?
Q3. Did the mindfulness starter change the way your class runs? Please explain.
Q4. How do you feel personally about mindfulness?
Q5. Do you intend to continue with the mindfulness? Please explain how and why.
Hockerill Anglo-European College & Mind With Heart
CONNECTED – WITH MYSELF
Mindfulness and Awareness
7 - 9 May 2015
On Thursday, May 7, nine Hockerill teachers and boarding staff joined nine participants from all over
Europe, to spend three days training to implement the Mind with Heart ‘Connected with Myself’
programme. The ‘Connected with Myself’ programme is a complete social and emotional
learning curriculum for secondary schools, through which students become familiar with tools for
cultivating mindfulness and compassion. CONNECTED has been successfully piloted by trainers and
educators with more than 500 young people aged 10 to 18 over three years. It is also enthusiastically
received by teen psychologists.
With participants from Germany, Holland, Switzerland and France working together with Hockerill
staff, the 3-day workshop was both inspiring; and a model of how educators from all over Europe
can benefit from sharing their experience, passion and ideas in a supportive and stimulating
environment.
This 3-day workshop complements the work that we have been doing this year at Hockerill in
cooperation with Mind with Heart, to trial the practice of Mindfulness both as a starter in lessons,
and an extra-curricular activity. It has been successfully piloted in 14 classes across the school, in
subjects as diverse as Maths and Modern Foreign Languages. As part of our boarding provision,
Hockerill has also begun introducing Mindfulness as a tool to help students cope with the particular
stresses associated with life as a boarder in a highly competitive academic environment.