WHAT EFFECT DOES MINDFULNESS HAVE ON MATH PROBLEM-SOLVING? CROSSROADS TO LEARNING: WHERE BEST PRACTICES MEET APRIL 19, 2016 DE JEAN MIDDLE SCHOOL PRESENTED BY: JULIET JAMSHEED Mindful of Math

Agenda Welcome What is Mindfulness? The Evolution of Mindfulness Mindfulness in Education Action Research Project Findings and Conclusions Next Steps Questions

About Me I have been a teacher for 11 years in SFUSD, OUSD, and WCCUSD. I went to school in the Middle East where I was educated bilingually. When teachers are engaged in new learning, students benefit. I wanted to explore mindfulness practices with students in my own classroom.

About You Please discuss at your table: Who are you and what brought you here; What interested you in this topic; What is your definition of “mindfulness?”

“THE AWARENESS THAT EMERGES THROUGH PAYING ATTENTION ON PURPOSE, IN THE PRESENT MOMENT, AND NON-JUDGMENTALLY TO THE UNFOLDING OF EXPERIENCE.” - JON KABAT-ZINN Definition of Mindfulness

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) University of Massachusetts Medical Hospital in 1979 Treatment of chronic pain patients 8-week program focused on mindfulness meditation and self- awareness Successful in treatment in more than 50% of patients Now adapted for use in schools, hospitals, prisons, and the military. Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD

Research Anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes of daily mindfulness meditation has been linked to: Decreased depression, anxiety, and stress Improved sleep (reduced insomnia) Increases in physical and mental ease and well-being Increased connection with others

Evolution of Mindfulness

Secularity Boosted by Science Mindfulness dates back thousands of years to the Buddhist and Hindu traditions. It is useful in certain settings to separate mindfulness training from the associations with meditation. MBSR and Jon Kabat Zinn’s work helped to move mindfulness into the realm of science and medicine. Mindfulness is now used to address illness, pain, anxiety and stress Neuroscience research is discovering benefits of mindfulness

Mindfulness in Popular Culture Today Corporations are using mindfulness to boost productivity and reduce stress in the workplace. Professional sports team are using it to enhance athletes’ focus and performance. Many books have been published in recent years on the topic:  Mindful Work  The Mindful Child  The Mindful Way Through Depression  Mindful Eating

A Social Movement

Mindfulness in Education

Mindfulness and Neuroscience Effects of stress : Degrades executive functions (Efs) of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) Impairs hippocampus activity Amygdala grows when exposed to ongoing stress

How Students Experience Stress pressure to achieve economic hardship poor nutrition inadequate health care emotional deprivation limited educational resources

Research Students who employ mindfulness techniques benefit from: Improved focus and concentration Increased self awareness Improved impulse control Reduced stress Increased empathy Better conflict resolution skills

The Problem Students (and teachers) are under stress at school and at home Teachers are under pressure to deliver rigorous material to an increasingly disengaged audience due to increase in outside stimuli Many students are struggling academically Some students experience math anxiety Students exhibit off-task behavior as avoidance strategy

Why Math and Mindfulness?

What is Math Anxiety? “Feelings of tension and anxiety that interfere with the manipulation of numbers and the solving of mathematical problems in a wide variety of ordinary life and academic situations.” (Richardson & Suinn, 1972, p.551)

Action Research Question What impact would teaching students mindfulness-based practices have on their emotional self-regulation and academic achievement? Would learning mindfulness skills help them with anxiety and thus help them to better solve challenging math word problems?

The Components of My Study MindUp curriculum 8-week study Weekly 45-minute lessons Daily core practice of focused breathing, twice a day

Lesson Outline Week 1: How Our Brains Work Week 2: Mindful Awareness Week 3: Focused Awareness: The Core Practice Week 4: Mindful Listening Week 5: Mindful Seeing Week 6: Mindful Tasting Week 7: Mindful Movement Week 8: Expressing Gratitude

Mindful Listening

Instruments used to measure progress Surveys  Mindfulness Questionnaire & Math Attitudes Questionnaire  Protocol established around taking and submitting surveys Math Assessments  Pre and Post Assessment  5 Multi-step word problems  Designed to be just outside of their comfort zone  Grouped by grade level ability: Below, At, Above grade level (differentiated without students’ knowledge) Daily Observation Log  Off-task observations made during math instruction time

Mindfulness Survey

Math Anxiety Survey

Math Assessments

Mindfulness Increases Awareness

Observation Log

Findings Huge reduction of off-task behaviors during math instruction Below grade level students showed substantial gain on math assessment post-study. Math anxiety survey reported students exhibiting less nervousness with math

Conclusions There was a noticeable reduction in student off-task behavior which I attribute to students possessing more self-regulation skills and enhanced self-awareness. An unintended benefit was that students voluntarily applied mindfulness skills to helping them calm down after stressful interactions. Even though the Above and At grade level students did not experience much change in their ability to solve word problems on tests, the Below grade level students did, indicating that that mindfulness could help them by reducing anxiety and extending their ability to stay focused.

Words of Wisdom “If every 8 year old in the world is taught meditation, we will eliminate violence from the world in one generation.” - The Dalai Lama

Next Steps Starting at the beginning of the school year and incorporating practice into daily routine Normalizing the experience and being consistent Allowing students to take more ownership Working on my own daily practice Sharing these findings with other teachers and administrators

Written Reflection and Partner Share What is something that you learned today? What might you implement as a result of this presentation? What questions do you have?

Questions?

References Davidson, R.J., Dunne, J., Eccles, J. S., Engle, A., Greenberg, M., Jennings, P., &... Vago, D. (2012). Contemplative Practices and Mental Training: Prospects for American Education. Child Development Perspectives, 6(2), doi: /j x Davidson, R.J. et al., (2003) Alterations in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine, 4, Flook, L. L., Smalley, S. L., Kitil, M. J., Galla, B. M., Kaiser-Greenland, S. S., Locke, J. J., &... Kasari, C. C. (2009). Effects of mindful awareness practices on executive functions in elementary school children. Journal of Applied School Psychology, 26(1), Harari, R. R., Vukovic, R. K., & Bailey, S. P. (2013). Mathematics Anxiety in Young Children: An Exploratory Study. Journal Of Experimental Education, 81(4), Kabat-Zinn, J. (1982). An outpatient program in behavioral medicine for chronic pain patients based on the practice of mindfulness meditation. General Hospital Psychiatry, 4, Lupien, S. J., McEwen, B. S., Gunnar, M. R., & Heim, C. (2009). Effects of stress throughout the lifespan on the brain, behaviour and cognition. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 10(6), doi: /nrn2639

References Napoli, M., Krech, P., & Holley, L. C. (2005). Mindfulness Training for Elementary School Students: The Attention Academy. Journal Of Applied School Psychology, 21(1), Oberle, E., & Schonert-Reichl, K. (2013). Relations among peer acceptance, inhibitory control, and math achievement in early adolescence. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 34(1), Richardson, F., & Suinn, R. (1972). The mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale: Psychometric data. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 19,