Schools, Organizations, Teachers & Teacher Training Programs
News for Schools and Teachers
“There is an urgent need to address our nation’s teacher crisis. Teachers have a critical role in children’s lives and teaching has become one of the most stressful occupations, with alarmingly high rates of job dissatisfaction and turnover. This escalating crisis is affecting students’ educational outcomes, impacting teachers’ health, and costing U.S. schools billions of dollars each year.”
This was the conclusion from a comprehensive study by The Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center at Pennsylvania State University in conjunction with The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (2016) that shone the light on teacher stress and health and its impact on teacher and student outcomes. This study concluded:
Teaching and nursing tied as the #1 most stressful professions in the U.S.
46% of teachers reported feeling high levels of stress daily
40-50% of new teachers leave the profession in the first year due to unmanaged tress
Unmanaged teacher stress negatively impacts the physical and mental health of the teacher, leading to poor teacher performance and poor student outcomes, and negatively impacting the effectiveness of the education system in the U.S.
Whew— this is big news for anyone who cares about children, teachers, and education. Let this settle, and then read on…
The same study suggested research-based policies and programs that show promise in reducing teacher stress and its consequences:
Organizational Interventions: directed at changing the organization’s culture and work practices. Although promising, there is currently no research data to demonstrate the effectiveness on organizational interventions in improving teacher well being and performance. (Ok- not good, but don’t fret—keep reading…)
Organization-Individual Interventions: such as mentoring programs, school wellness programs (that includes stress management such as mindfulness), and programs focused on student behavior and social/emotional learning.
Individual Interventions: the study found “Mindfulness and stress management-based professional development programs foster teachers’ ability to focus their awareness in the present moment in a non-reactive manner, connecting to their own experience and to others with ease, patience, and kindness… Well-designed studies have shown psychological and physiological benefits as well as improvements in quality of teaching.”
While the findings are alarming, Peace of Mind has research-based programs for teachers, teachers-in-training, parents and students that can help mitigate this crisis using both organization-individual and individual interventions - Let’s consider working together…How can Peace of Mind help?
Working with teachers, children, and parents will provide a comprehensive support system based on the research findings in the Pennsylvania State University study, and will positively impact your entire school community!
*Note that the Pennsylvania study occurred before Covid and the resulting stressors on teachers and the education system. In a 2022 Gallup Poll, teachers independently took the #1 “most stressful profession” ranking, making the work here even more profound and urgent.
I look forward to working with you to ease this crisis and create a healthy, joyful, and effective education system for teachers, children, and families!
For Teachers
Teachers choose this profession as a calling— let’s help all teachers return to their passionate nature, enliven their work, reconnect to their purpose, and maximize physical and mental health. A 3-hour Mini Retreat Training will introduce how the brain and body respond to stress (real or perceived), and how a mindfulness practice actually changes the brain structure and body’s response. Participants will then be introduced and invited to try a plethora of mindfulness techniques to discover what works well for them, learn about creating a daily practice, and learn valuable tools in setting a classroom for mindfulness to support their practice throughout the day and reset their central nervous systems to a place of peace. Teacher-specific techniques will be introduced (along with how to “anchor” them throughout the day while teaching). Techniques will also be shared that teachers can do with children, either one-on-one or in a group to "reset” the central nervous system of the entire class to a more peaceful state!
After this initial retreat, Peace of Mind can visit your school as a regular part of your wellness program— answering questions and bringing new techniques and practices directly to your door!
Full day and weekend retreats are also available because we know as educators, the one who does is the one who learns!
*Note: as an additional benefit, all teachers in Kentucky will automatically receive continuing education hours for these programs (I am a credentialled specialty teacher training in the area of developing mindfulness for children and adults). I am more than happy to help teachers in other states meet their licensure requirements through Peace of Mind programs too!
For Teachers in Training
With such a high turnover rate in the first year due to stress, let’s support future teachers with the tools they need for a long, productive, joyful career! A 3-hour Mini Retreat Training will introduce how the brain and body respond to stress (real or perceived), and how a mindfulness practice actually changes the brain structure and body’s response. Participants will then be introduced and invited to try a plethora of mindfulness techniques to discover what works well for them, learn about creating a daily practice, and learn valuable tools in setting a classroom for mindfulness to support their practice throughout the day and reset their central nervous systems to a place of peace. Teacher-specific techniques will be introduced (along with how to “anchor” them throughout the day while teaching). Techniques will also be shared that teachers can do with children, either one-on-one or in a group to "reset” the central nervous system of the entire class to a more peaceful state!
For Children in Schools and other Organizations
Please see the “Children’s” link for more information on the many programs that can be delivered directly to your school or organization (Girl and Boy Scouts, clubs, competitive teams). In addition to those listed, Peace of Mind also offers Personalized Peace Visits. These are mindfulness programs for ages 3 and up designed specifically to meet the particular needs of your group.
For Parents
The Adult Practice was born from a direct request from multiple parents of children in the program. They shared that they felt they were parenting from a place of trauma through (and after) Covid. They also share how impactful the practices are as they feel empowered by mindfulness to be the parent (and friend and partner) they want to be. I would love to bring this program to your site! Please see the Adult Practice link for more information.
