‘Mindful teaching’: a construct for developing awareness and compassion

ABSTRACT

The increasing demands of teaching coupled with the erosion of a sense of professionalism has likely contributed to teachers’ elevated instances of burnout and loss of well-being. The purpose of this article is to propose a construct of ‘Mindful Teaching’ as a means to mitigate burnout and improve teachers’ well-being and efficacy. Theoretical and empirical research provide the foundation for the Mindful Teaching construct. Mindful teaching includes teachers’ awareness and compassion that are both inwardly and externally focused. Mindful teaching can be incorporated into teacher education as a means of helping teachers reflect on and navigate the tensions inherent in their work. Excerpts from a student teacher’s journal demonstrate how teacher educators can use the Mindful Teaching construct to improve teacher candidates’ well-being by reconnecting them to their sense of purpose through awareness, compassion, improved efficacy, and mindful action.

KEYWORDS:

• Mindfulness
• stress
• teacher beliefs
• teacher learning
• reflection

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

1. To avoid gender discrimination, the author alternates between female and male pronouns.

2. All proper names have been changed to protect the confidentiality of the participants.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Deborah L. Schussler

Deborah Schussler is an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at Pennsylvania State University. Her research examines the development of educators’ dispositions and social-emotional competencies and the impact of mindfulness-based interventions on the resilience and well-being of educators and the students they serve.