Classroom Based Mindfulness and its Impact on Peer Relationships

For many students, the chief focus of school academic development and less so, social- emotional development. The purpose of this study is to consider how using mindfulness in a classroom setting with students impacts the relationships amongst students in the class. The overall research question is: how might classroom-based mindfulness practices influence student relationships with one another? This study utilized a qualitative research methodology; semi- structured interviews were conducted, the data was coded and categorized into themes. First, I found that there were many foundations for the implementation of a successful mindfulness practice. Second, I provided a discussion on the resources and facets of implementation in the classroom that support a successful mindfulness practice. Third, I found that the implementation of this mindfulness strategies had a meaningful impact on the social and emotional development of students. The findings of this study provide several avenues for the effective implementation of mindfulness in the classroom in a way that is meaningful to the students. Most significantly, it demonstrates the potential capacity of mindfulness to enhance the social and emotional development of students. This capacity of classroom based mindfulness implies that there must be a significant undertaking on the part of teachers to support a classroom mindfulness practice with their students, but the potential benefits make this a worthwhile venture. At the same time, the effort of teachers needs to be supported and encouraged by school administrations