Can using mindfulness/contemplative practices help students become mindful, focused, and present in the mathematics classroom? In this study, mindfulness/contemplative practices were used in the mathematics classroom to determine if students were encouraged to be mindful, focused, and present or engaged in problem solving. During class time,…

Electronic textbooks have become a common and less expensive resource for learning. These types of books have been replacing traditional paper textbooks for over a decade, and have become popular among college students. The problem this study addressed was that students learn differently when using electronic textbooks, and the use of electronic…

Many community college students experience high levels of stress due to the demands of coursework and stressors outside of the classroom. Contemplative practices such as deep breathing can reduce stress and increase focus, but students may not be familiar with or feel that they have time to engage in these practices. We hypothesized that…

Mindful breathing has been linked to changes in physiology, but we took the practice further by examining whether a mindfulness breathing intervention, a three-minute breathing exercise marked by focused attention on the sensations of breath, affected writing anxiety, and writing performance measures. In addition, we examined mindful breathing as…

The latest U.S. government surveys indicate that one in six Americans suffer from food insecurity, which means they have trouble affording adequate food. Previous research has shown that food insecurity affects adult cognitive ability, energy levels, ability to concentrate as well as child academic success. Food insecurity has been studied in…

In this study, I explored the personal attitudes toward creativity of students enrolled in digital photography classes at a Southern California community college, and attempted to discover if awareness brought to creativity and participating in a creative process affects these attitudes. Pink (2005) suggested that creativity is a desirable 21st…

Could contemplative practices change the way we think and act so that we move toward a more just, compassionate, and reflective classroom? The author's personal experiences and preparation for the practice, the content, the impact of the practice on students, and reflections on contemplative practice as a movement in education are offered as an…

Mindfulness, an ancient spiritual practice, is becoming an increasingly popular component of communication courses, training individuals to reserve judgment in their dealings with others. However, the effects of mindfulness in communication courses are not well researched. We compared students taking an introductory communication course that…