Meditation in schools

roosh

I know that everyone on here, would be in favour of removing religion from the school curriculum, but I was wondering if people would be opposed to the idea of secular meditation being taught in schools?

Basically, replacing religion with classes in meditation.

MagicMarker

There's nothing wrong teaching religion, so long as it's from an unbiased point of view.

If it were to be removed though, I can think of better things to replace it with than meditation.

johnmcdnl

don't do meditation - like seriously.. it's grand from an idealistically view but there's gonna be 99.7% of students approximately who'll not take it seriously if it's forced upon them.. it's be just a wasted class basically..

i'm speaking as a student who's just finished the leaving cert.. i know for a fact that "meditation" class would be a disaster..

Religion was actually one of my favourite classes in my school despite me being half atheist - we weren't spending our classes talking about Jesus being resurrected but instead we had discussions about life and the meaning of life and how people should act in society and stuff like that - it was really more like a social skills class or something but it was based on morals really... (morals that just happened to be the same morals as major religions endorse but anyways)

you'd be better off making this the sort of class to have instead of "jesus is the son of god and you must believe this or you will be burned in hell" classes... having students discuss morals and social issues is by far a better option than to switch to meditation because students are never gonna participate in meditation

MagicMarker

johnmcdnl wrote: »

Religion was actually one of my favourite classes in my school despite me being half atheist

One of your parents an atheist then?

Rev Hellfire

Replace religion with more physical education I say.

Waking-Dreams

Aye, it would be better spent giving kids various musical instruments (shakers and percussion stuff maybe) and letting them indulge in their creativity and expression. Getting kids to sit still in a classroom? That usually only happens just before they're about to be let out of class early...

HavingCrack

Unless everyone wants to do meditation the whole thing becomes a laughing stock-whether in school, work, college wherever.

Ickle Magoo

I'm not in favour of removing religion from the curriculum, I would just rather the schools were secular and religion was taught from a world/humanities perspective rather than doctrinal or instructional...I wouldn't be in favour of replacing such a class altogether with meditation, either. My kids school has a spirituality and meditation after-school class for anyone who wishes to avail...

robindch

mangaroosh wrote: »

replacing religion with classes in meditation.

Personally, I'd prefer my kid was actively learning something in school, instead of passively doing nothing

Dave!

We did meditation every so often in school, in religion class actually

Can't say I got any particular benefit out of it, but it was a nice break from studies! This was in 6th year BTW.

As mentioned, could probably think of better things to do in the time, e.g. phys ed

It reminds me a bit of Kindergarten Cop, when Arnie is reading the kids a story and they all fall asleep. That's grand for kindergarten, but surely in 'big school' we should be doing something more productive

lalee17

We did meditation in school in a 'prayer room', seriously messed up stuff in there.. Weird African statues of Jesus and the Bible on a creepy looking wooden altar. It was a total joke, the 'teacher' normally spent the entire class giving out at the other kids. I usually fell asleep during it/messed with my friends.

Improbable

As long as the aim is to teach students about the different religions in the world, I don't really have a problem with it. My school (which shall go nameless) wasn't a religious one but the religion class was very focused on a single religion so I just had my parents write a letter and get me excused from the class.

rockmongrel

Rev Hellfire wrote: »

Replace religion with more physical education I say.

Forced catholic education and forced physical education, the two things I desperately hated in school :pac:

roosh

cheers for the replies, just wanted to see what people's thoughts about it would be. It was interesting to hear that ye actually had meditation classes lalee, and that it was offered outside of school, in your kids school Ickle.

I understand the difficulties there would be in teaching this in school, having been in school myself before . I'm sure the issue of students not taking it seriously could, in some schools or classes, be dealt with, if it was presented properly. The issue of "forcing" it on kids would be one that would have to be looked at. Perhaps offering it as an option, instead of religion or something.

The health benefits of meditation are fairly well documented, so from a practical point of view, it would be a very worthwhile thing for kids to learn in school.

What other classes would people advocate, if religion were to be withdrawn from the school curriculum? Additional P.E. and music weren't one's I was thinking about myself, because they tend to be offered as options in schools already. Are there other suggestions, not necessarily along the lines of more of an existing subject?

Busi_Girl08

We did meditation for about 10 minutes at the start of our SPHE class in the Junior Cert.
(This was while we studied Religion as a mandetory examinable subject.

I didn't find any harm in it, it was a nice, relaxing escape from exams, classes, etc.

We also did a little bit of it in another social/health-based class in the Leaving Cert year, with the same teacher.
There really wasn't much messing. People seemed to enjoy it, or at least enjoyed liked a few minutes away from all the stress and bullcrap (we got a lot of it from some teachers that year ).

So, I don't see any harm in it, to be honest. It's just a few minutes of relaxation to relieve the stress. There are some people who do appreciate it, but, of course, there will be the messers who will want to take the Micheál. Does that mean it should be stopped?

And to the people who say that it sould be dropped and extra PE time put in its place..Sshhh!! :P

YFlyer

Transcendental Meditation is taught in schools throughout the world through the David Lynch Foundation

http://www.davidlynchfoundation.org/

Coriolanus

Schedule the entire year for an elective slot. Assuming four classes i nthe year:
Have a PE teacher on hand to take kids that want to go for a kickaround or whatever.
Have a supervisor on hand for anyone who wants to study.
Have a "religion" teacher to do meditation ocassionally, world religion. general spirituality.
Whatever your having yourself.

Personally I think they should be teaching kids cognitive self-therapy.

sensibleken

I would be ok with this in fact I think its quite a good idea. when I remember the stress that the leaving put me under meditation really helped me focus and relax, I found it invaluable.

How often is religion taught these days? I remember doing it every day so if/when I rule this country I would take the 5 days religion classes and make it 3 days philosophy, 1 day music and 1 day meditation (or even 1 every 2 week would do)

roosh

Nevore wrote: »

Schedule the entire year for an elective slot. Assuming four classes i nthe year:
Have a PE teacher on hand to take kids that want to go for a kickaround or whatever.
Have a supervisor on hand for anyone who wants to study.
Have a "religion" teacher to do meditation ocassionally, world religion. general spirituality.
Whatever your having yourself.

Personally I think they should be teaching kids cognitive self-therapy.

That probably would be the ideal solution, but would school resources be capable of supporting that I wonder? In theory it could be excellent, but in practice it might be difficult to implement.

If it were possible though, it could be the ideal solution.

20goto10

mangaroosh wrote: »

I know that everyone on here, would be in favour of removing religion from the school curriculum, but I was wondering if people would be opposed to the idea of secular meditation being taught in schools?

Basically, replacing religion with classes in meditation.

Also known as snooze time. It's the one thing I used to actually participate in in religion class.

To those saying there is nothing wrong with teaching religion, are you serious? The only time I want religion taught to my kids is in history class where they can learn how fcuked up the world has become because of it.

Improbable

20goto10 wrote: »

Also known as snooze time. It's the one thing I used to actually participate in in religion class.

To those saying there is nothing wrong with teaching religion, are you serious? The only time I want religion taught to my kids is in history class where they can learn how fcuked up the world has become because of it.

I'm an atheist but I don't understand the animosity towards teaching children about religion so long as they're not brainwashed into believing a particular religion. I wouldn't necessarily emphasize the tenets of any particular religion as even the various religious texts are full of contradictions and show blatant signs of being man-made as opposed to divine. But I don't think teaching a history of religion would be bad.

20goto10

Improbable wrote: »

I'm an atheist but I don't understand the animosity towards teaching children about religion so long as they're not brainwashed into believing a particular religion. I wouldn't necessarily emphasize the tenets of any particular religion as even the various religious texts are full of contradictions and show blatant signs of being man-made as opposed to divine. But I don't think teaching a history of religion would be bad.

I don't have animosity towards teaching religion, I just don't want my child brainwashed nor do I see any benefit from them learning in depth about religion. I know nothing about Islam and very little about Judaism and buddhism other than they all believe in supernatural beings and interfere in how people live their lives and thats enough for me to shun them. I would like Christianity added to that list for my children. They'll pick up enough about it without having to be taught it in school. I'd rather they learnt facts in school. Why not teach them about fairies, dragons and leprechauns while you're at it?

And back on topic, I would add meditation as a spiritual ritual to that list too.

Improbable

20goto10 wrote: »

I don't have animosity towards teaching religion, I just don't want my child brainwashed nor do I see any benefit from them learning in depth about religion. I know nothing about Islam and very little about Judaism and buddhism other than they all believe in supernatural beings and interfere in how people live their lives and thats enough for me to shun them. I would like Christianity added to that list for my children. They'll pick up enough about it without having to be taught it in school. I'd rather they learnt facts in school. Why not teach them about fairies, dragons and leprechauns while you're at it?

And back on topic, I would add meditation as a spiritual ritual to that list too.

I agree, let's keep this thread on topic. I'll make a separate one for the issue of religion in schools.

Undoubtedly there are practices of meditation in certain spiritual practices but that doesn't have to be the case. Meditation can be a wide spectrum of practices. Take a look here for example:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acem_Meditation

I'm a bit divided on this. I think it can be very useful but I think it's something you'd have to want to do, and is ripe for messing about from uninterested students.
Certainly at least for leaving cert students it could help relieve stress - the worst kind is ongoing stress where you don't realise it until you take some time to just "sit and breathe" so to speak.

Qualitymark

Meditation is a useful thing to learn, especially for teenagers, who are always 'on'.

The school system has been moving away from child-centred learning for many years, though - 40 years ago, music was a standard subject, everyone sang and learned tonic solfa; PE included games and exercises indoors and outdoors and was taught for several hours every day. And the standard of learning expected was much higher in academic subjects then - take a look at the Leaving Cert papers from the 1960s in Irish, say.

Now we're just producing nice little battery hens to feed into the capitalist engine.

Dades

Improbable wrote: »

I agree, let's keep this thread on topic. I'll make a separate one for the issue of religion in schools.

That'll be a breath of fresh air.

How do we remove religious influence from schools

MRBI Poll suggests "Catholic Church should give up control of primary schools"

Religion in primary schools

Primary schools - help!

Time for complete separation of church and state

Religion and science in primary school

Parents want schools State-managed

sonicthebadger*

Qualitymark wrote: »

The school system has been moving away from child-centred learning for many years, though

Have you been in a school in the last 40 years? What you claim is absolutely not the case. The main problem I see with the current system is that it is becoming a profit making industry at 3rd level.

Anyway, 40 years ago it's likely that "child centered learning" you speak of included regular beatings. Yay! Kids love to learn from beatings!

Qualitymark

sonicthebadger* wrote: »

Have you been in a school in the last 40 years? What you claim is absolutely not the case. The main problem I see with the current system is that it is becoming a profit making industry at 3rd level.

Anyway, 40 years ago it's likely that "child centered learning" you speak of included regular beatings. Yay! Kids love to learn from beatings!

Nice one - a beautiful job of leaping neatly aside from the point I made and sweeping the gaudy scarlet cloak of a completely different argument before my eyes!

40 years ago the points system wasn't the master of children's future.

Truley

Meditation is a very broad term first and foremost so it's hard to say how it would work. The main question would be what kinds of meditation would be practiced and what would be the objectives of it? I'm don't have a huge amount of experience on the subject. But I practice a very specific form of non-religious meditation myself, and I have to say I would not promote it as something young children should do. At a young age children don't have the same level of introspection or ability to self analyze that an adult has. And I don't think it should be incouraged unless absolutely necessary.

Secondly if the goals of meditation are to promote relaxation, then maybe we need to look into how the education system is promoting an unnecessary amount of stress in young children and teens. Half an hour of relaxation a week wont fix things if the school system remains a pressurized enviroment for the rest of the time. School shouldn't be stressful, if it is then the system itself needs to be changed.

Thirdly despite how secular the practice may appear to be many religions and cultures specifically forbid it's members from practicing meditation. Likewise other religions may practice it differently or for different reasons. So that would need to be taken into account in a multicultural student body.

So yeah, wouldn't encourage it in young children or even teenagers. Maybe as an extra-curricular outside of school class, but certainly not as part of the national curriculum.

Qualitymark

Meditation isn't about self-analysis, Truley, it's a time of stillness, when your mind gradually calms as you sit in silence. There are various techniques to help achieve this calm, including counting up to nine or ten and back down, with your counting and breathing slowing as you count.

sonicthebadger*

Qualitymark wrote: »

Nice one - a beautiful job of leaping neatly aside from the point I made and sweeping the gaudy scarlet cloak of a completely different argument before my eyes!

40 years ago the points system wasn't the master of children's future.

Then I should compliment you on your beautiful job of not agreeing with one particular facet of the modern education system and thus dismissing all of it because of that fact. Well done, baby out with bathwater there.

And just out of interest, how do you think we should allocate university places if not by the points system.

I wonder how exams in meditation would go... :pac: (desperate attempt to keep this post remotely on topic!)

Qualitymark

In Germany, for instance, you can go into medical school for a year; if you flunk out at that stage you're obviously not suitable.

Most of the middle-aged people I know didn't get where they are by getting points in exams, but by building up work-related experience after coming into the job as some kind of apprentice, or selling one or two pieces of work and going from there.

Exams in meditation: the mere fact that this is a suggestion shows how warped our idea of 'education' has become.

Truley

Qualitymark wrote: »

Meditation isn't about self-analysis, Truley, it's a time of stillness, when your mind gradually calms as you sit in silence. There are various techniques to help achieve this calm, including counting up to nine or ten and back down, with your counting and breathing slowing as you count.

It's done for a multitude of reasons, self analysis, relaxation, mind training, spiritual enlightenment or even receptivity to divine messages. As I said meditation is a broad term. Whatever the purpose, I do think it encourages a level of introspection.

Ickle Magoo

Qualitymark wrote: »

In Germany, for instance, you can go into medical school for a year; if you flunk out at that stage you're obviously not suitable.

Most of the middle-aged people I know didn't get where they are by getting points in exams, but by building up work-related experience after coming into the job as some kind of apprentice, or selling one or two pieces of work and going from there.

Exams in meditation: the mere fact that this is a suggestion shows how warped our idea of 'education' has become.

Surely that only applies to people who didn't go into third level education? In which case the points system or indeed any kind of classification of academic ability doesn't hold the same significance. On the flip side, the majority of middle-aged people I know have third-level education and exam results were as prevalent then as they are today, for exactly the same reasons.

Qualitymark

Maybe it's just the people I know, Ickle Magoo, who would mostly be self-employed journalists, lawyers, entrepreneurs and artists. It's true that if you want to be workin' for the man - as a civil servant or teacher or any nice secure job like that - you should mechanise yourself and learn the points way.

One of the best Leaving Cert English results got by any of my acquaintance was by someone who triumphed particularly in his answers on Milton. Despite my talking-up of Milton's sensationalist poetry, he hadn't actually read any - but he knew the Leaving Cert notes by heart.

But we've dragged this thread off centre too long. Back to the meditation.

Pzizz makes a meditation chime, and is thinking of migrating it to the iPhone.

Ickle Magoo

Would a lawyer not require a law degree? And would they not require minimum qualifications to sit a law degree? Certainly nowadays most journalists would require formal education as well...hell, if you want to be a designer at one of the big fashion houses an art degree, and a first at that, is pretty much a pre-requisite.

I appreciate that you don't like the points system but to claim that ways of grading academic achievement are a relatively new thing, is simply not true.

Qualitymark

Ickle Magoo wrote: »

Would a lawyer not require a law degree?

If you want to open a new thread on this, fine, but this thread is about meditation. (And no, by the way, not when my friends studied.)

Ickle Magoo

Qualitymark wrote: »

If you want to open a new thread on this, fine, but this thread is about meditation. (And no, by the way, not when my friends studied.)

So you can make outlandish statements as fact but when anyone asks you to qualify or questions you, only then it becomes OT and an issue?

Your friend practices law without a degree? He must have passed the bar or equivalent qualification in order to have his licence...

Truley wrote: »

It's done for a multitude of reasons, self analysis, relaxation, mind training, spiritual enlightenment or even receptivity to divine messages. As I said meditation is a broad term. Whatever the purpose, I do think it encourages a level of introspection.

I agree, there are many forms of meditation, not all of them about clearing the mind.

sonicthebadger*

Qualitymark wrote: »

In Germany, for instance, you can go into medical school for a year; if you flunk out at that stage you're obviously not suitable.

Most of the middle-aged people I know didn't get where they are by getting points in exams, but by building up work-related experience after coming into the job as some kind of apprentice, or selling one or two pieces of work and going from there.

Exams in meditation: the mere fact that this is a suggestion shows how warped our idea of 'education' has become.

I like that German idea but again how do we appoint candidates to the limited number of places available?

As for apprenticeships, they are still available and you still don't need points for them.

And for missing the joke on the meditation exam thing I award you my facepalm of the day. Congratulations!

dvpower

Qualitymark wrote: »

Meditation isn't about self-analysis, Truley, it's a time of stillness, when your mind gradually calms as you sit in silence. There are various techniques to help achieve this calm, including counting up to nine or ten and back down, with your counting and breathing slowing as you count.

Like a double Accounting class.

strobe

sonicthebadger* wrote: »

I like that German idea but again how do we appoint candidates to the limited number of places available?

How about some sort of aptitude test? Say for instance something similar to the minor exams college students would take after their first term in the course. Have them running over the entire length of sixth year. So a student looking to qualify for a medicine course, a mechanical engineering course and a English Literature course would spend the entirety of 4th and fifth year studying only English, Biology and Engineering (or another one or two subjects if they wanted to apply for more course places in other subjects). Then in sixth year the student would take the "aptitude tests" for Biology, Mech Eng and English Lit. The places go to the students that score the highest in these tests.

Seems a much better system to the one that has students wasting their time trying to get an A1 in honours Irish and Music to rack up a bunch of meaningless points to get into a decent Chemistry course in college.

Not only would they enter the college courses with a very strong basic understanding of the course material, they would also have much more interest in school through out 4th, 5ft and 6th year because they wouldn't have to sit through the mind numbing boredom of trying to learn how to get lots of points from a leaving cert exam in a subject they couldn't care less about and will never use again in their lives.

The current CAO points system is the most idiotic and pointless way to decide on college placing I think I could possibly devise.

sonicthebadger*

dvpower wrote: »

Like a double Accounting class.

Tea came out my nose. Thanks for uber lulz.

roosh

I think there is a general perception among most people, that meditation can be useful for reducing stress, and this is of course pretty accurate. There are however many more benefits associated with regular practice of meditation.

wrote:

Magnetic resonance imaging showed that regular practice of meditation is associated with increased thickness in a subset of cortical regions related to sensory, auditory, visual and internal perception, such as heart rate or breathing. The researchers also found that regular meditation practice may slow age-related thinning of the frontal cortex.

Science Daily article

wrote:

Through training, Zen meditators appear to thicken certain areas of their cortex and this appears to be underlie their lower sensitivity to pain," says lead author Joshua A. Grant

Science Daily article

wrote:

What was most remarkable about this study was that long-term meditators were able to produce sustained gamma-activity in a manner that had never previously been observed in any other human. As such, sustained gamma activity has emerged as a proxy for at least some aspects of the meditative state.

scientific American article

wrote:

People who meditate grow bigger brains than those who don't.

wrote:

"Our data suggest that meditation practice can promote cortical plasticity in adults in areas important for cognitive and emotional processing and well-being," says Sara Lazar, leader of the study and a psychologist at Harvard Medical School

Physorg.com article


If meditation were to be taught in schools, or at least offered (as it is in some), then it could actually be a very strong support for all the other subjects that students study.

The reasearch also indicates, that one need not necessarily be a monastic, in order to gleam the benefits of meditation.

wrote:

The researchers compared brain scans of 20 experienced meditators with those of 15 nonmeditators. Four of the former taught meditation or yoga, but they were not monks living in seclusion. The rest worked in careers such as law, health care, and journalism

wrote:

The romantic notion of quitting everything and joining Tibetan monks on a mountaintop is not the only way to meditate. You don't need to quit your job, give up your possessions and spend 30 years chanting. Recent research indicates that meditating brings about dramatic effects in as little as a 10-minute session.

Truley

mangaroosh wrote: »

I think there is a general perception among most people, that meditation can be useful for reducing stress, and this is of course pretty accurate. There are however many more benefits associated with regular practice of meditation.
...

The reasearch also indicates, that one need not necessarily be a monastic, in order to gleam the benefits of meditation.

My issue here is the idea of having it as part of the school curriculum as an alternative to religion class. I don't agree with it because I'm of the opinion that young children and teenagers shouldn't be encouraged to meditate, as the level of introversion required is too much for a young child to grasp/ fully understand. In fact having talked to people about it, including a psychologist and the teacher who taught me meditation, it is actually considered harmful if done at too young an age. My meditation teacher actually recommended late twenties as a minimum age.

I also think meditation is something a person needs to consciously decide to embark on themselves, and only when they feel comfortable and ready to do it. It's not something that can be forced on a person, or just thrown out there without a proper support net (which realistically it would be, if it was a school subject.)

Anyway, I think alot of people here are confusing meditation with 'relaxation.'

Qualitymark

In Germany, the students aren't 'appointed' at all, as I understand it - they walk in and sign up, and they have a year to prove their aptitude.

Thanks for that Science Daily reference, @mangaroosh - fascinating. I wonder what Buddhist Insight meditation is, and if it has the same basic effects as the Double Accounting/Zazen method.

There's another couple of pieces linked on that page - this one

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070625193240.htm

suggests that meditation may improve concentration, though another finds that meditation is overrated.

roosh

Qualitymark wrote: »

In Germany, the students aren't 'appointed' at all, as I understand it - they walk in and sign up, and they have a year to prove their aptitude.

Thanks for that Science Daily reference, @mangaroosh - fascinating. I wonder what Buddhist Insight meditation is, and if it has the same basic effects as the Double Accounting/Zazen method.

There's another couple of pieces linked on that page - this one

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070625193240.htm

suggests that meditation may improve concentration, though another finds that meditation is overrated.

No worries, I look for the references as much for myself as for anyone.

I read the article alright, saying that the therapeutic value of meditation was unproven alright, but it was from 2007 while the others were newer, so I gave the benefit of the doubt to the newer research, rightly or wrongly. The article didn't necessarily say that meditation was overrated (although it probably is by many). This:

wrote:

But the researchers caution against dismissing the therapeutic value of meditation outright. "This report's conclusions shouldn't be taken as a sign that meditation doesn't work," Bond says. "Many uncertainties surround the practice of meditation. For medical practitioners who are seeking to make evidence-based decisions regarding the therapeutic value of meditation, the report shows that the evidence is inconclusive regarding its effectiveness." For the general public, adds Ospina, "this research highlights that choosing to practice a particular meditation technique continues to rely solely on individual experiences and personal preferences, until more conclusive scientific evidence is produced."

pretty much sums it up, I think.

I'm not sure if the research has improved in the area, but it sounds like it might have, as the research doesn't just rely on personal preferences and individual experiences, it uses fMRI and other medical technology, to support its claims.



With regard to Buddhist insight meditation, from my own limited understanding, it is known as Vipassana*, and usually follows on from Shamatha* meditation, which is the practice of "stilling" the mind. Shamatha [with support or an object] would be the kind of meditation that most people would be familiar with, if not by name, [I think]. It can involve using a support, such as focusing on the breath in order to still the mind and become more aware of ones thoughts. It can also involve using an image/object, a sound, a sensation or other sensory input.

The use of a support is simply a method, so that the practitioner has "something" to return to, when the mind wanders. The use of a support can also create a contrast, that allows the practitioner to become aware, of when the mind is focused and how it tends to "wander". Continaully bringing the attention back to the object serves to train the mind to remain more focused, or at least to return to an aware state more regularly.

Eventually, once the mind becomes more settled, the focus can be widened, and instead of resting on a particular object, there is a more general awareness of ones environment, and ones body/mind. In this state, thoughts arise, but due to the increased awareness, they have less tendency to distract, and so the mind is less likely to "wander". Also, other sensations, such as sounds, sights, bodily sensations are allowed to arise, which have less tendency to distract, and so the mind is less likely to "wander".


It is from this state then, that insights arise. The nature of the insights depend on the individual, I would guess, but many of the insights can be in the form of an experiential understanding of the workings of one's own mind, the nature of the mind, the nature of what one perceives as oneself, the true nature of the self, etc. Also, such a state of mind can, perhaps, lend itself more to analytical thinking.

*The terms Vipassan and Shamatha are Tibetan Buddhist terms (either that or Sanskrit, I think), and may be the same as Zazen (I think they might be).

roosh

Truley wrote: »

My issue here is the idea of having it as part of the school curriculum as an alternative to religion class. I don't agree with it because I'm of the opinion that young children and teenagers shouldn't be encouraged to meditate, as the level of introversion required is too much for a young child to grasp/ fully understand. In fact having talked to people about it, including a psychologist and the teacher who taught me meditation, it is actually considered harmful if done at too young an age. My meditation teacher actually recommended late twenties as a minimum age.

I also think meditation is something a person needs to consciously decide to embark on themselves, and only when they feel comfortable and ready to do it. It's not something that can be forced on a person, or just thrown out there without a proper support net (which realistically it would be, if it was a school subject.)

Anyway, I think alot of people here are confusing meditation with 'relaxation.'

I would echo your sentiments to a certain degree, and would certainly err on the side of caution when it comes to the issue of meditation in schools (if it were to ever come to that). I certainly would agree that it shouldn't be forced on anybody, as it would probably achieve the opposite of intended effect. I do think, however, that it could potentially be a worthwhile skill for people to learn in school - although I wouldn't be too sure what age group.

As you quite rightly said, meditation is indeed a very broad term, and what an adult may choose to prectice, may not necessarily be suitable for children or teenagers. There would be a real need to assess, what kind of meditation would be suitable, for the various age groups.

This is purely anecdotal, but makes the point that meditation can be started at a very early age, but does not necessarily need to be of the level of introspection that some adults may engage in.

Compassion meditation may perhaps be a useful one for teenagers, or perhaps those over the age of 7.

Qualitymark

mangaroosh wrote: »

the level of introspection that some adults may engage in.

Howja mean?

By the way, here's a nice little meditation aimed at children, not too long:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9h5mC6HWbc

roosh

Qualitymark wrote: »

Howja mean?

By the way, here's a nice little meditation aimed at children, not too long:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9h5mC6HWbc

nice link, cheers!

that is more or less what I meant. Children don't necessarily need to be guided in meditation on the nature of "the self" or the nature of reality, but rather with something like the meditation in that link.

magicbastarder

my religion teacher in fourth year tried some meditation exercises with us. i thought it was great; the first time i was able to fall asleep in class and not have to worry about getting in trouble over it.

YFlyer

Truley wrote: »

My issue here is the idea of having it as part of the school curriculum as an alternative to religion class. I don't agree with it because I'm of the opinion that young children and teenagers shouldn't be encouraged to meditate, as the level of introversion required is too much for a young child to grasp/ fully understand. '

You don't need to understand about meditation (Transcendental Meditation in my case) to practice it. It is a technique.