Angela Goh Zeng Zhen RIA180003/17152578

The Mindful Music Educator : Strategies for Reducing Stress and Increasing Well-Being

This article talks about how mindfulness-based interventions can increase well-being and
reduce stress. Several factors that are related to occupational stress include being under age
thirty, teaching in a secondary or private school, extracurricular hours, schoolwide concerns,
limited administrative support, low salary, and dissatisfaction with salary. One solution to the
increasing demands placed on teachers is to improve one’s coping resources through cognitive
practices such as mindfulness. The University of Massachusetts Medical School’s Center for
Mindfulness (CFM) defines mindfulness as ‘the intention to pay attention to each and every
moment of our life, nonjudgmentally’. Thus, the goal of mindfulness is not to fix an unpleasant
situation but to see things clearly and nonjudgmentally before responding to a challenge. Put
another way, mindfulness is not a way to avoid stress but involves facing it head-on.
There are some mindfulness practices for music educators, which was written by Patricia
Jennings, that will help them increase their cache of coping strategies. Some of the strategies are:
1)To take a break. Taking a break can help cultivate a state of mindful awareness and allows
music educators to assess their surroundings and act from a place of awareness and clarity. 2)
Giving our full attention and awareness. This is one of the ways to develop a respectful
relationship with students. Here, mindfulness is practiced by focusing on what the student has to
say and remaining non judgemental. Mindful awareness is nonjudgmentally observing the
activity in the classroom with calmness and curiosity which will help with sensing the mood in
the class and to act accordingly. 3) Looking inward. Setting attention can help music educators
remember why they decided to pursue a teaching career, means that you are aware of your goal
and can make adjustments to help you get closer to meeting it. Besides, writing a journal by
noting down things that bring you joy each day. It is easy to focus on only the negative aspects of
a job, so seeing the positive moments in writing can help you take a more balanced view of your
work situation. 4) Accountability. Set long term goals, commit to daily practice, writing down
the strategies, integrate, connect with people and to reflect back at your journal. 5) Becoming
more aware. Mindfulness practice offers a way for music educators to become more aware of the
factors contributing to both their classroom climate and their own well-being and constructively
deal with developing interpersonal issues and symptoms of burnout.
In short, mindfulness practice can help us remain present, take pause, and act from a
place of clarity. We practice mindfulness not to fix an unpleasant situation, but to see things
clearly without passing judgement before responding to the many challenges of your personal
and professional lives. One music educator suggested picking one strategy to try out for an entire
month before moving on to the next one. Strive to practice mindfulness daily for the best result.

Reference :
Varona, D. A. (2018). The Mindful Music Educator: Strategies for Reducing Stress and
Increasing Well-Being. Music Educators Journal, 105(2), 64–71.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0027432118804035