A US group is calling for more children to be taught Transcendental Meditation (TM) in schools as a way to decrease stress and improve concentration levels.
The Arizona Committee for stress-free Schools is putting forward the argument over a two-day conference on April 20 and 21.
Already, schools across the US are finding that the stress-reducing, nonreligious TM programme is an effective guard against the stresses or everyday life, the group says.
It's claimed that children can benefit from regular TM practice in many ways – including decreased stress, reduced substance abuse, improved memory and academic performance and lower blood pressure.
Students sit in a room, crossed-legged, their eyes closed, their thoughts focused as they recite a mantra. Children under ten can walk slowly around the room or the playground and recite a word.
A spokesperson says: “The alarming rise of classroom stress fuels widespread problems in education, including poor academic achievement, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, school violence and teacher burnout.
“To overcome these problems, any successful educational reform effort must include the knowledge and methodologies to dissolve stress and awaken each student’s potential.”
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