密歇根新闻广播 让孩子们更集中精力学习我们要多花心思

The Next Idea

There is a lot of pressure in schools these days.

From the early grades through high school, students take tests and then more tests and shuffle¹ from one extracurricular activity to the next, all while many are also trying to navigate² instability at home.

Budget worries keep countless³ administrators⁴ up at night, and, says Rita Benn, director of the Faculty⁵ Scholars Program in integrative health care at University of Michigan's Department of Family Medicine, about 50% of teachers leave within the first five years because it's so stressful.

Benn, who is also co-founder of the Michigan Collaborative for Mindfulness in Education, says meditation⁶ and mindfulness techniques offer an effective way to help both students and teachers handle stress in the classroom."Mindfulness is a quality of awareness⁷ that involves paying attention in the present moment to what's happening, with a sense of kindness to yourself and acceptance," says Benn.

In the classroom, students are instructed in becoming more conversant⁸ with what's going on in their bodies and their minds, she says, so that they are more able to respond, rather than react, know what some triggers might be, and label some emotions they might be feeling. They even learn how their brain works, she says, and that's not something they're being taught.Carl Clark, a third and fourth grade teacher at Ann Arbor⁹ Open School, has been using mindfulness techniques in his classroom for two years. He says he begins each day with mindfulness to settle down the energy coming from home to the classroom. He also uses it to help settle conflicts between students.

"Before this they had no idea what was happening inside of them," Clark says. "They had no idea why they were angry."Mindfulness has helped the students become more aware of what's happening around them and what's happening inside them, he says. Plus, the improved focus and attention in his classroom, he says, has led to higher test scores.

For The Next Idea, Benn and Clark discuss how mindfulness works in the classroom, what it will take to expand its use in Michigan schools, and the barriers that stand in the way.

1 shuffle   

n.拖著脚走，洗纸牌；v.拖曳，慢吞吞地走

参考例句：

• I wish you'd remember to shuffle before you deal.我希望在你发牌前记得洗牌。
• Don't shuffle your feet along.别拖着脚步走。

2 navigate   

v.航行，飞行；导航，领航

参考例句：

• He was the first man to navigate the Atlantic by air.他是第一个飞越大西洋的人。
• Such boats can navigate on the Nile.这种船可以在尼罗河上航行。

3 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

4 administrators   

n.管理者( administrator的名词复数 )；有管理（或行政）才能的人；（由遗嘱检验法庭指定的）遗产管理人；奉派暂管主教教区的牧师

参考例句：

• He had administrators under him but took the crucial decisions himself. 他手下有管理人员，但重要的决策仍由他自己来做。 来自辞典例句
• Administrators have their own methods of social intercourse. 办行政的人有他们的社交方式。 来自汉英文学 - 围城

5 faculty   

n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员

参考例句：

• He has a great faculty for learning foreign languages.他有学习外语的天赋。
• He has the faculty of saying the right thing at the right time.他有在恰当的时候说恰当的话的才智。

6 meditation   

n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录

参考例句：

• This peaceful garden lends itself to meditation.这个恬静的花园适于冥想。
• I'm sorry to interrupt your meditation.很抱歉，我打断了你的沉思。

7 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

8 conversant   

adj.亲近的，有交情的，熟悉的

参考例句：

• Mr.Taylor is thoroughly conversant with modern music.泰勒先生对现代音乐很精通。
• We become the most conversant stranger in the world.我们变成了世界上最熟悉的陌生人。

9 arbor   

n.凉亭；树木

参考例句：

• They sat in the arbor and chatted over tea.他们坐在凉亭里，边喝茶边聊天。
• You may have heard of Arbor Day at school.你可能在学校里听过植树节。