Evaluating staff and student experience of contemplative pedagogies

Teaching and learning approaches which integrate aspects of contemplative wisdom and practice are becoming more common in tertiary education globally. While contemplative pedagogy and curriculum have gained a measure of interest and popularity, there exist very few rigorous research evaluations. There is also little examination of how contemplative pedagogies are interpreted and implemented in different disciplinary contexts. Consequently, it is difficult to evaluate whether these approaches are really able to achieve their stated aims, or to offer well-founded advice about design and implementation in the diverse contexts of university teaching. This program of research seeks to address these important gaps in our understanding of contemplative pedagogies. The outcomes of this research will directly support improvements in the design and implementation of contemplative approaches to teaching and learning, and inform the design of professional development programs for staff.

Project: Evaluating Staff and Student Experiences of Contemplative Pedagogies

This project builds off the Centre’s Contemplative Pedagogy Initiative, in which a network of educators is implementing contemplative approaches in a range of undergraduate and postgraduate subject offerings, including the Centre’s flagship undergraduate subject The Art & Science of Meditation. The research will systematically examine the experiences for both students and educators in each subject, considering outcomes in relation to wellbeing, engagement, belonging, and depth of learning. It will also examine the affordances and barriers to successful implementation of contemplative pedagogies in different subject contexts.

Project: Dialogising Contemplative Pedagogies Across Academic Disciplines

This project is a theoretical and conceptual inquiry into the nature of contemplation and contemplative pedagogy, as these ideas are understood from different personal, philosophical and disciplinary perspectives. Undertaken by members of the Contemplative Pedagogy network, the research uses synchronous and asynchronous dialogues, and contemplative practices of embodied knowing, to explore diverse perspectives on contemplative pedagogies.

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