Lisa M. Klein

Defense Date

2-29-2008

Graduation Date

Spring 2008

Availability

Immediate Access

Submission Type

dissertation

Degree Name

EdD

Department

Instructional Leadership Excellence (ILEAD)

School

School of Education

Committee Chair

Margaret Ford

Committee Member

John P. Miller

Committee Member

Ruth G. Biro

Keywords

conflict, education, meditation, self-actualization, stress

Abstract

This qualitative study focuses on teachers ranging from the elementary to secondary level who have practiced mantra meditation for at least three years while also teaching. By utilizing the methodology of portraiture, this study endeavored to determine if the practice of mantra meditation creates self-actualizing qualities in teachers, how teachers who practice mantra meditation perceive their response to stress and conflict in the classroom, and how teachers who practice mantra meditation perceive the effects of meditation on their personal and professional lives. The methodology of portraiture was chosen because according to Lawrence-Lightfoot, "with its focus on narrative, with its use of metaphor and symbol, portraiture intends to address wider, more eclectic audiences. The attempt is to move beyond academy's inner circle, to speak in a language that is not coded or exclusive…" (Lawrence-Lightfoot and Davis, 1997, p. 10). Through personal narratives composed by the three participants and interviews conducted by the researcher, data was collected and analyzed. The findings indicate that each participant perceived the practice of mantra meditation as positively contributing to his/her personal and professional lives, enabled him/her to feel psychologically healthier and better equipped to handle the stress and conflict encountered within the classroom, and created a sense of interactions with students being more positive and rewarding. Each of the three participants also displayed certain dispositions, and demonstrated through their narratives and their interviews, that they embody certain qualities of self-actualization.

Format

PDF

Language

English

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