Mindful Learning: Early Childhood Care and Development for Refugee Children in Tanzania

Abstract

This field note presents findings from an assessment conducted on the Little Ripples program, which was piloted with Burundian refugee children ages three to five in Tanzania. The aim of the assessment was to understand the general progress of the program, attitudes and perceptions about the use of mindfulness in the classroom, and the perceived effects on students and teachers who participated in the pilot. This field note provides an overview of the Little Ripples program approach; the gaps the program is aiming to address in emergency early childhood care and development services; the concept of mindfulness and its use as a teaching tool; the Little Ripples program assessment methodology and results; and recommendations for ways forward.