Yoga and Willful Embodiment: a New Direction for Improving Education

Abstract

Self-regulation—the capacity to modulate attention and emotion—is a robust predictor of important outcomes across the life span. Contemplative practices, such as yoga and mindfulness, have been implemented in schools and shown to improve self-regulation. For the most part, studies incorporating contemplative practices have used quantitative methodologies aimed at generating measurable results on self-regulation. There is limited literature on children’s perceptions of how a contemplative practice helps them self-regulate, as well as the benefits that children report from participating in these practices. Furthermore, there is a shortage of work discussing how teachers may guide children towards learning about their bodily sensations, emotions, in addition to others’ emotions, during a yoga practice. To address these gaps in the literature, this article draws from theories in learning and development to explain why when children are given the space to experiment with yoga practices, they may better relate to their emotional experiences. Implications are discussed including guidelines to inform the future design and implementation of yoga programs in education.