New school in bid to calm troubled teens

A new school set to open next year will see a group of budding yogis exploring the benefits of meditation as part of its curriculum.

Stress-free Schools New Zealand, which boasts famous sportswoman Allison Roe on its advisory board, is determined to bring transcendental meditation into the classroom to calm anxious and troublesome teens.

It is looking to open its first school in Auckland early next year.

“We are going to look for land next week and by the beginning of next year we hope to have our programme implemented in New Zealand,” said organisation executive director Martin Jelly.

Transcendental meditation promotes deep relaxation through the use of a mantra, and is favoured by top sportspeople like Roe and Black Caps cricket coach John Bracewell.

The school will make its “consciousness-based” education available to an initial 200 fee- paying pupils, with the group hoping to also open a facility in Christchurch.

Englishman Dr Ashley Deans, who heads the board of advisers, visited New Zealand last week to promote “consciousness-based” learning.

“The New Zealand Ministry of Education has expressed interest in the programme.

Everybody has realised that we have the answer to problems that they can’t solve, like teens in gangs, bullying and alcohol abuse,” he told the Sunday Star-Times.

“I talk to educators, they all tell me that stress is the biggest problem facing them today.”

The structure of the school day would be loosely based on the New Zealand curriculum with meditation sessions in the morning and afternoon.

The ministry said any new school would have to follow the curriculum set by the government regardless of any meditation sessions.

“We have no issue with whether or not they fit meditation sessions into the school day,” said a spokesperson.

“As long as they adhere to the basic tenets of the curriculum, they can implement their programme.”

However Avondale College principal Brent Lewis is sceptical.

“Every day I have people coming to me and trying to sell me the silver bullet that will solve all the problems that educators have. But I do think it is good that they are willing to open a school and put themselves on the line to prove whether this sort of thing works.”

Read Another Article

Terror Threat Against U.S. Said Serious
Man shot by police had Aryan gang ties

Related News Articles Topic(s): Transcendental Meditation Subscribe to Religion News Blog updates Subscribe to Religion News Blog [What is this?] Get Religion News Blog's headline by Email [What is this?] Follow Religion News Blog at Twitter Find Related Information Use our custom search engines to find additional research resources on religions and cults: ApologeticsSearch.com: Search for apologetics articles, books, videos, and other research resources across 135 Christian apologetics websites and blogs. CounterCultSearch.com: Search for information about (religious) cults, cult-like organizations, and cults experts -- as well as paranormal-, New Age, and pseudoscientific claims -- across 260+ websites, blogs and forums dedicated to cult research, spiritual abuse, ex-cult counseling & support. Find Related Religion & Spirituality Books at Amazon.com Transcendental Meditation Possibly related... or Most Popular Religion News Articles Kent Hovind: Evangelist arrested on federal charges Beast’s real mark devalued to ’616′ Muslim Woman Gives Sex Advice on Arab TV Michael Jackson Confirms Conversion to Islam Kent Hovind, ‘Dr. Dino,’ guilty on all counts The fall and rise of Carlton Pearson Search False prophet Harold Camping sets another date for rapture: May 21, 2011 Watch the film Theo van Gogh was murdered for Kent Hovind — Dr. Dino — sentenced to 10 years in prison

Search Religion News Blog