Abstract
In the United States, there is an increased awareness and concern regarding K-12th grade teachers' personal and professional well-being. With current teacher turnover rates currently at about 20% compared to 9% in 2009 (Alliance for Excellent Education, 2014), researchers have turned their attention to stress-reduction interventions and programs for teachers. The following study examines the experiences that seven K-12th grade teachers have had with mindfulness-based practices. This study further explores the impact that mindfulness-based practice has on K-12th grade teachers' personal well-being and professional practice. A qualitative approach using semi-structured interviews was used to gather information to answer the following research question: What is the impact of mindfulness-based practice on K-12th grade teachers' personal well-being and professional practice? Data were analyzed by using grounded theory principles to uncover themes across the interviews. Indicated by the findings, teachers are overloaded with demands from their profession and stressors in their personal lives. The findings show that teachers are compromising their own personal well-being in order to take on the demands of the teaching profession. Different mindfulness-based practices that teachers utilize in their personal lives were highlighted in the findings. The themes from the data suggest that mindfulness-based practices provide teachers with internal and external resources to combat the day to day stressors inherent in their work. The relation between mindfulness-based practices, teacher well-being and quality of teacher-student relationships are explored, along with implications for school social workers in supporting teachers in their practice.