{"id":54096,"date":"2018-05-31T11:46:39","date_gmt":"2018-05-31T09:46:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cesie.org\/school\/europe-schools-in-portugal-sweden-and-the-netherlands-practice-quiet-time-transcendental-meditation\/"},"modified":"2025-06-26T14:50:35","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T12:50:35","slug":"europe-schools-in-portugal-sweden-and-the-netherlands-practice-quiet-time-transcendental-meditation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cesie.org\/en\/school\/europe-schools-in-portugal-sweden-and-the-netherlands-practice-quiet-time-transcendental-meditation\/","title":{"rendered":"EUROPE: Schools in Portugal, Sweden and the Netherlands practice Quiet Time\/ Transcendental Meditation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How to promote social inclusion in schools<\/strong>? How to teach global and peaceful citizenship among students?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schools in Portugal, Sweden and the Netherlands include, at the beginning and at the end of the school day, a few minutes practice of a simple scientifically documented psycho\u2010physiological technique. This technique is called Transcendental Meditation (TM)<\/strong> and comes to the schools through the EUROPE Project<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this context, schools in Portugal, Sweden and the Netherlands have been implementing QT\/TMP. This innovative approach, the Quiet Time\/Transcendental Meditation Programme<\/strong>, is a whole school approach involving the Principal, Management Team, teachers and staff, parents and students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students who volunteer and whose parents approve, practice the TM technique during the Quiet Time period<\/strong> while other students engage in a parallel non\u2010academic activity, such as quiet reading or rest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Portugal<\/strong> in the main implementing school, activities started in January 2017 with presentations to staff and students<\/strong> about the EUROPE project, meeting with parents to present this implementation, and surveys of students interested to learn this innovative approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The training for teachers on QT\/TMP<\/strong> followed, implemented in collaboration with the Teacher Training Center Ria Formosa, a public institution and a partner in the project. Two\u2010hour courses for school teachers to monitor TM in the classroom have been also organized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By now more than 55 schoolteachers have learnt TM in the school<\/strong> (more then 50% of the teachers of the school). Thanks to this great engagement of teachers, there are 202 students (age 10 to 16)<\/strong> in 17 classes already practicing QT\/TMP<\/strong>, and in some classes all or almost all of the students are practicing TM during the Quiet Time sessions, even when the training in TM is voluntary. This shows great appreciation of the QT\/TMP the students in general, and disadvantaged students in particular, and also of the Principals, teachers and staff of the school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the request of the Principal and Education authorities, the implementation target was extended to the primary school, where 121 children (age 5 to 9 years) have learned the TM Childrens\u2019 technique<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Portugal the project is ahead of schedule including disseminating and expanding the results at national level, with the involvement in national events promoted by the Directorate General of Education of the National Ministry of Portugal<\/strong>, and the involvement of local, regional and national education authorities in the project. This has the potential to influence national policies in the field of education and inclusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Sweden and Netherlands<\/strong> the strategy has been to contact schools with a greater proportion of disadvantaged, ethnic minority and migrant background students<\/strong>; many of the schools have problems of violence and bullying and a very low level of academic results<\/strong>. Also in both countries, we contacted innovative schools more open to new approaches as they could open the way for other schools to join the project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Sweden <\/strong>the implementation of QT\/TMP started in two Montessori schools<\/strong> that have completed the staff training in Transcendental Meditation<\/strong>. The schools have started student training involving currently about 70 students aged from 10 to end of secondary school<\/strong>.  Also here, as in Portugal, at the request of the schools, the training has been extended to the primary school and at the moment about 22 younger children (aged 5-9 years) are participating in the programme<\/strong>. The training was offered to parents, and about 20 have already learned about the QT\/ TMP and the benefits it brings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Almost right after the starting of the implementation in 2017 in the 2 Montessori schools two more disadvantaged schools joined the EUROPE project:<\/p>\n\n\n\n