According to new research published in School Psychology by researchers from Cornell University and Syracuse University, 5 minutes of exercise a day is enough to improve reading skills. Will it be true?
After seeing that video games improve our reading, this time it’s actually about the first study to examine direct links Between mindfulness (a set of techniques that help achieve greater and better self-awareness) and academic skills in young adults.
The team analyzed the reading performance of 56 students aged between 12 and 13. The peculiarity lies in the fact that before each activity, they were subjected to moments of mindfulness.
Let’s talk about exercises to achieve greater self-awareness, through different breathing techniques. There is also the cultivation of positive thoughts, aimed at maintaining concentration on the present and on what the subjects should have done. The results are clear.
At the end of the school year, students who tried mindfulness techniques they read an average of 4.41 more correct words during a timed reading exercise compared to those who had not undergone such techniques.
The implications are countless. Reading comprehension is fundamental for many other academic subjectsas well as for everyday life, thus having a 360-degree impact on the individual.
To make matters worse, the importance of these results appears further expanded from the context where the experiment took place. In fact, we must not forget the disparities that minorities suffer on a daily basis.
“Given the large and persistent disparities in standardized reading measures among students of color, It’s exciting to have found evidence that a time-efficient mindfulness practice has a positive influence on educational outcomes“says Josh Felver, study author and psychologist at Cornell University.
This time it is therefore not a question of being able to read minds, but of a discovery capable of really help thousands of kids all over the world.
“There is a significant need for feasible and effective interventions like this to help young people from historically minority backgrounds strengthen their reading skills so that they can succeed in school“, concludes Felver himself.