JC PandA Initiative
Background and Objectives
The mental health of Hong Kong students and teachers is always a public concern. Recently, positive education, which focuses on well-being and flourishing, has become increasingly popular among educators. To promote the well-being of school community, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust funded the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Hong Kong, since 2019, to launch the ‘Jockey Club “Peace and Awareness” Mindfulness Culture in Schools Initiative’ (JC PandA) which aspires to promote mindfulness culture in schools. Due to the effectiveness and excess demand, JC PandA will extend for another three years and serve till 2025. The specific objectives include:
To incorporate mindfulness courses in the social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum of Hong Kong schools so that students are equipped with positive attitudes and skills in emotional management.
To empower school teachers with mindfulness practice so that they are skillful in stress coping and are ready to teach mindfulness to students.
To empower school professional helpers with mindfulness practice so that they can include mindfulness in the repertoire of their services to students, teachers, and parents.
To offer parents mindful parenting course, so to equip them to take care of their children and themselves with mindfulness attitude.
To support schools in developing sustainable culture for students, teachers, and parents to practise mindfulness in schools.
While there is solid evidence showing the benefits of mindfulness for adults, research on mindfulness in schools is still in an early stage. The JC PandA is therefore unique in that it is one of the pioneer large-scale projects in Chinese societies that explore the benefits of mindfulness for students and teachers in school settings. It is an intervention cum research project that does not only contribute to the current educational practice but also the existing body of knowledge in mindfulness.