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George Rutherford visited the Maharishi School in the early nineties. His school at that time was the Fletcher-Johnson Educational Center, located in a run-down D.C. neighborhood. Transcendental Meditation (TM) instructor Bob Roth describes the area as “a place whose back streets are so harsh, so destitute, so crime-ridden that it is considered one of the worst areas in the country.”

As Rutherford explains:

At that time we were at the height of the drug war. All around was nothing but fighting and shooting, and a lot of it was happening right around the school. The kids would come into school in a terrible state. It was dangerous to get to school. It was terrible to get to school. They were frightened, and the school was the only safe haven they had. And we had to make sure it stayed that way.

Quiet Time Programs

In 1993, Rutherford instituted a Quiet Time Program in his school in which fifth- to ninth-grade students meditated for twenty minutes twice a day. There was an immediate decrease in suspensions, better daily attendance, and improved academic achievement. Indeed, the fifth-graders won that year’s award for D.C.’s highest increase on the California Test of Basic Skills.

Rutherford observed changes in the students: “They are calmer, and as a result, the whole school feels better. Otherwise they come to school crazy — and stay that way all day.” One of the school’s teachers, Rose Phillips, added, “The most noticeable benefits from TM are that the kids are more eager to learn. They read better; they have less of an ‘attitude’ or edge about them. They are more polite to their teachers and get along better with their classmates. They learn faster and remember things better.”

Student Testimonials

Reggie and Karla Dozier went through the Quiet Time Program in eighth grade. At nineteen and fifteen years old, respectively, when I spoke to them, they thought back affectionately on the program.

Reggie remembered how it helped him stay focused, collect his thoughts, and calm down. He is now a college freshman in business management.

Karla said that TM helped her be calmer and “de-escalate situations.” It improved her focus and ability to remember. She still meditates every day.

Leslie Potts, age sixteen, said that her sleep has been better since she started meditating. She becomes less angry and less likely to snap at people.

Meditation for Students in the Suburbs?

It would be reasonable to wonder whether Quiet Time Programs will only benefit schools under extreme stress, such as inner-city schools. That seems unlikely.

As a psychiatrist practicing in the suburbs, I encounter large numbers of students from upper-middle-class families who are also under severe stress, which is hardly a surprise, given their often punishing schedules. Many students take several advanced placement classes, then play competitive sports for hours each day. By the time they are done with their homework it is bedtime — or past bedtime.

Elementary and middle schools are increasingly seen as training grounds for high school and college. A recent survey by the American Psychological Association found that more than 40 percent of students are worried about doing well at school. Good grades give school children a sense of having a future.

Also, in order to qualify for certain sports, a minimum GPA is required. As Jeannie, a sixteen year-old girl, says, “Kids stress out on tests all the time, and if their scores aren’t high enough, you’ll hear, ‘Oh my God, I’ll never get into college!’ ” She adds, “Parents get so mad if you’re not living up to their expectations.”

Competition and Stress

There is a fierce sense of competition about ... everything.

To quote Jeannie again: “There is never a time when you’re not competing about something — looks, school, sports, academics.” While both girls and boys are concerned about popularity and grades, girls also worry a great deal about their looks (especially about being too fat or having acne). They worry that if they’re not pretty, they won’t be popular, won’t find boyfriends, won’t get married.... Worries about the future readily spiral out of control, and become a current source of stress.

Although Quiet Time Programs have clearly succeeded in inner-city schools, I suggest that we consider expanding their reach to more affluent communities, where they will likely be of great value. I predict that these programs would de-stress our school children and enable them to be more flexible in their thinking — something educators routinely observe when their school adopts a program of meditation.

Editor's Note: Those educators who may be interested in the Quiet Time Program for their own schools should contact the David Lynch Foundation, whose mission it is to help children learn to meditate.

This article was excerpted with permission from the book:

Transcendence: Healing and Transformation Through Transcendental Meditation
by Norman E Rosenthal M.D.

Reprinted with permission of the publisher, Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, a member of Penguin Group (USA). ©2011. www.us.PenguinGroup.com.

Click here for more info and/or to order this book.

About the Author

/Dr. Norman Rosenthal pioneered the use of light therapy in the treatment of SAD, or “winter blues”, during his career as an award-winning researcher at the National Institute of Mental Health in the USA. He has conducted extensive research into disorders of mood, sleep and biological rhythms, resulting in over 200 scholarly publications. He has recently suggested the use of Transcendental Meditation for the prevention and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, among other conditions. He is the author or co-author of five popular books, including Transcendence: Healing and Transformation Through Transcendental Meditation, Winter Blues, The Emotional Revolution, St. John’s Wort and How to Beat Jet Lag. For more information please see http://normanrosenthal.com.

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