The accredited Mindfulness MBSR & MBA Teacher Training Level 1 course is an experiential training course in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction MBSR and Mindfulness-Based Approaches MBA for mental health and wellbeing. Offering the opportunity to engage in personal and group learning processes supported by the mindfulness gold standard 6 domains of teaching Mindfulness (MBI-TAC this course has been designed to deepen personal practice and the skills of teaching Mindfulness core practices, inquiry and mindful movement as a new career and in professional practice.
You will find all the information and links on this page, or download the full Prospectus HERE
The courses are taught by Kathy Ward, Mindful Academy International CEO, Senior International Mindfulness MBSR/MBCT/MBA Trainer, Supervisor, Teacher, TEDx speaker. Kathy is also a World Health Organization WHO Mindfulness Consultant where she is developing, supporting and researching a Mindfulness and Emotional Intelligence for mental health and wellbeing in the workplace course.
With a maximum of 9 students to allow optimal personal support and development, the course includes plenty of opportunities to engage in personal and group learning processes designed to support and deepen understanding and skills in teaching and integrating mindfulness-based approaches in professional practice.
We are currently only teaching live online fully interactive videoconferencing courses via Zoom due to COVID-19. The content of the course and schedule is exactly the same for both the in-person and interactive live online courses, ensuring that you receive the highest possible training experience.
You can secure your space and start training right now with a €250 deposit. Please note: The deposit is non-refundable as you will have started to train with us and received goods and services. Please read our Terms and conditions of booking. The tuition balance is then due 8-weeks before the course starts.
"The program was very well balanced, in practice and theoretical background. There was enough time for meditating, which allowed me to gain an open and curious mind and learn a lot during the week. I would like to thank Kathy for her professional and kind guidance of the online course. I would definitely recommend this course to everybody who wants to become a self-confident mindfulness teacher"
Marcela Roflíková. Czech Republic online Level 1 course in July 2020.
Interactive Live Online course dates:
Subsidized Rate - Subsidized spaces are limited to 2 per course and must be applied for at the time of sending your application. Requests for the subsidized rate at any other time will not be considered. Please only select this rate at the time of applying for the course if you are in receipt of benefits or would find it otherwise inaccessible to attend due to the fee. We will not ask for evidence of benefits or income at the application stage but may ask for evidence to support your application in the future. This option is not available if your company is paying for the course.
Standard Rate - This is the market rate for this type of course and the rate we ask you to select if you are able.
The Level 1 course is intended for people who are:
The course is designed to begin the process of training to be a teacher of mindfulness-based approaches. It is our experience that students come to this course with varying skills and experience and levels of practice. Inevitably, not everyone will be ready to begin to teach the 8-week MBSR course on completion of the Level 1 course and further development may be required. This could be with supervision or perhaps by attending another 8-week course and consolidating further personal practice.
Please note: Our courses are not attendance courses. Students are expected to attend and take part in all sessions. The training, support, development, and assessment are ongoing and in order to graduate as a Level 1 Mindfulness MBSR and MBA Teacher, students must meet the teaching standards outlined in the MBI-TAC.
During this experiential course, you will receive comprehensive training in teaching all aspects of Mindfulness including the latest research. This is supported by our extensive 426 page Manual covering every aspect of teaching mindfulness and mindfulness-based interventions, along with Mindfulness core practice Meditation Scripts and mp3 recordings of all practices.
Our time together will be spent in silence as we practice, and in small and large group reflection and investigation as we learn through the co-created shared experience. In this space, you will continue to deepen your own practice and embodiment of mindfulness and learn foundational teaching skills.
You will experience and learn specifically how to teach the core practices of the 8-week Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction MBSR course including mindful movement and develop the skill of Inquiry.
An estimated 90% of the world's population will be exposed to a traumatic event over the course of their lives (Frans, Rimmo, Aberg & Fredrikson, 2005) and up to 20% of us will develop post-traumatic stress. This means that anywhere mindfulness is being practiced, someone in the room is likely to be struggling with trauma. To address this, Mindful Academy International CEO Kathy Ward has extensively updated all the core practices and resources so that we can explore how to teach the general public in a trauma-sensitive way to minimize the potential dangers of mindfulness. Read more
These are the key foundations of teaching mindfulness and Level 2, Qualified and Certified courses are based on the foundation of this course.
The course is designed to begin the process of training, and participants come to the Level 1 course with varying skills and experience and levels of practice. Inevitably, not everyone will be ready to begin to teach the 8-week MBSR course on completion of the Level 1 course and further development may be required. This could be with supervision or perhaps by attending another 8-week course and consolidating further personal practice.
Your certificate will show:
Contact Hours: 65.5 hours
Other Directed Learning, non-contact hours: The personal and professional pre-course study including reading the required books and 2 supervision sessions is estimated to be 112 hours. The non-contact hours are of course subjective depending on when you sign up for the course, and how much time you are able to allocate. We ask that you do what you can, with the time you have available.
Total hours for Level 1: 177.5 hours
After successfully completing the training, you may state: “_____ (your name) has graduated as a Mindfulness MBSR & MBA Level 1 Teacher with Mindful Academy International, an International Provider of Training Excellence©”
Please note: Our courses are not attendance courses. Students are expected to attend and take part in all sessions. The support, development, and assessment are ongoing and in order to graduate as a Level 1 Mindfulness MBSR and MBA Teacher, students must meet the teaching standards outlined in the MBI-TAC.
On the Teacher Training Level 1 course, you will have the opportunity to teach 10, 20 and 30-minute mindfulness core practices (see the list below) followed by time for reflection on what went well, and anything you would do differently next time. In this way, practice by practice, your skills and confidence can grow.
You will also receive supportive formal assessment, support and feedback on your teaching using the industry gold standard Mindfulness-based Teaching Assessment Criteria MBI-TAC from Kathy and the team, plus informal feedback from your peers, and learn how to take the MBI-TAC forward as a personal learning portfolio to support your own development as a teacher.
At the end of the course, there is an opportunity to discuss this and other feedback from the MBI-TAC Teaching assessments before you leave and also in a 60-minute online supervision meeting (included in the price) with Kathy Ward. This can be helpful in reflecting on next steps and reviewing your learning and development needs after your Teacher Training Course.
The mindfulness core practices you will learn to teach are:
Graduates typically start teaching the Mindfulness core meditation practices including Mindful Movement to family, friends, and clients in classes, workshops or as part of their profession.
Depending on the skills of the individual you may also find that you are able to:
This course is designed to begin the process of training to be a teacher of mindfulness-based approaches. Participants come to this course with varying skills and experience and levels of practice. Inevitably, not everyone will be ready to begin to teach the 8-week MBSR course on completion of this course and further development may be required. This could be with supervision or perhaps by attending another 8-week course and consolidating further personal practice.
CEO and Founder Kathy Ward chose to have Mindful Academy International and the courses we teach independently 3rd party verified and accredited and as a Provider of Training Excellence and CPD Provider© we assure you of the highest level of professional mindfulness training.
To further demonstrate the professional nature of our mindfulness training, we also follow the Mindfulness good practice guidelines (GPGs) for teaching and supervising mindfulness Teachers, and utilize the Mindfulness-based Interventions Teaching Assessment Criteria (MBI-TAC) developed by Bangor, Oxford and Exeter Universities as part of our supportive assessment process of the 6 domains of teaching mindfulness.
To achieve the accreditation Mindful Academy International has undergone a rigorous assessment process focusing on 4 key principles -
This final principle involves a random selection from our student and graduate base and a direct discussion between them and the PDC to gather a first-hand review of their experience working with us.
A separate rigorous assessment process that focuses on the development and delivery of our training including our educational authority, how we collect and utilize our delegate feedback, and ensuring our content is kept up to date was also undertaken as part of the accredited CPD Status.
Now Mindful Academy International have achieved this accreditation and status as a Provider of Training Excellence and gold standard CPD provider, we are committed to working hard to maintain, and exceed, the excellent standard we have already set with our courses and the testimonials shown below, reflects our dedication to delivering accredited courses for an outstanding learning experience.
The courses have also been accredited with the Yoga Alliance in the USA since 2010 and the Yoga Alliance Professionals in the UK between 2012 and April 2019 however, unlike the Yoga Alliance, the new accreditation is globally accepted in a multitude of countries and across all professional sectors and demonstrates a much higher standard of professional mindfulness education.
Kathy Ward is a Senior International Mindfulness MBSR & MBCT Teacher, Trainer, Supervisor, Founder and Director of Training of Mindful Academy International. During the Level 1 course, she teaches a minimum of 8 hours per day and all online supervision is with her.
She has nearly 40 years experience in training and development and has been training Meditation and Yoga teachers since 2010, during this time she has taught 65 Teacher Training courses to graduates all over the world. She supervises many of the graduates and has regular supervision herself from CMRP to support her work. When not training, supporting teachers or working as a Mindfulness Consultant for the World Health Organization WHO, Kathy teaches the 8-week MBSR to groups and individuals using the online platform Zoom.
She has diplomas in Clinical Hypnotherapy and NLP Coaching with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy CBT, Motivational Therapist, and Coach with Motivational Training in Scotland. She is also a qualified Mindfulness Yoga Teacher and Trainer registered as a CPD provider with the USA Yoga Alliance, and a certified Yoga Therapist. As a member of the UK British Association of Mindfulness-Based Approaches BAMBA, she meets the requirements of the Good Practice Guidelines for trainers and supervisors of Mindfulness-based Teachers.
Her training in mindfulness includes MBSR Teacher Training and specialist Supervision training with Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice CMRP Bangor with Eluned Gold, Sarah Silverton, and Jody Mardula. She also attended specialist Teacher Training with CMRP in MBCT for Cancer with Trish Bartley and Christina Shennan, and MBI-TAC training with Rebecca Crane. As part of the mindfulness best practice guidelines, Kathy continues Supravision (supervision of supervisors) with Christina Shennan.