Contemplative inquiry · Research · Education
Attention is
a public
skill.
The Stillwater Collective explores how we understand attention, recognize what shapes it, and work with it deliberately in personal and shared life.
01 / The inquiry
What does it mean to be
literate in our own attention?
Attentional literacy is the developing idea at the center of the Collective’s work.
Our working definition: understanding attention, recognizing what shapes it, and working with it deliberately in personal and shared life.
In our own experience
Noticing what has our attention, how we respond to distraction, and when we might choose to stay, shift, or return.
In a world we share
Considering what we hear in conversation, whose perspective we notice, and how environments shape the possibilities for attention.
The development question
What must a person know, notice, understand, and be able to do to work skillfully with attention?
This question brings contemplative sources into conversation with attention research and education. The relationship between awareness, choice, and our regard for others remains part of the inquiry.
02 / Current work
A framework.
A pathway for learning.
Developing a competency framework for attentional literacy across K–12. A middle school afterschool proof of concept is the proposed starting point. Read the research agenda.
01A draft competency frameworkPlanned output
The foundational research output: an account of what people need to know, notice, understand, and be able to do, with a proposed progression in developmental complexity.
The working direction includes awareness, influence and choice, navigation and agency, and metacognition. These overlapping areas require research, specialist review, and refinement.
02A foundation for the inquiryPlanned output
A source-supported brief examining attentional literacy, its intellectual sources, and the rationale for the proposed competencies.
The brief will distinguish established findings, interpretations from contemplative sources, and propositions that need investigation.
03A middle school learning prototypePlanned output
One prototype to explore how selected competencies might be taught, initially with a middle school afterschool setting in mind.
The host, group, and reviewed learning plan would shape delivery. An afterschool setting is a proposed route to a later proof of concept. No host or pilot is confirmed.
04A pilot & evaluation planConditional
A plan for how a later proof of concept could examine and refine the competency framework and learning progression.
Phase One prepares the framework and prototype. Youth delivery, participant data collection, and evaluation would follow a later agreed plan.
03 / An everyday inquiry
What has my attention?
What might I be missing?
In a conversation, you might notice that you are preparing your answer while the other person is still speaking. If it feels useful, pause and consider what else is available to notice.
About this reflection
Adapted from the September 2026 Evermay presentation. This is an invitation to observe an ordinary experience. It is not a test, score, or claim about the effects of a program. You can participate, observe, or pass.
- 01Notice.
What has your attention right now?
- 02Consider.
What or whom might you be overlooking?
- 03Choose.
You might listen longer, ask a question, or pause before replying.
04 / About the Collective
Contemplative roots.
A public question.
The Stillwater Collective is an emerging research and education organization focused on attentional literacy and attention as a public skill.
The work brings contemplative inquiry into conversation with cognitive science and education, exploring attention, personal agency, and our lives with other people.
05 / Get in touch
Contribute to
the inquiry.
We welcome conversations with educators, researchers, youth-serving organizations, and people interested in supporting this work’s development.
Explore a connection
Share your interest in competency review, K–12 education, afterschool programs, speaking, or development support.
Discuss collaborationFollow the development
Request occasional updates when there is something substantive to share. This opens an email for you to send.
Request updates by email