What is wellbeing all about in our schools
Wellbeing is a much discussed concept in education circles. The notion of being well does not imply only physical and emotional but there is also a spiritual more deeper aspect which schools/teachers don't often contemplate. We live in a society where secular values have risen and many people do not want to talk, discuss religion or spirituality yet it is these two spheres or phenomena which define who a person is, how he/she behaves, what he or she values. In our multi-ethnic and multi-faith environment , spirituality seems to be disappearing from being discussed in schools especially Government schools. While it is every person's free choice to believe in something or someone, there are common themes in all religions that should be explored and promoted in all schools like respecting one another, helping those in need ie due to hunger and poverty, saying no to any kind of violence etc. Schools shy away from incorporating these content themes into their busy curriculums and seem to focus more on teaching to the NAPLAN test just to keep school boards happy and parents. Education is more than simply being good at Maths or English (which are important) but also means being a compassionate , kind, truthful and simple person who doesn't have to meaure him or herself according to material possesions.
Yes - more and more schools (in particular staff welfare teams or 'pastoral carers') are looking towards all teachers and staff recognising the importance of student wellbeing.
Of course, Schools always want results.
Yet, as you say, students are more than their NAPLAN or ATAR results.
Viewing their care broadly/wholistically including; academic, social, emotional, physical and spiritual dimensions is encompassed by the broad term, 'wellbeing.'
Developing genuine, positive connections between students + students/staff and parents is so important for both personal and educational outcomes.
In our student program (as well as in PDHPE), we are underpinning much of what we do with Positive Psychology interventions and also linking this to our school values. I am not suggesting this will solve all the world's ills however; we are attempting to nurture our students as compassionate, caring young people who strive to reach their personal best in all areas of their lives. So far, this has been well-recieved.
Michael, we also look at Mind Matters and Bounce Back.
Reachout.com have recently added some terrific resources around resilience and student/staff wellbeing to their website. They are also running regular useful webinars for teaching staff.
There's also some good information and evidence based research results for young people, teachers and parents on The Smiling Mind along with Stanford University's Centre for Compassion and Altruism (check out James Doty).
Regards, Nicky
http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/caring_teacher_student_relationship
The first is on the nature of well-being. When I was Director for Education at the OECD we published a book, "The Well-being of Nations: The Role of Human and Social Capital", that included considerable discussion of how well-being can be conceptualised and how it is related to education. A particularly important feature was the role of social capital, defined as "trust and reciprocity". Communities high on social capital contribute substantially to individual well-being.
The second is on the question of how religion or spirituality might be dealt with in schools. The paper, "Shape of the Australian Curriculum: Civics and Citizenship" which is accessible via the ACARA website at http://www.acara.edu.au/curriculum/curriculum.htmlprovides for some study of religion to be dealt with in this subject area. The F-10 curriculum is currently being drafted and is expected to be available for review and comment in June 2013. Anyone wanting to be sure not to miss the invitation to comment can register at http://www.acara.edu.au/news_media/subscribe.html to receive updates from ACARA.
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