he German philosopher Hannah Arendt described education “as the point at which you love the world enough to take responsibility for it.” Taking responsibility for the health and wellbeing of students and teachers is a key component of this. Many education systems, networks and institutions are now beginning to attach greater importance to supporting student wellbeing.
This is in many ways long overdue. There is a lot of literature detailing the mental health crisis facing Generation Z (those born between 1997–2012), attributable to the rapid spread of digital technology and the complexities that can bring, to the COVID-19 pandemic, to climate change, and to complex social issues such as addressing long standing inequalities.
In September 2022 the United Nations hosted the Transforming Education Summit, “convened in response to a global crisis in education—one of equity and inclusion, quality and relevance.” It was the largest global education convening in 40 years. As part of the preparation for it, countries were to hold national consultations and then prepare a Statement of commitment for the summit. 106 countries submitted statements. In the immediate aftermath of TES the Center for Global Development published a brilliant analysis of what topics countries were prioritizing. Depressingly they found the ‘issues relating to child wellbeing had low prominence’ in the Statements. Coming so soon after all the coverage of the ways in which COVID-19 had a particularly acute impact on the mental health and wellbeing of young people, this felt like a missed opportunity. The impact of COVID-19 should not be underestimated, OECD research has shown that in some countries the number of children experiencing anxiety, depression, loneliness and withdrawal is more than twice as high as before the pandemic.
It feels self-evident that there should be a clear correlation between wellbeing and success at school. If you feel good about yourself then you will be better able to concentrate and to learn. To a fair degree, albeit with certain caveats (such as results vary significantly depending on age of students) the academic literature supports this. In the last few years there have been some significant education initiatives that actively support wellbeing. For example there has been a global increase in social and emotional programs in part because “research shows that social and emotional learning (SEL) leads to increased positive attitudes, prosocial behavior, and improved well-being and academic learning.” Programs as diverse as Yale’s RULER approach or Delhi’s Happiness Curriculum provide compelling evidence that interventions that prioritize student wellbeing have a direct impact on academic attainment. The benefits clearly go beyond academic attainment in terms of wider health and societal benefits. In August 2023 the World Health Organization published an article showing suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among 15–29-year-olds globally. In an era of growing polarization initiatives such as the Happiness Curriculum, which “believes that the purpose of education is to create confident, mindful, responsible, and happy individuals who collectively build a happy and harmonious society” are surely to be welcomed.
In July 2023 the G20 Interfaith Forum Education Working Group published a policy brief on ‘Developing Well-Being Focused Education Ecosystems’ The policy brief includes a series of recommendations for practical actions schools and systems can take. These include creating intentional spaces for whole-person learning in the curriculum, moving towards a more collaborative approach to evaluation, embedding a relational approach to teaching and learning, supporting teacher wellbeing and professional development, and developing multi-sectoral educational ecosystems. Whilst some of these recommendations can sound quite jargony each of them is supported by evidence-based case studies that show how they can be implemented.
One of the ways in which student wellbeing can be supported is through programs that help develop a sense of agency leading to change. There is good evidence that connects agency with wellbeing and programs like the Medellin Challenge in Colombia that let students apply what they are learning in school to address real world problems.
As well as student wellbeing there has been a positive increase in educator wellbeing in recent years. The Wellbeing Project and the World Innovation Summit for Education co-host an initiative called the Teacher Wellbeing Group, “a collaborative initiative that advances the inner wellbeing of teachers and educators worldwide.” They put out a fascinating report in 2021 with a global literature review and case studies from Cambodia, Kenya and Qatar showing the importance of paying attention to educator wellbeing.
There are fantastic evidence-led examples from many different parts of the world showing how prioritizing student and educator wellbeing makes a real difference to students’ learning outcomes and personal wellbeing, which can only be good for the long-term future of the planet. Hopefully Hannah Arendt would approve.
a global affairs media network
Taking Responsibility for the World
Image courtesy of Charlein Gracia, via Unsplash.
October 14, 2023
If we love our world, we must take responsibility for it, and taking responsibility for the health and wellbeing of students and teachers is a key component of that. There is a clear correlation between wellbeing and student success, and policymakers have begun to take note, writes Dominic Regester.
T
he German philosopher Hannah Arendt described education “as the point at which you love the world enough to take responsibility for it.” Taking responsibility for the health and wellbeing of students and teachers is a key component of this. Many education systems, networks and institutions are now beginning to attach greater importance to supporting student wellbeing.
This is in many ways long overdue. There is a lot of literature detailing the mental health crisis facing Generation Z (those born between 1997–2012), attributable to the rapid spread of digital technology and the complexities that can bring, to the COVID-19 pandemic, to climate change, and to complex social issues such as addressing long standing inequalities.
In September 2022 the United Nations hosted the Transforming Education Summit, “convened in response to a global crisis in education—one of equity and inclusion, quality and relevance.” It was the largest global education convening in 40 years. As part of the preparation for it, countries were to hold national consultations and then prepare a Statement of commitment for the summit. 106 countries submitted statements. In the immediate aftermath of TES the Center for Global Development published a brilliant analysis of what topics countries were prioritizing. Depressingly they found the ‘issues relating to child wellbeing had low prominence’ in the Statements. Coming so soon after all the coverage of the ways in which COVID-19 had a particularly acute impact on the mental health and wellbeing of young people, this felt like a missed opportunity. The impact of COVID-19 should not be underestimated, OECD research has shown that in some countries the number of children experiencing anxiety, depression, loneliness and withdrawal is more than twice as high as before the pandemic.
It feels self-evident that there should be a clear correlation between wellbeing and success at school. If you feel good about yourself then you will be better able to concentrate and to learn. To a fair degree, albeit with certain caveats (such as results vary significantly depending on age of students) the academic literature supports this. In the last few years there have been some significant education initiatives that actively support wellbeing. For example there has been a global increase in social and emotional programs in part because “research shows that social and emotional learning (SEL) leads to increased positive attitudes, prosocial behavior, and improved well-being and academic learning.” Programs as diverse as Yale’s RULER approach or Delhi’s Happiness Curriculum provide compelling evidence that interventions that prioritize student wellbeing have a direct impact on academic attainment. The benefits clearly go beyond academic attainment in terms of wider health and societal benefits. In August 2023 the World Health Organization published an article showing suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among 15–29-year-olds globally. In an era of growing polarization initiatives such as the Happiness Curriculum, which “believes that the purpose of education is to create confident, mindful, responsible, and happy individuals who collectively build a happy and harmonious society” are surely to be welcomed.
In July 2023 the G20 Interfaith Forum Education Working Group published a policy brief on ‘Developing Well-Being Focused Education Ecosystems’ The policy brief includes a series of recommendations for practical actions schools and systems can take. These include creating intentional spaces for whole-person learning in the curriculum, moving towards a more collaborative approach to evaluation, embedding a relational approach to teaching and learning, supporting teacher wellbeing and professional development, and developing multi-sectoral educational ecosystems. Whilst some of these recommendations can sound quite jargony each of them is supported by evidence-based case studies that show how they can be implemented.
One of the ways in which student wellbeing can be supported is through programs that help develop a sense of agency leading to change. There is good evidence that connects agency with wellbeing and programs like the Medellin Challenge in Colombia that let students apply what they are learning in school to address real world problems.
As well as student wellbeing there has been a positive increase in educator wellbeing in recent years. The Wellbeing Project and the World Innovation Summit for Education co-host an initiative called the Teacher Wellbeing Group, “a collaborative initiative that advances the inner wellbeing of teachers and educators worldwide.” They put out a fascinating report in 2021 with a global literature review and case studies from Cambodia, Kenya and Qatar showing the importance of paying attention to educator wellbeing.
There are fantastic evidence-led examples from many different parts of the world showing how prioritizing student and educator wellbeing makes a real difference to students’ learning outcomes and personal wellbeing, which can only be good for the long-term future of the planet. Hopefully Hannah Arendt would approve.
