by David Baker There are child-friendly schools (1) and family-friendly schools (2). There are asthma-friendly, dyslexia-friendly and deaf-friendly schools (3). There are manuals (4) and web sites devoted to the idea of schools that are ‘friendly’ to particular groups of pupils such as wheelchair users (5) or autistic pupils (6). What I have been unableContinue reading “Staff-friendly schools … in which I test out my theory of staff-friendly schools, and ask the SIG what it thinks.”
Author Archives: wellbeingandinclusionsig
Wellbeing Interventions in Education: A Commentary
By Ioannis Katsantonis, PhD candidate, MPhil (Cambridge), B.Ed(Hons) Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge Why does wellbeing matter? Although wellbeing means different things to different people, most educationalists have come to understand that students’ wellbeing is declining, both in the UK [1] and globally [2]. In the UK specifically, the Good Childhood Report [1] inContinue reading “Wellbeing Interventions in Education: A Commentary”
The Writing’s on the Wall
Can we learn anything about a school’s approach to wellbeing by looking at what’s on the walls? by David Baker I embark upon this blog taking inspiration from the words of Henri Lefebvre in his essay ‘The Everyday and Everydayness’ (1987). Thus, ‘The proposition here is to decode the modern world, that bloody riddle, according to the everyday’ (p.9). LefebvreContinue reading “The Writing’s on the Wall”
Building bridges, not barriers: 5 takeaways from innovations in disability-inclusive technology
By Nomisha Kurian ‘We shape our tools and thereafter our tools shape us.’ I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this quote from Mismatch: How Inclusion Shapes Design (Holmes, 2020). Mismatch is a powerful call to build technology that is accessible for everyone. This includes historically overlooked groups of people, such as elders, women and girls, peopleContinue reading “Building bridges, not barriers: 5 takeaways from innovations in disability-inclusive technology”
To a More Meaningful Mental Health Awareness Month
Mental Health Awareness Month is coming to a close, and as a psychotherapist, I am particularly discouraged this year. Mental Health Awareness Month found its beginnings in the United States in the late 1940’s, and with the globalisation of the world through the internet, social media campaigns now happen all over the world during the month of May. Over the last few years, I have noticed a trend in messages that come from companies and mental health professionals alike. There tends to be two prominent topics: diagnosis and coping.
Staff wellbeing, the employee experience, and school websites
Wellbeing, however defined, is a part of an employee’s work experience. Looking things up on a website is also a part of an employee’s work experience. If, on the website, you don’t find information about yourself and your job, or prospective job, what does that say about a school’s view of its employees.
Am I invisible? Am I taken for granted? Am I valued?
This blog piece reports on some very preliminary thoughts following my review of the websites of the 34 state secondary schools and 13 Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) in a particular English county.
When fieldwork is disrupted…. what to do and how to move forward
As anyone embarking on primary research knows, recruiting participants and schools is a difficult business. Daily, the student population was dwindling as children and staff stayed at home through ill health or fear. Some parents were now supervising classes as staff were unable to come into work, and I watched with a sense of helplessness as absences grew. On the 18th March, the Headteacher requested that I leave the school site. Rightly, his priority was to protect the school and prepare for the inevitable lockdown that we all suspected was coming. Just two days later, the Prime Minister ordered that all schools and colleges in the UK close.
Evidence-based tips for fostering student wellbeing in schools
In the last decade, robust longitudinal research has shown that school-aged children’s wellbeing in the UK declines. This already observed declining trend has been amplified by the COVID-19 that brought tremendous changes to young people’s daily lives. Thus, it is our belief that teachers, school leaders, and professionals working with/in the education sector need to be aware of how to foster wellbeing in schools. The existing evidence on what works in improving students’ wellbeing in schools can be considered too complex. Therefore, we decided to write this blogpost to provide some evidence-based tips by consulting syntheses of the literature on wellbeing interventions.
THE NUTS AND BOLTS OF WEMWBS
David Baker, BArch(Hons), PGCE, MPhil (Education Research) is a 2nd year PhD student at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge. David describes himself as a complexity-sensitive, qualitative-focussed mixed methods researcher. He is currently carrying out a pilot study at a school in London to test out his methodologies and methods in preparation for aContinue reading “THE NUTS AND BOLTS OF WEMWBS”
Exercise and Music are effective in promoting mental wellness among students
By Anna Wong and Paul Yip Anna Wong studied Music (BA) and Education (PhD) at Cambridge and is currently a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Hong Kong developing innovative school practices for student wellbeing. Her research interests include the therapeutic uses of musical engagement for mental health promotion and suicide prevention. Paul Yip isContinue reading “Exercise and Music are effective in promoting mental wellness among students”
Cambridge Wellbeing & Inclusion SIG 