Well-being: A central concern

What is well-being - for students and staff?

"Child well-being is not something you can easily delegate to families and social environments; schools need to take a more explicit role." (Andreas Schleicher, OECD).

Many schools are now incorporating social and emotional learning skills within their curriculum, as they recognise the importance of nurturing the holistic well-being of all students.

The IB does not endorse or recommend any specific SEL program or organization. However, the IB does require that learning skills (ATL) are explicitly taught and practiced, and SEL skills align well with a number of the IB approaches to learning (ATL) skill categories. According to the 2015 World Happiness Report (Helliwell, et. al., 2015), schools that prioritize learner well-being have the potential to be more effective, with better learning outcomes and greater achievements in learners' lives.

"Emotions drive attention and learning. How we feel influences our ability to learn and if teachers aren't aware of that, they may not be creating the best environment for learning to occur in the classroom." (Marc Brackett, Yale Centre for Emotional Intelligence).

Navigate the pages

This and the following pages ( Why focus on well-being? | How can we teach well-being? | Well-being and human flourishing ) are designed as a workshop to be used with all staff (and indeed other key stakeholders) in your school. The aim of the workshop is to provide you with the knowledge, understanding and tools to develop, plan and implement an inclusive whole school well-being programme.

The IB have produced a good resource: What is well-being? Dr Magdalena Balica, Senior Policy Research Manager—International Baccalaureate Organization. “This paper is the first policy research paper in a series on student well-being in IB World Schools. The paper begins by defining well-being, based on an influential conceptual model. It then examines and dispels common myths related to well-being for students and schools. Next, the researcher discusses a well-known model that maps influencers of student well-being at the micro, meso and macro levels. Lastly, the paper provides practical guidance to schools for developing a context-specific well-being policy.”

The IB commissioned the following report: Well-being in education in childhood and adolescence (2022), Laura Taylor, Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Luana DeBorst and Devi Khanna Wellbeing Research Centre, University of Oxford.Executive summary | Full report. This study provides an overview of the latest research behind well-being in childhood and adolescence.Key findings: (a) Well-being interventions can not only improve the life of the young person but can also influence cognitive developmental processes to prepare them for adulthood. (b) Working with the family: Family interactions are very impactful on the well-being of young people, and, for children, they are the most significant driver. (c) Culture: School climate is influential for both students and staff and impacts many other drivers of wellbeing.(d) How students learn: Cooperative learning in the classroom is very important for well-being. Young people benefit from seeing themselves as part of a team.  The study goes on to provide a wellbeing framework, which is a broad overview of factors that are likely involved in well-being in schools, and is presented through four themes: health, people, environment, and skills. “The framework is meant to be a guide for school stakeholders to explore variables that might be of interest at the programme or whole-school level, and schools should be able to pick and choose which areas are appropriate to target for their population.” Recommendations - The study makes several recommendations: Schools need to focus resources (time and money) on wellbeing.| ach school should arrive at their own definition of wellbeing, being clear how they can measure and influence it. | Focus on subjective well-being: how people think about and experience their lives.| Consider the social aspects of learning. | Support teacher wellbeing.

IB Videos

The IB has created a suite of videos (CLICK HERE) to support educators and school leaders in implementing well-being strategies and action plans within their schools. Whatever your school context, whether you are learning about crisis or through crisis, these resources will support your approach to well-being.

Leading well-being: This video explores the importance of creating a positive school culture towards well-being and prioritizing basic needs for safety and belonging within the school community.

What makes school safe? This video explores the different support different students need in order to feel safe at school.

How do we develop resilience? This video explores how parents and teachers can build the resilience of young people.

Leading well-being in a crisis: This video explores how leaders should reflect on their leadership style during a crisis and how structures and systems can adapt to support the well-being of the whole school community.

Creating a well-being action plan: This video explores practical tips for creating an action plan for your school to support well-being.

Our Professional Inquiry

On this page our professional inquiry is: "What is well-being and why should it be critical to all aspects of a learner’s experience at school and beyond?"

This page provides you with definitions and frameworks for considering well-being. It will encourage you to reflect on your school mission statement and policy documents and what they say about your provision for the well-being of all members of your school community.

“With an increasing emphasis on ‘happy schools’ and well-being. the IB has foundational approaches which support this important emerging trend. We take a student-centric approach which values and nurtures leaners’ diverse talents and strengths in today’s competitive, stress-fueled world. We present learning opportunities that build upon local family/ cultural experiences. And we focus on developing sound judgment through critical analysis of media, advertising and peer conformity.” (IB Messaging Refresh, IB 2019)

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