Wellbeing of children and young people

Wye, Ben, Brierley, Aidan and Hulme, Moira ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4095-3880 (2021) Wellbeing of children and young people. In: Mastering Teaching: Thriving as an Early Career Teacher. McGraw Hill. ISBN 9780335250356

Accepted Version File not available for download. Available under License In Copyright. Download (303kB)

Abstract

When we ask prospective teachers why they want to teach, almost all speak of a desire to improve pupil wellbeing. Aspiring and early career teachers often talk about improving pupils’ confidence, mental health and enjoyment of life, both in and out of school. This chapter opens with an examination of how wellbeing is conceptualised and measured in education. This is followed by four examples – at national, school and classroom level – to support your understanding of wellbeing as multi-faceted and malleable: (1) national policy approaches to promote wellbeing in schools; (2) school responses to protect pupil wellbeing in a crisis; (3) case studies of how individual schools strengthen wellbeing in response to locally decided priorities; and, (4) classroom practices deployed by teachers to enhance the social and emotional wellbeing of their pupils. By the end of the chapter, you will have a better understanding of the multiple domains that comprise wellbeing, and the pastoral, curricular and pedagogical strategies promoting wellbeing in school.