Wellbeing in Schools

From Afterthought to Foundation: Rethinking Wellbeing in Schools

How can we ensure that wellbeing is seen as foundational rather than an afterthought for learning? Join us for an insightful discussion with innovative experts on wellbeing who are making wellbeing a priority in their educational contexts. 

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What is wellbeing?

Wellbeing is defined as students’ subjective experience of being satisfied with their school lives, having positive experiences at school, having positive feelings about school, and believing that what they do at school gives them some purpose and meaning. For definitions of wellbeing see The Wellbeing in Schools in Childhood and Adolescence Final Report, starting on page 34.

What Kinds of Innovations Were We Looking For? 

We were looking to identify and promote impactful and scalable solutions that support the development of innovative educational practices in student wellbeing. In our review of the innovations we will consider those that support: 

• School climate and ethos
• Family and community involvement 
• Participatory involvement / pupil and teacher voice 
• Incorporating targeted interventions

Who was eligible to submit and how?

Educators, students, researchers and innovators working in:

• K12 schools
• Mainstream or Specialised school programmes
• Organisations, associations or networks

who have scaled their innovation within school settings, for example, from classroom to classroom, school to school and district to district. 

The project recognises the diversity in the application of wellbeing interventions, categorised into three approaches: targeted, universal, and whole school. 

• Targeted interventions focus on specific populations, such as workshops for students with low self-esteem. 
• Universal interventions, like mindfulness workshops, are delivered to all students within a specific group, irrespective of their individual needs. 
• Interventions that take a whole school approach are more comprehensive, engaging with the school as a dynamic ecosystem, and include interventions for students, teachers, policy changes, and community involvement.

Innovations could be submitted by May 8, 2024, to be reviewed by our research team.

The Wellbeing in Schools Project Framework

The Wellbeing in Schools project explores, studies and measures student wellbeing in schools around the world to systematically learn and innovate together with both IB and non-IB schools over a three-year period. HundrED’s partners in this project are:

• International Baccalaureate (IB), Project Lead- A global leader in international education, offering four programmes that help learners (ages 3-19) thrive and make a difference
• Wellbeing Research Centre, University of Oxford - high-level expertise in the science of wellbeing
• Research Schools International - extensive experience in action research with schools in the area of flourishing
• The Human Flourishing Program, Harvard University - research expertise in promoting flourishing programmes globally 
• Jacobs Foundation (Funder) - A foundation that invests in the future of children so that they are given the education and learning opportunities they need to thrive. 

The project aims to turn the rhetoric of student wellbeing into an evidence-based reality, clearly embedded into systemic change through learning and innovation structures in education to support a healthy and flourishing learning environment for all students. 

For more information visit the IB’s website Wellbeing in Schools and watch their online project launch Wellbeing Webinar from June 7, 2023. 

Useful definitions

• Wellbeing Definitions (The Wellbeing in Schools in Childhood and Adolescence Final Report, starting on page 34)

Supporting Student Wellbeing: Insights from Global Experts 

As a part of this Spotlight wellbeing experts from International Baccalaureate, the Wellbeing Research Center at Oxford University, the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard University, and Research Schools International joined a panel discussion on April 3, 2024, and dived into what effective support for student wellbeing looks like.