For Flourishing’s Sake

This month I was thrilled to be a part of the For Flourishing’s Sake book launch. I am a contributor to the book (in fact a quote from me is on the first page, which got me a little bit excited!) and I chaired the first panel with some of the other guest contributors.

A big congratulations to Frederika Roberts, @Frederika_R on the launch of For Flourishing’s Sake: Using Positive Education to Support Character Development and Well-being.

As well as outlining what Positive Education actually is (and how it crosses over and differs from Character Education), Frederika shares examples of the benefits of Positive Education, an international range of settings it can be used in, how it helps academic process and the practicalities of how staff are supported with it, how you might use it yourself in a school that does not support it and the cost implications.

“Positive and character education are increasingly recognised as providing valuable ways for schools to improve the individual and social development and academic attainment of all students. Introducing new approaches for whole school implementation can be a daunting task as all aspects of school life can be affected by adopting a new philosophy. Frederika Roberts provides clear thinking, guidance and inspiration to help you introduce, enhance or expand positive education in your school. Drawing on interviews with pioneering school leaders and teachers from across the globe, Roberts weaves real life examples with research backed expert advice on all aspects of integrating character education in schools, including chapters on cultural context, leadership, and staff training. This empowering, strengths-based book is a friendly companion providing the encouragement you need, along with a healthy dose of practical ideas, to help your school and each individual in its community to flourish”

Chapter Content:

1. Aims of Positive Education
2. Unique Cultural Context
3. Goals Assessment
4. Evaluation
5. Leadership
6. Ethos and Policies
7. Visibility and Physical environment
8. Training
9. Well-being/Character curriculum
10. Embedded Wellbeing/Character learning
11. Targeted interventions
12. Engagement and Reach
13. Turning Dreams into Reality

What struck me the most in reading the book, was the range of different settings Positive Education can be used in, from small independent schools to large comprehensives, with a lot and hardly any funding – and the Positive (pun intended) effects it can have, especially when evaluating alongside academic achievement.

For myself, mostly working with pupils with SEMH and behavioural needs, the book gave me a vocabulary to communicate many of the approaches I use to support the specific needs of these pupils.

Engage with challenging behaviour in your school and support staff effectively;

Other blog posts that might be of interest