Mathew A. White, PhD, Associate Professor of Education and Deputy Head of the School of Education at the University of Adelaide, recently spoke to the MAPP community about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the landscape of education, highlighting the overwhelming need for an increased focus on wellbeing and resilience. COVID-19 has shifted the ground beneath us in many ways. It has demanded us to adapt to ambiguity, isolation, and if we are lucky, new routines. Its ripple effect on education has been far-reaching, and rebounding from this will present both challenges and opportunities. In addition to teaching and learning, schools are stable pillars of community connection and a necessary source of both resources and wellbeing. While we continue to do our very best through the pandemic, new perspectives can be leveraged to reimagine education for the future. Mathew White presents a hopeful and collective path forward.

The Wellbeing Paradox

White began by addressing the wellbeing paradox, acknowledging that although teachers overwhelmingly agree that student wellbeing is important (99% according to the OECD, published in 2019), there is currently no agreed upon definition or theory of wellbeing. White posed the question, How do the parts fit the whole in wellbeing and resilience education?

He discussed the beginnings of Positive Education (Pos Ed 1.0), and its push toward resilience programs, character strengths and positive psychology interventions in mainstream schools. While Pos Ed 1.0 established a strong foundation, White argued that the theoretical framework encompassing the education component in “positive education” has been missing. He introduced the future of Positive Education (Pos Ed 2.0), emphasizing the need for a strategic framework focused on leadership, measurement, professional practice and whole-school, system approaches.

COVID-19: Crisis and Catalyst

White acknowledged the pandemic as a health crisis, and also highlighted the complex challenge it has presented for education overall. Over 1.7 billion learners experienced a disruption in their education with forced school closures in at least 188 countries, impacting 91.3% of total enrolled learners worldwide. White discussed findings that many of us in education have witnessed on the frontlines: COVID-19 is accelerating inequity in education. From a lack of access to necessary technology and learning supports, to food and housing insecurity, this crisis is further compounding society’s equity gaps. Additional adverse consequences include gaps in childcare, teacher stress and burnout, rise in dropout rates, and increased exposure to violence and exploitation.

As an educator myself, I know it can be tough to see the opportunities as we’re living through these very real challenges. However, White suggested that COVID-19 can be both a crisis and a catalyst. It does not need to be either/or, but instead “...it’s a chance to rethink the very nature of school and schooling.” He suggested catalyzing questions including: What is the purpose of education? What is its function? What truly matters? We have an opportunity to explore these questions through Pos Ed 2.0, creating our own ripple effect on students, educators and families.

Prioritizing Wellbeing and Resilience Education

White suggested that in its most effective form, Pos Ed takes evidence-based strategies and systematically applies them in meaningful ways to impact teaching, learning and wellbeing. Beyond the obvious intentions of supporting student learning and growth, school wellbeing also includes educators and families. White discussed that during the pandemic teachers have reported a broad spectrum of feelings, ranging from completely overwhelmed to experiencing a sense of purpose from providing stability and continuity for their students and their families. We have an opportunity to better support our teachers and school staff, who, according to the data, are going above and beyond and at the expense of their own wellbeing to meet the needs of their school communities.

White shared a hopeful message: people are now recognizing the value of preventative mental health and wellbeing services, and are seeing opportunities to drive that prevention in education. For example, White specified teacher education as an essential feature of Pos Ed 2.0. How can we equip pre-service teachers with best practices in school wellbeing before they even enter the profession? This would be in service of student learning and growth, and proactive educator wellbeing in a profession well-known for burnout. The University of Adelaide has launched a pilot program to upskill new teachers starting their careers during the pandemic in wellbeing and resilience. They are also the first accredited program in teacher education to integrate character strengths into their theoretical framework.

Given all of this, what can we do?

White presented a call-to-action for wellbeing and positive psychology researchers to publish directly in education journals. He also emphasized the importance of convincing leadership and decision makers, arguing that we need to provide clarity and evidence on the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of wellbeing in schools and highlight philosophical, psychological, economic, and social-emotional reasons. White also drew our attention to the OECD’s framework to guide an education response to COVID-19, which calls for education leaders to “make explicit and visible their goals for wellbeing, and pursue strategies that help maintain wellbeing in the face of a global health event that will have a considerable toll in the lives and health of individuals - as such impact becomes proximal to every learner and educator, this may impact their motivation and functioning.”

We need to acknowledge the challenges of this crisis, and also remember the lessons we continue to learn. How will our new perspectives inform fresh responses to White’s questions: What is the purpose of education? What is its function? What truly matters?

To engage in these conversations and connect with others around the world, please join the International Positive Education Network’s (IPEN) free, virtual Wellbeing in Education Conference on October 27-29. Mathew White will be presenting his masterclass, Crisis or Catalyst? Examining COVID-19’s Implications for Positive Education on October 27.

About the Author

Dana Fulwiler is an educator and consultant, advocating for wellbeing in education over the past 14 years. She earned her Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) from the University of Pennsylvania, and MEd and BEd from the University of Saskatchewan. Dana’s experience spans public education, non-profit, and post-secondary, including current roles as Assistant Instructor in UPenn’s MAPP program and BEd Sessional Instructor at the University of Calgary. Connect with Dana on Twitter or LinkedIn.