2012 2015 Wellbeing the early years curriculum different

2012 -2015 Well-being & the early years curriculum: different meanings Dr Alyson Lewis Senior Lecturer, Institute for Education 13 th June 2017 @AKL 2727 @bathspa_ife 1

Thought provoking &/or worth considering? • Too many assumptions/taken-for-granted truths are often associated with well-being (Desjardins, 2008). • Far more evidence is needed to investigate well-being and education outcomes especially between diverse groups of children (Morrison Gutman & Vorhaus; 2012; Sabates & Hammond, 2008). • One paper has been published that reports how Scottish policy-makers and teachers understand wellbeing (Spratt, 2016). • Hicks et al. (2011) state that the UK, in the 2007 UNICEF report, only refers to England. • Morrow & Mayall (2009) suggest that not enough critiques of UNICEF data have taken place and the findings are overused.

Philosophical perspectives of well-being… 1: Hedonism/mental states discourse : 2: Eudaimonism/flourishing discourse: • Feelings of happiness or pleasure. • Ideas of human functioning and • Aristippus of Cyrene believed that the development, autonomy, selfultimate good life consisted of realisation and fulfilment. pleasure. • Having a sense of purpose and • Bentham, a British philosopher, argued meaning to life, living an authentic life, that a good society is built on being true to oneself and fulfilling your maximising pleasure for the greatest potential. number of people. 3: Needs-based/objectivist discourse: • Belief that numerous underlying conditions, or “necessary prerequisites” for well-being to emerge, such as health, income, education, freedom and so on. (Ryan & Deci, 2001; Gasper, 2010; Dodge et al. 2012) 4: Desire-based/preference satisfaction discourse: • Characterised by people satisfying their wants and desires. • The more someone satisfies their desire their well-being will increase.

Different interpretations of well-being in early years curriculum policy 1. A principle of good early years practice (Wales between 1996 and 2008) 2. An attribute (Scotland) 3. A disposition (Australia) 4. An attitude (New Zealand) 5. A capability (Scotland) 6. A skill (New Zealand, Australia and Wales from 2008) 7. Knowledge (New Zealand Australia) 8. An assessed outcome (Scotland Wales from 2008)

Practitioners’ knowledge & understanding of well-being Hesitations & uncertainties An unwarranted assumption 1. “I would go with child’s health. Do you think that’s to do with well-being? ” 2. “What about praise, would that come under that? ” 3. “Is that what you would…? ” 4. “It’s hard isn’t it well-being, there are so many things. ” 1. @AKL 2727 @cardiffuni 2. 3. 4. “I don’t think we see a lot of low well-being. ” “Our children have got good wellbeing. ” “Luckily for us the vast majority of our children already come to school with high levels of wellbeing. ” “I’ve always worked in schools where well-being has been high on the agenda in deprived areas. ” @bathspa_ife @ESRC 6

Describing a child’s well-being… Weak Poor Low Withdrawn, lack of motivation, depressed, sad Quiet Reserved Limited language Shy Afraid or scared Poor attitude to learning/tasks, don’t try Distant, just not with it No confidence Bad behaviour Low self-esteem Cry & whinge Not good with routines Tired, exhausted Dirty appearance Lethargic because of no breakfast *Think they are not very good at things Strong Good High Happy Bubbliness Well-rounded Well-spoken Interacting happily with others Independent Good attainment Eager to join in Confident Well-behaved Comfortable with surroundings Secure, content, relaxed, stable Cope well with routines Knowing the consequences of their actions Clean, look smart Knowing their place in society Knowledgeable *Know who they are and who they want to be

Contact details: a. lewis 2@bathspa. ac. uk 01225 875878 @AKL 2727 8

References Desjardins, R. 2008. Researching the links between education and well-being. European Journal of Education 43(1), pp. 23 -35. Dodge, R. , Daly, A. , Huyton, J. and Sanders, L. 2012. The challenge of defining wellbeing. International Journal of Wellbeing 2(3), pp. 222 -235. Gasper, D. 2010. Understanding the diversity of conceptions of well-being and quality of life. The Journal of Socio-Economics 39(3), pp. 351 -360. Hicks, S. , Newton, J. , Haynes, J. and Evans, J. 2011. Measuring Children’s and Young People’s Well-being. Wales: Office for National Statistics. Morrison Gutman, L. and Vorhaus, J. 2012. The Impact of pupil behaviour and pupil well-being on education outcomes. London: Childhood Well-being Research Centre. Morrow, V. and Mayall, B. 2009. What is wrong with children’s well-being in the UK? Questions of meaning and measurement. Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law 31(3), pp. 217 -229. Ryan, R. and Deci, E. 2001. On happiness and human potentials: a review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review Psychology 52(1), pp. 141 -166. Sabates, R. and Hammond, C. 2008. The impact of lifelong learning on happiness and well-being. London: NIACE. Spratt, J. 2016. Childhood wellbeing: what role for education? British Educational Research Journal 42(2), pp. 223 -239. 9