Youth suicide prevention: Top tips for schools

In a recent webinar, The C.A.R.E. Kit: Suicide prevention advice from CALM, we were joined by psychotherapist, Wendy Robinson, Director of Services at CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) to talk about the important topic of suicide prevention. Wendy introduced the C.A.R.E kit, a free resource which can inform you on how to take action as a trusted adult to protect young people from suicide.

We were also joined by Kristan O’Flynn, Deputy Head of Sixth Form and BrainWaves Lead at The Cooper School, who shared her insights and experience on the topic and inspired us to come up with these top tips for trusted adults in schools and colleges.

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1. Be visible

Being consistently present and reiterating that trusted adults are there to help is key to ensuring students know and understand ways in which they can access support.

Kristan shared  a powerful example of this from The Cooper School. Following a weekend where there were two suicide-related instances directly and indirectly involving students, staff had an opportunity to stand united in front of the students in an assembly, acknowledge the incidents and share these key messages with their students: 

• “You do not have to deal with anything that’s affecting you alone”

• “We are here to support you”

• “You are all worthwhile”

• “Your voices will be heard”

Taking the opportunity to simply be visible and present for the students led to an influx in students referring themselves to the school counsellor and the school nurse.

Wendy shared a helpful resource from PAPYRUS which recommends that schools and colleges have a suicide prevention policy statement which is known and visible to the whole school community. It provides a model policy statement and reference points which schools and colleges could use to review their existing document.

2. Don’t be afraid of the S-word: suicide.

Talking about suicide can feel uncomfortable and many people worry that they don’t have the appropriate skills and training to support someone dealing with suicidal thoughts or that talking about it might put ideas into a young person’s mind. 

Wendy suggested that the only type of thing we shouldn’t say when talking to someone about suicidal thoughts is “You’re not thinking of hurting yourself, are you?” or “You’re not thinking of doing something silly, are you?” These types of phrases push the message that the struggling person should respond, “No,” which isn’t conducive to opening up a conversation with someone who actually might be dealing with these thoughts.

Stigma promotes silence. It is important to know that lots of people struggle: suicidal thoughts happen to 1 in 5 of us. Talking about it with appropriate language and normalising conversations around the topic might help reinforce that anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts can reach out for help without fear of the stigma often associated with it. 

3. Be informed.

You can help equip yourself by seeking out empowering information about suicide and suicide prevention such as that found in the C.A.R.E kit. The kit is full of information which can support you in approaching young people about their mental health, from prevention to crisis and at each point in between. 

For example, during the webinar, Wendy shared a list of different words that young people might use to refer to suicide without using the word suicide, kill or other clearer terms. A particularly common term at the moment is “unalive” (the remainder of the shared list can be found at 45m 25s). These more obscure terms are used to avoid censorship, particularly online where using words such as suicide and kill could result in a post or comment automatically being deleted. Additionally, they are used to create a sense of solidarity between groups of people who can decode them. It is useful to familiarise yourself with these words and could be words you suggest to be monitored by IT teams at your school.

Another way you can be informed is by getting to know the young people you see on a regular basis. Look out for signs that someone might need help such as changes in behaviour, physical indicators and the words they use or emotions they display. Almost anything could be an indicator that someone is struggling. When we get to know young people, it will be easier to identify when something seems off and trust your intuition in exploring what might be going on. 

4. Ask for help

Anyone working in education should be well aware of safeguarding policies and how to report anything of concern to safeguarding leaders at school. Kristan suggested a way to phrase this need for adults to get additional support when dealing with these types of situations by saying, “We both might need support, I might have to pass this on because I might not be the best person to help you.” This can help the young person to know that you are on their team and care about them.

Wendy suggested that it is the job of trusted adults to advocate for the young person, not to fix the problem. Best practice is to seek expert help to support the young person through an immediate crisis situation and beyond. Build a support network around the young person and also for yourself and don’t give up hope. The C.A.R.E kit includes a list of expert support services. BrainWaves lessons also include a list of places to get help at the end of each of our lessons. 

This support network you help create will be key to starting the young person on a positive path.

Want to find out more?

We hope you found these top tips useful, you can find more in our C.A.R.E kit webinar. If you are interested in finding out more about CALM’s vision and mission, please visit their website www.thecalmzone.net.

About the author

Abbie Simpkin is a School Research Liaison Manager at BrainWaves, responsible for supporting schools on the BrainWaves Research Programme.  She was previously a music teacher at Key Stage 3-5.

Top tips for introducing ‘positive emotions’ into your classroom!

My name is Clare Marshall and I have been a teacher of psychology for over ten years. I have worked in schools and colleges in England and Spain and am currently completing my MSc in Applied Positive Psychology and Coaching Psychology at the University of East London.

I found Positive Psychology (PP) back in 2009 when completing my BSc in Psychology and Counselling and a whole new world of psychology opened up. I now take every opportunity to implement positive psychology into my teaching practice to improve student wellbeing and facilitate learning.

As a teacher I understand the phenomenal workload that we are all under, and the idea of ‘one more thing to do’ is the last thing anyone wants. However, positive psychology has been shown to improve wellbeing in many environments – so here are some easy, quick and inclusive activities to promote positive emotions for both students and staff!

My fabulous four positive emotion inducing activities are:

1. Asking ‘What Went Well’ (WWW)

This is sometimes called ‘Three Good Things’. I ask students to think about WWW from the last day/week (or however long you think is appropriate. We gave our students little notebooks where they could write down WWW/or three good things and then invite students to share with the class. Remember, these things can be something as small as someone saying ‘Hi’, or feeling happier because the sun is shining (which is sometimes quite rare!). The important thing is it focuses on the positive aspects of life rather than the negative and done regularly, trains our mind to think more positively.

2. Discussing student strengths

Values in Action (VIA) is a brilliant website that allows children and adults to complete a Signature Strength Test and find out what their top strengths are. Research shows that just being able to put a name to your strengths is empowering, and using your strengths in new ways increases positive emotions. Getting students to take the test, then talking with them regularly about how they have used their strengths throughout the week is a great way to produce positive energy and emotions.

3. Showing a funny YouTube clip

I often ask students to send me clips that they find funny – obviously that doesn’t always happen and so I do warn students that I will show something that *I think* is funny. They say laughter is contagious and quite often the students end up laughing at me laughing. Here’s one of my favourite clips.

4. Creating a ‘Wall of Joy’

This is not so much as something to do every day, but a great activity that induces positive emotions, and has a lasting effect. I asked students to send me a picture of something that brought them joy and then printed and laminated them and dedicated a whole wall of my classroom to things that brought us joy. I had everything from pets to Harry Styles and crystals it was fantastic! Seeing what brings joy and having a daily/weekly reminder was lovely and encouraged conversations around what brings us joy.

Some other suggestions

• Playing motivational music as students enter the classroom (or even a quick ‘name that tune’ game).
• 10 minutes board game time (could be as simple as playing UNO!)
• If practical, taking the lesson outside into the school grounds.

And of course, the free BrainWaves lessons include many activities which encourage wellbeing through positive psychology (i.e. journaling, looking at strengths, showing gratitude etc).

The effects of positive emotions in the classroom

Dr Barbra Fredrickson, who developed the Broaden and Build Theory is one of the worlds leading experts on the effects of positive emotions: her book ‘Positivity’ is a great read, and there is a wide body of empirical research to support the effects of positive emotions in the classroom, including:

• Creates a great inclusive learning environment! Laughter is universal and brings people together so it helps students to feel at ease and creates a great group atmosphere.
• Increasing positive emotions has a positive impact on learning because students are more likely to attend when they know they are guaranteed to do something that makes them feel good every lesson (even if it is the first five minutes, it all helps).
• Inducing positive emotions into lessons facilitates students in building long-lasting psychological strengths over time, and this helps with managing many of the stressors that come hand-in-hand with school or college, so students often become more confident and better at coping.
• As a teacher, knowing that you are inducing laughter or positive emotions is beneficial for our own wellbeing. Teaching, whilst fantastic, can be challenging and making a conscious effort to build positive emotions into lessons is a great habit to create and has a ripple effect.
• Inducing positive emotions impacts on our visual attention and cognition, when we feel positive emotions our visual field expands and we literally take in more of the world around us, and we tend to think more ‘outside the box’.

To learn even more about how to generate ‘positive emotions’ in schools, you can also watch our BrainWaves webinar with leading positive psychology expert, Professor Ilona Bonniwell.

About the author

Clare Marshall is a lecturer at Warrington & Vale Royal College.

A safe space for learning

How to create a classroom environment where students feel emotionally safe

Studies have shown that students with higher levels of emotional wellbeing learn better [1]. Learning only happens after students’ emotional needs are met: allowing them to take more risks, to be less afraid of failure, to push themselves and to be more engaged in lesson content. Incidentally, they tend to perform better academically too [2].

So, in a world where students are always connected to the news and social media, where climate change anxiety and pandemic hangovers weigh heavy, where fear of failure, friendship dynamics and the pressures of academia can all make life feel a bit unsure, how can you help your students feel emotionally safe in a classroom environment? Here is a list of some suggestions for creating an emotionally safe environment…

1. Show you value everybody

The cornerstone of emotionally safe classrooms are positive relationships where all participants feel heard and respected [3]. This can be encouraged by:

• Creating opportunities for meaningful discussion and debate, and offering conversation structures for students to use.
• Greeting students as they come into the classroom – you might be the first person who has spoken directly to them that day.
• Taking the time to get to know students individually and creating a sense of belonging and community, from celebrating birthdays to noticing and recognising their strengths. This should be done with every student – even the most challenging ones. Celebrating strengths with students and their parents is important, especially during difficult times.

2. Celebrate failures and success equally

In order to take risks and challenge themselves, students need to see learning as a process. They need to view failures as positive steps towards success and to know that a FAIL is simply a “First Attempt In Learning”! A culture that celebrates failures as well as successes will help students develop resilience and perseverance. In order to reinforce this further, you can:

• Help students change their dialogue from ‘I can’t do this’ to ‘I can’t do this yet’. That one word makes all the difference! [4]
• Model failure. This can be your own failure – making mistakes in front of your class can be opportunities to demonstrate how we can use them as stepping stones in learning. It could also be sharing stories of success after failure – like this video ‘How a Failed Invention Led to a Potentially Life-Saving New Idea’ or ‘Musharaf’s story from Educating Yorkshire’.
• When a student responds incorrectly to a question, focus on validating their answer and thanking them for engaging before redirecting. You could say, ‘I like where you’re going with that, let’s come back to it. Does anyone else want to share their thoughts?’ You could also encourage them to expand their thinking by asking questions such as ‘Have you considered this?’ or ‘That’s really interesting, thank you for inputting. Could you explain your thought process?’

3. Foster self-awareness

Research shows that ‘when students do not fully trust their abilities to perform their academic tasks, they show emotions such as boredom, anxiety, sadness, or frustration, and exhibit behaviours such as passivity, distraction, and mental detachment’ [5] – none of which are ideal building blocks for emotional security. To address this, you can:

• Incorporate positive language into everyday classroom routines to promote self-esteem. Here are some ideas for younger students that could be adapted for any age range.
• Use constructive feedback which includes something positive as well as steps for improvement.
• Use the free BrainWaves lessons that focus on self-awareness to build self-esteem, including:
  • Turning failure into success (11-14 years)
  • Understanding your strengths (11-14 years)
  • Building your confidence (14-16 years)
  • Developing your strengths (14-16 years)

At the beginning of each BrainWaves lesson, a slide is presented with guidelines for creating a safe and respectful classroom. The teacher is encouraged to ask if anyone has any objections or questions and ensure that everyone in the class confirms that they agree to the guidelines. The intention of sharing these guidelines is to support open and honest conversions in the classroom, to enhance learning. All the BrainWaves lessons are available for free (you just need to register for an account) so why not take a look to get you started?

Conclusion

At the heart of emotionally safe classrooms is the teaching of emotional intelligence. By equipping students with tools to manage mental wellbeing, build healthy relationships and communicate effectively, we strengthen their emotional safety net and help them feel more secure in the learning environment and beyond. By creating a collaborative, empathetic classroom where students feel valued, we help them flourish and set them up for success beyond the four walls of the classroom.

References

1. Morrison, L. & Vorhaus, J. (2012). The Impact of Pupil Behaviour and Wellbeing on Educational Outcomes Childhood Wellbeing Research Centre. Department for Education.
2. Oxford Impact: Wellbeing impact study.
3. The Quaglia Institute for School Voice and Aspirations: School Voice Report 2016.
4. TED Talk: Carol Dweck: The power of yet.
5. Acosta-Gonzaga, E. (2023). The Effects of Self-Esteem and Academic Engagement on University Students’ Performance.

About the author

Naomi French is a Research Partner Liaison Manager at BrainWaves, responsible for supporting schools and sixth form colleges on the BrainWaves Research Programme.  She was previously a year 6 class teacher and subject leader for PSHE.

Even more inspiration!

Want even more ideas on how to improve student wellbeing in the classroom? Check out our blog on ‘Top tips for introducing positive emotions into your classroom and our PERMA webinar series for more ideas.

Making connections at the BrainWaves Inaugural Networking Day!

25th June 2024 marked our first ever Networking Day for the BrainWaves Research Schools and Colleges – a day that brought together a range of educational professionals all working towards the same goal: improving mental health outcomes and education for young people.

Held at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford, the event was keenly attended by a range of pastoral and wellbeing leaders, as well as scientists and members of the BrainWaves team. The passion and enthusiasm from everyone involved helped make the day an invaluable and inspiring experience.

Real-life research

Professor Sarah Bauermeister, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford and Senior Scientist at BrainWaves, kicked off the day with an exciting first look at data collected during the pilot BrainWaves cohort study in April, when over 7,200 students aged 16-18 years completed a 40-minute questionnaire about their mental health.

The data collected is currently being analysed by scientists from the University of Oxford, but Professor Bauermeister’s discussion of preliminary findings ranged from time spent on social media to food bank use, risk of homelessness and bullying. We look forward to sharing more detailed analyses of the data in due course, as well as running the next Cohort Study data collection point in November 2024.

Mental health interventions: What works

During the day, an exciting range of professionals from within our Research Schools and Colleges shared information about some of the most impactful mental health interventions they have run in their schools.

Firstly, Kristan O’Flynn, Deputy Head of Post-16 at The Cooper School, discussed how using the BrainWaves lessons has had a far-reaching impact into other areas of the curriculum and outside of the classroom. In particular, Kristan described how the ‘Having a conversation about mental health‘ lesson for 16-18 year olds has “probably had the single biggest impact of a PSHE lesson I have taught in my time at school”, generating disclosures that would have gone under the radar otherwise and allowing the school to put interventions and support in place for students trying to cope with situations on their own.

Next up, Cathy Durrant, Head of Pastoral Support and Administration from Eastern Education Group shared her experience of ‘Walking Therapy’ – a mindful walking outdoors intervention aimed at high risk students, where students receive counselling from a trained counsellor whilst walking outdoors, whatever the weather. As a result of this therapy, out of the 80 students involved, the majority improved their scores based on the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Health Scale and were reported as more positive and able to engage/re-engage with their academic studies.

To conclude, Gavin English, Deputy Head Pastoral at Alleyn’s School, spoke about how the PERMA model is scaffolded throughout his school as a preventative wellbeing approach and how the ‘Make it Happen’ space helps fulfil the difficult-to-achieve ‘Engagement’ and ‘Meaning’ elements of PERMA. By encouraging students to design activities that they want to see happen – from ‘The Swifty society’ to podcasts, journaling and even Lego sorting – the intervention encourages student-conceived and student-led extra-curricular activities that give hard-to-reach students agency and connection with what matters to them and their wellbeing.

Further professional development

As well as learning from one another, a range of other CPD sessions from guest speakers provided valuable insights into mental health education. Rachel Hart, Head of PSHE and Life Advice at Lady Eleanor Holles, led a CPD session on how to integrate wellbeing into a whole-school approach, whilst Julian Turner, Director of Education at BrainWaves, shared the science and pedagogical approaches behind the BrainWaves curriculum.

The highlight of the day though was the concluding session led by Stephen Murphy, headteacher at Malvern Wyche Primary School, and his inspirational view on how education, and the National Curriculum in particular, can be viewed as a therapeutic intervention in itself by simply incorporating wellbeing into each subject we teach.

Building a community

Our inaugural Networking Day marked a milestone in the development of our BrainWaves Research School community of dedicated professionals, committed to making students’ voices heard and shaping the lives of young people across the country.

To date, an incredible 42 institutions have signed up to become BrainWaves Research Schools/Colleges – including sixth form colleges, consortiums and specialist schools. Together, we are committed to shaping the future of adolescent mental health research and making a difference in the lives of young people.

Want to join our research community?

If you are interested in becoming a BrainWaves Research School or College and joining the University of Oxford in conducting mental health research in educational settings, then please contact our School Liaison team at support@brainwaveshub.org to set up a conversation and find out more about our work!

About the author

Naomi French is a School Research Liaison Manager at BrainWaves, responsible for supporting schools on the BrainWaves Research Programme.  She was previously a year 6 class teacher and subject leader for PSHE.

Transform mental health education: Take part in our teacher confidence survey!

Hey secondary school and sixth form teachers! Have you ever felt that you could use more support and confidence when it comes to addressing mental health in your classroom? If you’re nodding your head, then you’re exactly who we want to hear from!

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In collaboration with the University of Oxford, BrainWaves has launched an exciting new survey aimed at understanding how teacher confidence impacts the effectiveness of delivering mental health education.

This is your chance to be part of something that will make a difference. By taking part in our quick survey, you’ll provide invaluable insights into how prepared and confident you feel in supporting your students’ mental wellbeing. Your experiences and attitudes are the heartbeat of this initiative, helping us create a brighter future for mental health education in schools and colleges.

Here’s the best part: your feedback will directly contribute to building a more supportive and effective mental health education system for our youth. Imagine a world where every teacher feels equipped and confident to make a real difference in their students’ lives. Amazing, right?

So, if you can spare just 5-10 minutes, please get involved and take our survey. Your input will play a significant role in revolutionising how mental health is taught, ensuring that teachers like you have the tools and confidence needed to foster a supportive environment for all students. Together, we can create a more supportive and effective mental health education system for everyone.

Thank you for your dedication and for taking the time to contribute to this important cause. You’re making a real difference!

How we developed the BrainWaves Wellbeing Curriculum

The BrainWaves Wellbeing Curriculum – available free to all secondary schools and sixth form colleges across the UK – was first introduced in 2023. The development of the curriculum represents a concerted effort to integrate scientific research, pedagogical principles, and practical strategies to create an impactful mental health education programme. In this blog, Tracey Riseborough from BrainWaves explains how we went about it…

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The vision: Evidence-based, engaging and empowering

From the outset, our objectives for the BrainWaves curriculum were clear. We wanted to develop a programme that was firmly grounded in evidence-based practices, ensuring that every component, particularly the strategies we recommend, is supported by robust research.

Equally important was our goal to make the curriculum engaging, ensuring that pupils find the material interesting and relevant. Active learning is consequently at the heart of our approach. Guided by the ASPIRE principles (Agency, Safety, Positivity, Inclusion, Respect, and Equity), each BrainWaves lesson aims to engage pupils through interactive discussions, case studies, quizzes and videos.

Lastly, our aspiration was to create an empowering experience for pupils, providing them with a toolkit of evidence-based strategies, opportunities to practise them and the confidence to use them when needed to protect and support their wellbeing and mental health.

Overall, the curriculum is intended to give young people a greater sense of agency in managing their mental health and instil optimism about their potential to change. This stems from the development of pupils’ mental health knowledge, as well as their emotional, communication and critical literacy skills. Above all, we want them to feel that they have a part to play in their own wellbeing.

The inspiration: Positive psychology powerhouses

The BrainWaves curriculum is deeply rooted in the principles of positive psychology, drawing inspiration from the works of renowned scholars such as Martin Seligman, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Barbara Fredrickson, and Ilona Boniwell. Their research on flourishing, flow, and positive emotions has significantly influenced our approach.

One of our guiding lights for the curriculum was Seligman’s concept that positive emotions, resilience, and optimism can be nurtured and developed – and that we constantly need to top up our ‘wellbeing bucket’ to help protect our mental health when life gets difficult. With mental health, a lot of work is needed when things start to go wrong – so our curriculum is all about nurturing the positives before that point. We believe that by giving young people the tools to make choices that influence their wellbeing, we can increase their sense of agency and reduce feelings of helplessness.

PERMA: Our North Star

Our curriculum strongly aligns with Seligman’s PERMA model of wellbeing, which stands for:

These five strands form the backbone of our lesson topics, encouraging young people to incorporate the key principles of positive psychology into their lives in order to protect and promote their mental health and wellbeing.

Beyond PERMA

In addition to the PERMA strands of the curriculum, we’ve added two extra themes to deepen pupils’ understanding of themselves and the world around them:

• Brain and body: Understanding teenage brain development, hormones, sleep patterns etc and how these can impact our mental health.
• Thinking about mental health: How to evaluate the vast quantity of mental health information available online, and handling the pressures of social media.

The image below shows the lessons within the BrainWaves curriculum and their relevant PERMA strand by age range.

As you can see, the lessons follow a spiral curriculum approach – often revisiting the same topic several times so that pupils can build on their knowledge as they progress through secondary school, revisiting mental health strategies that might work better for them at different stages in their lives and picking up new ideas to try out as they get older.

Lesson order

We strongly suggest teaching the following as the foundational lesson for each age range, as these lessons explore the PERMA concept, which is then referenced in each subsequent lesson:

• 11-14 The science behind wellbeing
• 14-16 The science of happiness
• 16-18 The psychology of wellbeing

Beyond that, the lessons are set in no particular order – but students may benefit from completing the ‘strengths-based’ lesson immediately following the foundational lesson:

• 11-14 Understanding your strengths
• 14-16 Developing your strengths
• 16-18 Working to your strengths (not yet available)

Please note: we have currently 18 lessons available from the entire curriculum and are planning to release more in due course. Please check back on our website for new releases or follow us on social media to be kept up-to-date with new lesson announcements.

Building skills, literacies and attitudes

In designing this curriculum, we have drawn on Claxton’s (2018) metaphor of a river of learning, encompassing three levels:

1. Content and information: Providing solid, research-backed knowledge about mental health.
2. Skills and literacies: Developing critical thinking, emotional regulation, scientific literacy, and more.
3. Attitudes and dispositions: Emphasising growth mindset, resilience, and positive psychology principles.

For Level 1, the content of the lessons is described above. This content has been selected through careful consultation with teachers and educational experts.

Level 2 refers to the skills, strategies and literacies we hope to support through these lessons. This includes but is not limited to, scientific literacy, information literacy, personal reflection, active listening, emotional regulation, healthy sleep habits as well as others outlined in more detail in the lesson plans and teacher guidance. These will be supported mainly through the activities carried out in the lessons.

Level 3 speaks to the broader ideals that guide our approach as a whole, as well as the attitudes and dispositions we seek both to model and to encourage in pupils. These include ideas such as Seligman’s positive psychology and Dweck’s growth mindset. Whilst we do not claim to be able to develop these over the course of a series of lessons, it is hoped that in modelling them and in highlighting their importance, we can emphasise their value to learners.

Evaluation and improvement

Through the Department of Education at the University of Oxford, we are working to constantly evaluate and review the BrainWaves lessons with a view to modifying and improving the content. Each lesson plan comes with links to a short feedback form at the end, which can be completed by both pupils and teachers. We are very keen to receive feedback so would urge teachers to take part in this important evaluation process.

Our first evaluation of the 16-18 lessons/curriculum was completed by nearly 12,000 pupils and over 50 teachers, and revealed the following:

• 73% of pupils enjoyed the lessons.
• 74% of pupils said they learned something.
• 64% said they would try out a new strategy to support their mental health following the lesson

We’ll release more information about our evaluation findings as it becomes available so please watch this space!

Final thoughts: Support for teachers

One of the hardest things about creating a curriculum of wellbeing lessons is ensuring that they can be taught easily and with minimal support by busy, non-specialist teachers. To help with this, we have provided a succinct toolkit to help teachers faced with the challenges of teaching about mental health and wellbeing:

• Teacher guides: Each lesson is supported by a concise teacher guide, outlining the main activities within the lesson and how to deliver them, as well as downloadable handouts. You can find an example here.
• Scientific guides: Each lesson also includes links to a scientific guide highlighting the evidence and research behind the specific mental health strategy suggested in that lesson. You can find an example here.
• Webinars: We have an ever-increasing library of webinars exploring the key concepts presented in the BrainWaves curriculum, such as PERMA, sleep, stress and the teenage brain. All new and previous webinars are listed here for you to book onto or watch again.
• Blogs: Our blogs cover lots of advice and support for promoting a classroom environment in which sensitive issues such as mental health can be discussed. You can read them here.

So, there you have it! Grounded in research and brought to life with the aim of making a real difference, the BrainWaves curriculum offers the chance to foster a real culture of wellbeing and resilience in your school. We do hope that you enjoy teaching these lessons, but that most importantly, they have a positive impact on your pupils in helping them proactively manage their mental health and wellbeing.

Thanks for reading!

About the author

Tracey Riseborough is the Content Manager and School Programmes Manager at BrainWaves. She has worked in educational publishing for over 25 years, developing resources for schools in the areas of mental health, special educational needs, assessment and the early years.

Celebrating one year of BrainWaves! Shaping the future of adolescent wellbeing

This week marks a year since the launch of BrainWaves, and a year since we started building our community of Research Schools/Colleges on our journey towards revolutionising adolescent mental health education!

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One whole year, in which we have achieved so much, meeting and surpassing all that we hoped to deliver. None of this could have been possible without the amazing Research Schools/Colleges who have partnered with us so far.

Real-life research

Over the last year, an incredible 34 institutions have signed up to become BrainWaves Research Schools/Colleges – including sixth form colleges, consortiums and specialist schools. The students at these schools/colleges have had the opportunity to work closely with the University of Oxford – getting involved in real-life, active research studies, taking part in lessons, sharing their opinions and making their voices heard.

The BrainWaves Wellbeing Curriculum

We now have 17 lessons available on our website with many more planned as part of our FREE spiral wellbeing curriculum for students aged 11-14, 14-16 and 16-18. These lessons have reached over 940 schools, are impacting tens of thousands of students and have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from both teachers and students.

Over 11,500 students, along with many teachers, joined our education evaluation study and have given feedback on the BrainWaves lessons. This feedback is helping us to continually improve these lessons and make sure they connect with young people.

Taking part in mental health research

Over 4,200 students aged 16-18 years took part in our Consent Trial throughout autumn-23 / spring-24, examining the issues relating to getting young people to give their consent to take part in health-related research. This ground-breaking study helped us when preparing for collecting our first set of Cohort Study data, where over 7,200 students aged 16-18 years completed a 40-minute questionnaire about their mental health.

Over the next few months, we will be sending out individual reports to participating schools, highlighting the trends in their cohorts’ wellbeing and we look forward to our next Cohort Study data collection point in November 2024.

Using the data collected

Students and teachers have really enjoyed the opportunity to join in with these studies and help us make a difference. With their help, we aim to transform what we know and understand about adolescent mental health and use the data we collected to develop interventions specifically designed to improve teenage wellbeing.

The benefits of becoming a BrainWaves Research School/College

Our Research Partners are supported by our team of School Liaison Managers who work closely with the BrainWaves lead coordinators in each school or college. As well as each school and college receiving a termly wellbeing gift, teachers have the opportunity to take part in our Teacher Wellbeing Prize Draw. So far this year, winning teachers have chosen a Netflix movie night / hamper selection and a 6 month book subscription as their respective prizes!

Networking opportunities and CPD

We are now looking forward to our inaugural Networking Day in June for BrainWaves leads at Research Schools and Colleges, where we will have a chance to discuss the BrainWaves research and hear from insightful and inspiring speakers on mental health within schools. This event marks the start of the development of our BrainWaves Research School community that we hope will go from strength to strength, with lead teachers sharing experiences and learning from each other.

Since launch, we have run 9 free webinars on a range of issues relating to mental health – the teenage brain, sleep, positive psychology and how you can help support students’ wellbeing. These webinars are free to attend and are all available to rewatch at any time.

Making a difference

As we celebrate this one-year anniversary, we also celebrate the BrainWaves community, including our inspiring Research Schools and Colleges who unite with us in a common goal. Together, we are making a difference in the lives of young people and shaping the future of adolescent mental health research.

Want to join us on this journey?

Contact the BrainWaves School Liaison team at support@brainwaveshub.org to find out more and set up a conversation about what’s involved in becoming a BrainWaves Research School/College.

About the author

Abbie Simpkin is a School Research Liaison Manager at BrainWaves, responsible for supporting BrainWaves Schools/Colleges. She was previously a music teacher at Key Stage 3-5.

Stress management for teachers

Managing stress as a teacher can be challenging, but with the right strategies, it is possible to navigate through the demands of the profession while maintaining your wellbeing. Following our webinar, “From distress to de-stress: Stress management for teachers” we are sharing some of the tips shared by our expert panel…

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1. Keep perspective

One key strategy is shifting your perspective. As Carl Sagan famously described in “Pale Blue Dot,” putting things into perspective can help you see the bigger picture and realise that the stressors you face are just a small part of the vast universe. This can help you not to sweat the small stuff and focus on what truly matters!

2. Don’t forget your friends

Another important strategy is finding time for contact with other people. Spending time with friends and family can offer a much-needed break and help teachers maintain a healthy work-life balance. These relationships can provide emotional support, a sense of belonging, a sense of perspective and a break from the isolation that can sometimes come with teaching. Social interactions can also help you relax, share experiences, and gain new perspectives on your challenges.

3. Avoid ‘must’ and ‘need to’

Next, consider the language you use when you talk to yourself. The words we use can greatly impact our mindset and emotions. It’s important to avoid language that creates a sense of urgency (“I must”, “I need to”) and to allow flexibility in task completion if you don’t have time within your working day. Using positive and empowering language can help you build resilience, boost your confidence, and reduce stress.

4. Get outside

Additionally, spending time in nature, as suggested by Kaplan and Kaplan’s theory on nature and cognitive capacity, can be beneficial for stress relief. Nature has a calming effect on the mind and body, helping to restore attention and reduce mental fatigue. Embracing the Attention Restoration Theory, taking breaks in green spaces or simply looking at natural scenery can refresh your mind and improve your overall wellbeing.

5. Ask for help

Get help when you need it, don’t postpone: It is crucial for teachers to recognise when they are feeling overwhelmed and seek assistance when needed. By addressing stressors promptly instead of delaying, educators can prevent issues from escalating and impacting their wellbeing. Seeking help can come in various forms, such as talking to a counsellor, therapist, or trusted colleague, and can provide valuable insights and strategies for managing stress effectively.

6. Reach out to others

Reach out to colleagues to establish a community of support: Cultivating a sense of community and trust among colleagues can create a supportive environment where teachers feel comfortable expressing their vulnerabilities. By reaching out to fellow educators and sharing experiences of stress or challenges, teachers can foster a network of support that offers understanding, empathy, and practical advice. This not only helps teachers cope with stress but also promotes a culture of openness and collaboration within the school community.

By incorporating these strategies into your daily routine, we hope you can enhance your ability to manage stress effectively and create a more balanced and fulfilling teaching experience.

About the author

Tara Pilkington is Partnership Marketing Executive at The Day.

Glossary of Research Terms

As more and more young people take part in BrainWaves research studies, the more questions we get about what some of these research terms mean. Here are a list of the key terms students might encounter in research, with easy-to-understand definitions…

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Bias
Any factor which is likely to skew the results of a study in a particular direction. This could be for the entire study, or for a specific sub-group within a study.

Cohort study
A cohort study is a particular form of longitudinal study where researchers track the change of behaviour in the same group of individuals, who share certain characteristics, across a period of time.

Data processing
Data processing occurs whenever any data is collected (from participants) and translated into usable information. This is usually performed by data scientists and researchers.

De-identified data
Data where all personally identifiable information has been removed from a data set.

Ethical approval
Ethics approval is needed for all research involving human participants, or data from which individuals could be identifiable. University of Oxford is committed to ensuring that its research involving human participants is conducted in a way that respects the dignity, rights, and welfare of participants, and minimises risk to participants, researchers, third parties, and to the University itself.

Generalisability
Linked to representativeness, generalisability refers to the degree to which the results of a study can be generalised to a broader population or context. For example, if taking a cold shower improves your mental health, to what extent can this be generalised to the claim that cold showers would improve other people’s mental health.

Interventions
Interventions, in the context of psychiatry, are actions performed to bring about change in people. They can be targeted towards a wide range of behaviours, such as bullying, depressive symptoms, wellness etc.

Limitations
The weakness of a study or ways in which a study could be improved in future. No study has no limitations, the important thing is for researchers to be open about the limitations and recognise them, not to try and hide them or claim they don’t exist.

Linkage key
A linkage key allows researchers to identify multiple data sets from the same participants. Since BrainWaves is a cohort study, it is important to know how a person’s behaviour changes over time.

Longitudinal data
Data that is collected with the same group of individuals across a period of time measuring a standard set of criteria.

Peer review
The process by which scientific studies are shared with other independent scientists who check whether the methods used and conclusions drawn are appropriate. This is often considered one of the most important features of scientific research.

Personal data
Data that is related to an individual who might be identified from other data sets.

Pseudonymised
Pseudonymisation is a data processing technique that removes all information in a data set that can identify the participant. However, using a linkage key, researchers can still identify the data sets contributed by the same individual participant.

Reliability
The degree to which a measurement consistently measures the same thing. e.g. a questionnaire to measure the degree of stress felt by students might be considered unreliable if some students answered the survey right before a 3 hour exam, while others answered after breaktime.

Representativeness
The degree to which a sample (the people in a study) can be considered to represent the population as a whole (the entire group of people which the study is hoping to investigate). For example, a sample of 16–18-year-olds in schools in London would not provide an accurate representation of all 16-18-year-olds across England.

About the author

Charlotte Chan is an assistant on the BrainWaves research project. She holds a BSc (Hons) in Psychology from the University of Bath,

Positive psychology and student wellbeing: Our top 5 insights

In our recent webinar on ‘Positive Psychology and Student Wellbeing’, we had the privilege of hosting a panel of experts, including Dr. Michelle Tytherleigh, a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Chester.

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The aim of the webinar was to explore the fundamental principles of positive psychology and the research that demonstrates how these principles can positively impact student mental health. Our panel also discussed how teachers can apply these principles to promote students’ self-assurance, perseverance, and understanding of how to maintain mental wellbeing.

Outlined below are five significant takeaways from the webinar. Plus, don’t forget that you can now also watch the webinar on-demand here!

1. What is positive psychology?

Psychology often takes a deficit approach where issues are identified and remedied to bring people to a balanced level of mental wellness. Positive psychology, on the other hand, looks at what makes life most worth living. It concentrates on using our strengths to build upon the good in our lives and enhance the lives of everyone around us.

It is important to note here the five key elements of wellbeing theory (PERMA), as defined by Martin Seligman, that inform our understanding of positive psychology:

P – Positive emotion E – Engagement R – Relationships M – Meaning A – Accomplishments

Mental wellness goes beyond just experiencing positive emotions. It involves reflecting on the things that give life meaning and purpose, building positive relationships, and feeling a sense of accomplishment. It acknowledges that negative experiences are also a part of life, but it doesn’t negate the possibility of having mental wellbeing alongside mental illness.

2. How can positive psychology support student wellbeing?

During adolescence, students are in the process of discovering their identity and determining their direction and path in life. Positive psychology can be a helpful tool to encourage students to recognise their individual strengths and create their own strategies for success. The principles can help students to perceive the things they enjoy as being good for them, developing and growing them and as important to their wellbeing. By focusing on the things they enjoy, students can develop their skills and build a toolkit of resources to support their mental wellbeing.

This approach empowers students to use their agency and take control of their own mental health and equips them with resources to handle challenges and pressures. In addition, it can benefit all students, including those who are neurodivergent, by emphasising their strengths and capabilities.

3. What can teachers do to implement positive psychology in school?

Many individuals who work with students in schools may not have clinical training, but they can still implement positive psychology principles in their work with students. As a teacher who undoubtedly wants their students to succeed and cares about their wellbeing, you may already be using many of these principles without realising!

Utilise your skills and experience in engaging and communicating with students to scaffold conversations which inspire inner hope and belief that they can overcome obstacles. Encourage your students to identify their strengths and use positive psychology practices to support their own wellbeing. It is crucial for school staff to model this approach and empower students to take agency in their own lives.

4. How can positive psychology fit in with the curriculum?

Time constraints within a school timetable can make it difficult to implement positive psychology principles during PSHE sessions, tutor time, or assemblies. However, a more reactive approach in responding to problems as they arise can be even more time and resource consuming and does not reach every student. To effectively support student wellbeing, we need to find time to use interventions that can make a long-term and wide reaching impact rather than taking a reactive approach to each issue as it arises.

You can use principles of positive psychology during pastoral, disciplinary, or restorative conversations with students. Asking questions about their current situation, interests, relationships, and behaviour can be helpful. Questions you could ask include: “Let’s have a conversation about you”, “What’s going on at the moment?”, and “Are you a good friend to the people around you and what does that look like?”

Investing in positive psychology can also meet OFSTED’s standards surrounding personal development and create a strong foundation for your school’s curriculum and behavioural system. By prioritising positive psychology, you can create a sustainable approach to supporting student wellbeing.

5. What additional resources are available incorporating the principles of positive psychology?

Lessons:

• BrainWaves is developing a curriculum of wellbeing lessons for KS3 to KS5 students. There are currently 6 KS5 lessons available, with a range of KS3-4 lessons launching in early 2024. The lessons are based on principles of positive psychology along with critical thinking and information literacy. They also include scientific links to neuroscience and the adolescent brain.

Websites:

• https://positivepsychology.com/ has some introductory materials to positive psychology, including examples of activities and resources.
• https://positivepsychology.com/what-is-positive-education/ offers some helpful advice on positive education (the application of positive psychology in schools)
• https://positivepsychology.com/perma-model/ is a great place to learn more about the Martin Seligman’s PERMA definitions
• https://www.viacharacter.org/ offers more about the Value in Action Character Strengths, the backbone to positive psychology and 24 VIA strengths we all have and can measure using the free online survey. There is lots of research evidence, resources and ideas for strengths-based activities here.
• https://www.worthit.org.uk/ is a UK-based organisation, with free support, advice and opportunities for UK educators.

Books:

• The Palgrave Handbook of Positive Education (Kern & Wehmeyer, 2021 – available as open source)
• Activities for Teaching Positive Psychology: A Guide for Instructors (Froh and Parks, 2012)
• Applied Positive School Psychology (Giraldez-Hayes & Burke, 2023)

Academic articles:

• This paper provides a taster of brief Positive Psychology Interventions (PPIs) which can be adapted for all ages
• Do PPIs work? A freely available review
• Is positive education too positive for the UK? A discussion paper by Liz Robson-Kelly
• The first year results of The Hummingbird Project: A Positive Psychology Intervention for Secondary School Students

Watch the webinar!

If you found these insights and strategies interesting, watch the webinar on-demand to find out more.

About the author

Abbie Simpkin is a School Research Liaison Manager at BrainWaves, responsible for supporting schools on the BrainWaves Research Programme.  She was previously a music teacher at Key Stage 3-5.