Positive Futures News
What is the EDSC Positive Futures program?
Positive Education brings together the science of positive psychology with best-practice teaching.
The school’s journey with Positive Education began in 2012 with Positive Education focuses and values implemented across each year level and over time has evolved into the whole school approach launched in 2020.
Our Positive Futures program has some very clear goals:
- We want to improve student quality of life and their engagement with others, including with their teachers.
- We seek to develop students in a more holistic way, with a stronger focus on wellbeing.
There are six tenets of Positive Psychology that are embedded into our model:
Positive Health – Positive Self
Developing knowledge, understanding and skills to promote health and well – being.
Positive Relationships
Nurturing positive relationships based on respect.
Accomplishment
Generating hope and optimism through the accomplishment of personal and community goals
Positive Emotion
Building and experiencing positive emotion.
Meaning
Believing in serving something greater than ourselves.
Positive Engagement
Developing critical thinkers by promoting challenge, curiosity and creativity.
All students and staff in the College engage in a 48 minute session every Tuesday with a tenet of Positive Psychology explored in conjunction with other activities such as mindfulness, gratitude etc. to support student wellbeing, engagement and connectedness. We also have members of Manningham youth services who will be visiting and working with all Positive Futures groups throughout the year.
Last week in class the students focused on goal setting and/or character strengths.
What are Character Strengths?
Good character is something everyone looks for in other people, whether they are employees, students, friends, or potential dating partners. Sometimes called character strengths, these are the good qualities that people possess—a collection of positive traits that show people's strengths—rather than a compilation of their faults and weaknesses.
According to those who practice positive psychology, good character is exemplified in 24 widely-valued character strengths that are organized under six broad virtues. These 24 character strengths were first studied and identified by Dr. Martin Seligman and Dr. Neil Mayerson.
Together, they eventually created the Values In Action (VIA) Institute on Character, which identifies these character strengths that all people have in varying degrees. Later, a team of 50 social scientists identified six virtues, which are now used to classify the character strengths.
Typically, those who use a character strength inventory look for ways to identify and use these 24 character strengths in a person's life. Then, they help them build on these strengths in order to improve their lives and their emotional well-being as well as address the challenges and difficulties they are facing.
To find out more about the character strengths or to take the free survey yourself please go to:
https://www.viacharacter.org/character-strengths
Positive Futures Book of the Week
Carry this book in your back pocket. Let it become your faithful friend that nudges you, at every point in your journey, to unlock your potential.
No matter where you are in life—searching for happiness, working toward a goal, longing for a better relationship, or feeling content and settled—focusing on your character strengths adds a whole new dimension. Recent research shows that when you understand and activate your positive personality traits, you become more resilient, manage stress better, and find greater fulfilment in life.
In The Power of Character Strengths: Appreciate and Ignite Your Positive Personality, you’ll be expertly guided by leading authorities through your 24 strengths. You’ll soon see all the ways these strengths are your best-kept secret for boosting your well-being. Discover how to appreciate what’s best in you and champion strengths in the people you care about most.
More resources can be found on our Wellbeing, Engagement and Positive Futures page of the East Doncaster Secondary College website
https://www.eastdonsc.vic.edu.au/wellbeing-engagement-positive-futures
Rebecca James
Student Engagement and Connection Learning Specialist