Background

In recent years, the number of student suicides has been rising in Hong Kong. The exam-oriented culture is believed to be the major contributor. Students experiencing academic setbacks see themselves as “losers” as they were defined by grades only. Having heard of students calling themselves ‘losers’, teachers from HKSKH Bishop Hall Secondary School (BHSS) embarked on a ‘Creativity plus Value Education’ (C+VEd) curriculum with character strengths intervention. From studies, the knowledge of character strengths and its use not only lead to greater student engagement but also shows significant well-being benefit.

Aims

The C+VEd curriculum aimed at providing a platform for students to explore and apply character strengths, boosting their resilience, and strengthening their relationships with peer and teachers.

Method

The curriculum was designed with the PERMA model to help promote students’ cognitive and emotional health, strength of character and relationships. It emphasized experiential learning through ‘Feel – Touch – Think – Act – Reflect’. From “Me” to “We”, there were three key stages: self-exploration, care for the school and family, care for the community, with teachers being growth mindset coaches along the journey.

Results

A common language and lens of strengths were developed among teachers and students. Students shifted from undermining themselves to recognizing their strengths and those of others. Teachers observed students using signature strengths in different situations, more willing to embrace failure and challenges, and being more respectful to others. The focus of teaching shifted from knowledge dissemination to personal development with teachers’ increased identification with PERMA.

Conclusion

Witnessing the amazing changes in students, teachers kept collecting students’ voices to examine their needs and transforming positive education into practices in class management and lessons. This has also ignited the passion of other teachers to embed positive education. While the journey towards Positive Education began as a change in curriculum at BHSS, it changed the culture of the school and has become a common vision embraced by everyone.