How was school? A phenomenological enquiry into wellbeing experiences of 15 year olds in Slovakia Lenka Blaskova MPhil Research Methods Strand, Psychology & Education, Faculty of Education. Keywords: wellbeing, students perceptions, phenomenology, post-communist education, Slovakia Copyright Colin Purrington (http://colinpurrington.com/tips/academic/posterdesign). Introduction to research problem PISA 2012 - Slovak students reporting one of the lowest happiness levels experienced at school, implying that the school environment does not positively promote their well-being The negative change in Slovak student’s sense of belonging between 2002 and 2012 implies that the democratic reforms in Slovak education do not contribute to positive schooling experience and further improvements are needed to address the deteriorating trends of students’ well-being. Slovak education in context Transiting to democracy at political, economic & social levels since 1989 Education embraces all aspects of transiting to democracy, Slovakia scoring low in international studies monitoring education. 18 different Ministers of Education btw 1989-2016 OECD, 2014, Education GPS, PISA 2012 Database Health Behaviour of School-aged Children (HBSC) 2009/2010 - Slovak students scored within the lowest group, who ‘likes school a lot.’ Report is published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and examines the well-being perceived by children in developed countries (Currie et al., 2012). OECD, 2013 In addition, recent HBSC report shows negative trend between 2009/2010 and 2013/2014, and statistically significant decrease of 13-year-old boys and 15-year-old girls, who ‘like a school a lot’ (WHO, 2015). The generation of respondents was born and grew up in a democratic country; therefore, their perceptions of the reformed school environment denote the level of a successful transition. Theoretical background Wellbeing in education Critique of researching the concepts separately ! high correlation between SWB & PWB tools – discriminant validity, are both measuring the same? ! inaccurate due to individual differences – concepts might be blended in personal preferences ! insufficient empirical evidence for separate views Meaning of wellbeing culturally rooted to individual’s judgments about what it means to be well (Christopher, 1999). School environment: a platform for affecting positive development of self-esteem, self-perception and health behaviours (Currie et al., 2012). Contribution to the field Research Questions 1. What factors affect the wellbeing experiences of Slovak students in school? 2. In its further development efforts, how can the educational practice enhance the wellbeing experiences of Slovak students? Data collection 2x pilots validated the translation and meaningfulness of interview questions to a teenager Naturalistic settings of two primary schools, criteria & random sampling Preliminary findings validated with the target group during 2x focus groups, while completing a creative activity – creating a banner for the next students of the final year in primary school. Topic: How to enjoy & survive the ninth year? Data analysis Moustaka’s transcendental phenomenology gave rise to wellbeing themes, draws on Husserl’s approach, answering the What? (description) and How? (structure) of the experiences contributing to students’ perceived wellbeing in school NVivo 11 used to code and organise data Cultural differences enhance western understanding of wellbeing. What are the perspectives of education in transition to democracy? Student voice studies explore pre-set constructs of wellbeing, what is the students’ own understanding? Hedonic Subjective wellbeing (SWB), happiness: life satisfaction presence of positive mood absence of negative mood happiness (Diener, 1984; Diener & Lucas, 1999) ::Relaxed and happy:: Eudaimonic Psychological wellbeing (PWB), self-actualisation: positive functioning, flourishing, omits affect true to self, congruent authenticity leads to growth & fulfilment (Ryff 1989; Waterman, 1993). ::Challenged + focused:: Collection Method: 8x Interviews 2x Focus Groups Gender Female Male Rural School 2 3 Urban School Epistemology Constructivism Human perception shaped by culture & social construct Ontological view Relativist Multiple local and specific realities of a phenomena Approach Phenomenology in-depth understanding of perceived lived experience Methodology Qualitative Methods: Semi-structured interviews, focus groups Results Theme no. 2 School atmosphere Theme no. 1 Getting on well with peers – having close friends, doing activities together, chatting Balancing the pressures of the final year in primary school Teacher’s personality and behaviour – approachable, friendly and supportive teacher, behaving with congruence Managing the academic demands of the final year: national monitoring exams, secondary school assessment Communication – having constructive discussions, resolving conflicts with respect, would welcome more space to talk Academically-focused schools give teaching support but increase pressure and fail to provide stress mgmnt guides Positive mood in class – being prepared, everyone engaged and motivated to learn, teacher opens the discussion and enjoys teaching Students prefer open discussions relevant to social and political life as well as practical learning Additional findings Concerns about the choice of and move to a secondary school mix with positive expectations from new settings Differences between rural and urban schools in physical settings (facilities, the length of breaks, teachers’ approach) Excitement about final year activities (T-shirt printing, celebrations) mixes with nostalgia and loss of identity Parallels in wellbeing themes identified by the participants Ethical challenges Informed consent from student, ensuring participants understand the research and what is required of them No ethical guides for EDU research in Slovakia Working with minors, parental/guardian consent required The researched topic brought about sensitive issues during interviews Confidentiality Anonymity Ownership of the banners Group discussion rules Acknowledgments Psychology & Education Group Dr. Ros McLellan Participating primary schools