1. 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 (
Introduction to research problem
PISA 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
OECD, 2014, Education GPS, PISA 2012 Database
Health Behaviour of School-aged Children (HBSC) 2009/ 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