An Insight into the Well-being of Primary School-Aged Children.

Abstract

The child well-being movement seeks to enhance the well-being of all children and protect our most vulnerable. The plethora of definitions and approaches to child well-being may create ambiguity and uncertainty about what child well-being means and what research- based frameworks are available to support it. In this initial study, the well-being views of primary school- aged children were explored and aligned with the Developmental Assets approach which conceptualises child well-being in terms of the relationships, opportunities, competencies, values and self-perceptions that all youth need to be resilient and thrive (Search Institute, 2012). The results highlight the importance of interests to subjective child well-being and the limited opportunities reported by the majority of participants to constructively engage with their interests. This study suggests advocacy for children to have increased access to interest-based learning opportunities. The Developmental Assets approach, which includes a model for community development, provides school communities with a potential framework to understand, measure and respond to the well-being needs of students, as is required of schools by the Well-being for Success policy (Education Review Office, 2013).