Systems informed positive education

Abstract

Positive psychology as a discipline has focused primarily on understanding and building individual wellbeing. But the application of positive psychology within schools brings a number of challenges that transcend simplistic approaches. Schools are dynamic in nature and subject to numerous pressures and competing priorities. Positive psychology interventions can be helpful, some of the time, for some people, but there is a need to identify and transcend the limiting paradigms that drive our research, practices, and beliefs, moving beyond simplistic interventions and programs to broader awareness and mindful action. Systems Informed Positive Education (SIPE) explicitly incorporates aspects of the systems sciences into positive education practice and pedagogy to cultivate optimal learning environments that bring out the best in each individual and of the school community as a whole. This chapter describes SIPE, illustrates SIPE in action, and highlights key principles and their implications for embedding wellbeing at the heart of education.