What I Learned at the Global Positive Education Festival

Harvard Graduate School of Education's Professor Richard Emlore (1996) warned, “The closer an innovation gets to the core of schooling, the less likely it is that it will influence teaching and learning on a large scale." Could this be the fate of positive education as it edges towards a global scale following the first global festival of positive education?

Positive education is defined as "umbrella term used to describe empirically validated interventions and programs from Positive Psychology that have impact on student well-being" (White, 2014; White & Murray 2015).

But, what happens when more than 850 early adopters and innovators across 30 countries come together to discuss wellbeing in education? It short, remarkable creativity and what many of us call 'positive education' that's what happens. White and Murray (2015) characterised approaches to positive education as either empirically validated, scientifically-informed, or character/values based—and all three were on display at the IPEN Festival.

Lord (James) O'Shaughnessy, Chairman of the International Positive Education Network (IPEN), has done it again and managed to bring the right people together, at the appropriate time. Over three powerful days delegates discussed approaches to wellbeing, character and positive education.

While it seems like an obvious topic 'leading a flourishing life; it is clearly being marginalized by policy makers in the face of increasingly competitive education agendas, with a looming backdrop of stark mental health statistics across the globe.

The recent 1st Festival of Positive Education in Dallas was remarkable, it reminded me a lot of the tone of the 1st World Congress on Positive Psychology in Philadelphia in 2009.

I want to share my particular highlights:

• Scott Barry Kaufman on creativity and imagination. Kaufman's research and writing are amongst the new wave of work entering in the positive education field. His work is compelling and so powerful.
• David Cooperrider on appreciative inquiry and teaching. Cooperrider delivered my personal highlight of the Festival. It was a master class of what is possible when we focus on what we want the world to become. It will be one of the most influential lectures on what can happen when vision, mission, goals and systems actually align.
• Angela Duckworth on grit and academic mastery. Duckworth's thought provoking presentation on the most popular topic in education and also the most misunderstood enabled her to put the record straight on so many misconceptions about her research and its applications at scale.
• Felicia Huppert on mindfulness and education. Huppert's work noted the significance of stillness in education and the empirical befits for students, schools and systems.
• Tiffany Shlain, filmmaker. Her work had a profound impact on me. I spend so much of my time communicating with young people about this work. In 15 minutes she has captured on film what I've been trying to say for over a decade. Character Day will be one to put into your diary!
• Martin Seligman on the growth of positive education. Seligman's far-reaching history of the growth of the positive education movement and key insights along the way was challenging and inspiring.
• Kristján Kristjánsson on the philosophical challenges facing positive education. Kristjánsson's marvelous lesson in logic and philosophy filled the missing gap for so many of us involvement in the movement. Where are the links between the classical view of the flourishing life and psychological lines of argument.
• Lea Waters on positive parenting. Waters outlined her research on positive psychology's completely overlooked area of research. It also foreshadows the next step in the positive education movement.

What's next?

After the excitement, energy, and creativity of the festival, it is apparent there is much work to be done to build the field.

My challenge to my colleagues in the positive education movement is to heed Elmore's advice. I argue that positive psychologists and those engaged in positive education need to move on from excessive back slapping and cheer-leading and focus on addressing the theoretical and policy hurdles that act as a barrier to bring positive education to scale (White, 2016).

The movement must now establish a clear theoretical framework that engages with the deeper philosophical assumptions for positive education, engages with preventative mental health strategies, and outlines evidence-based pathways to human flourishing.

Thanks to the first IPEN Festival now the real work can commence to build cross-cultural bridges to grow to create a better world through education where all children, regardless of circumstance, can learn evidence-based skills to lead a flourishing life.

I eagerly await IPEN 2018.

References

Elmore, R. F. (1996). Getting to Scale with Good Educational Practice. Harvard Educational Review, 66(1), 1-26.

White, M. (2014). An evidence-based whole school strategy to Positive Education. In: H. Street & N. Porter (eds.), Better than OK: helping young people to flourish at school and beyond. pp.194-198. Perth: Fremantle Press.

White, M. A. & Murray, A. S. (2015). Evidence-based Approaches to Positive Education in Schools: Implementing a Strategic Framework for Well-being in Schools. Springer, Netherlands. Series Editor Ilona Boniwell.

White, M. A. (2016). Why won't it Stick? Positive Psychology and Positive Education. Psychology Of Well-Being: Theory, Research & Practice, 6(1), 1.