Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 2017

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STUDENT CARE: THE BEDROCK OF ACADEMIC SUCCESS

AUTHOR Mrs Jody Forbes School Psychologist and Student Counselling Coordinator

STUDENT CARE AT BRISBANE GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL IS AN INTRINSIC PART OF THE EDUCATION WE PROVIDE. WE KNOW THAT GIRLS LEARN BETTER WHEN THEY FEEL CONTENT, SAFE AND CONNECTED. OUR BELIEF IS SUPPORTED BY RESEARCH WITH STUDIES SHOWING SCHOOLS WHO PRIORITISE STUDENT WELLBEING REPORT GREATER NAPLAN SCORES (WATERS, 2016) AND UP TO AN 11 PER CENT GAIN IN ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT (DURLACK, SCHELLINGER, WEISSBERG, DYMNICKI & TAYLOR, 2011). THUS STUDENT CARE AT GIRLS GRAMMAR REMAINS THE BEDROCK UPON WHICH OUR ACADEMIC RIGOUR AND SUCCESS IS BUILT. Including five years of data, the recently published Youth Mental Health Report’s findings prove sobering. In addition to an increased prevalence of serious mental illness since 2012, it was found that young women were twice as likely as young males to experience a serious mental illness. Key recommendations from the Report behove schools, as the universal access point for young people, to embed wellbeing and mental health prevention and early intervention into their remit. With a strong commitment to holistic education, nourishing both character and spirit, as much as minds, has always been an essential feature of a Girls Grammar education. At the core of our Student Care structure lies our House system where each Head of House is responsible for the welfare and care of each girl within her House. Further, the School’s commitment to holistic education is evidenced by the unique provision of a dedicated support team including the School Psychologists and Registered Nurse. Complementing the House structure is our Ethics programme where girls participate in a specialised programme designed to meet the specific developmental needs of each Year level. In 2015, an extension of our student care saw the introduction of Balance@BGGS, which aims to enrich student wellbeing by offering a matrix of resources and activities traversing social, emotional, cognitive and physical health. Mindfulness — considered an essential tool for the twenty-first century — is now fully incorporated into the fabric of our School. While many schools are dabbling in mindfulness, Girls Grammar is considered a trailblazer in regards to both our adoption of the ‘gold standard’ mindfulness programme for adolescents and the establishment of a dedicated mindfulness practitioner. Our long-serving Head of Art, Mr Donald Pincott, possesses expert experience and skills in mindfulness practice and was charged with the task of embedding an evidence-based, thoughtful, mindfulness framework

REFERENCES Durlack,J. A., Schellinger, K. B., Weissberg, R. P., Dymnicki, A. B & Taylor, R. D. (2011). The impact of enhancing students’ social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Development, 82(1): 405-432. observation of a student’s reduced engagement in class, adding to the pieces of the puzzle already held by the Head of House. It may be a Head of House, a teacher and a counsellor coordinating the most supportive time and place to deliver a disappointing exam result to an anxious student. Or perhaps a House Group Teacher orchestrating a seemingly random meeting between two students who independently have been reported by their parent to feel lonely. Throughout each day, hundreds of student-centered reflections and conversations are had within the white picket fence of Girls Grammar. Many of our girls have no idea of the depth of care in which they are enveloped and, perhaps, nor should they. Just as a stage crew works painstakingly behind the scenes allowing performers to shine, so too does our dedicated Student Care team continue in their judicious, meticulous and generous approach to enabling each Grammar Girl to thrive. within the School. Unlike any other educational facility in the country, Brisbane Girls Grammar School provides our students with evidenced-based mindfulness opportunities throughout the school day, delivered by a team of dedicated and highly trained teaching staff. While the Student Care structure and resources at Girls Grammar are impressive, it is what lies beneath this that proves the defining feature of Girls Grammar care. Not easily captured or measured are the thoughtful, careful and individualised conversations, deliberations and decisions occurring on a daily basis. These conversations may involve a teacher passing on an

Waters, L. (2016). Keynote address at AHISA Conference, Adelaide Convention Centre, August 25, 2016.

WINTER ISSUE / 2017