The circle pedagogy in the Maltese Islands is practised in a range of settings, including the Personal, Social and Career Development (PSCD) subject, provided to all students within the Maltese Education system. During the subject, the PSCD teacher aims to enhance social and emotional competences, whilst encouraging positive and healthy…

There is greater awareness of the importance of social and emotional learning especially within a pedagogy that adopts the circle configuration. Circle use in the Maltese Islands is a research area which needs further exploration. This paper presents qualitative and quantitative results about the perceptions of Personal Social and Career…

Young people are rarely consulted about what and how they are taught in sexuality and relationships education (SRE) at school. The reasons for this are complex and relate to adults' reluctance to acknowledge the need to take account of students' perspectives on personally sensitive matters. In this article, we provide a brief rationale and…

Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education (PSHE) is undergoing changes within UK schools, and many topics, including healthy lifestyles, sex and relationships, and mental resilience/wellbeing will become statutory parts of the curriculum. The overall aim of this study was to describe teachers' views about these topics and how they should be…

This study explores how the reception teacher understands her responsibility to support newly arrived migrant pupils' mental well-being in her everyday practices. The three interconnected circle model represents mental well-being as a prerequisite for integration and for academic and social development. The teacher's self-perceived responsibility…

The present climate of standardisation and quantification compels schools to deliver outcome-based curricula that measure educational success in terms of academic attainment and students' 'ability' to perform according to set criteria. Efforts to tackle educational inequality encourage conformity rather than address the underlying issues of the…

The need for improved well-being of children in Britain has been highlighted in a raft of reports both nationally and internationally. In this paper, I aim to explore some of the practicalities experienced by schools that, in response, have implemented social and emotional learning (SEL) interventions as a means to improve child well-being. I make…

This paper presents findings from a comparative study of peer- and teacher-led Sex and Relationship Education (SRE). One lesson delivered by a peer educator, and one lesson delivered by a teacher was observed with the aim of exploring the communicative process between educators and students within SRE. It is claimed that open communication between…

The processes of puberty are now commonly observed in primary school-aged students. Schools, therefore, need to address puberty and sexuality education for students' health, well-being, safety and pastoral care. Similarly, preservice teacher education needs to address future primary school teachers' unfamiliarity and lack of confidence with these…

This paper considers the role of spirituality in the practice of pastoral welfare and care in English state schools. Set against an educational landscape of increasingly aggressive neoliberal interests combined with growing public disquiet over the mental welfare of young people, the author examines how spirituality might in response contribute to…

Spirituality encourages the individual to make sense of oneself within a wider framework of meaning and see oneself as part of some larger whole. This article discusses Confucian spirituality by focusing on the spiritual ideals of "dao" (Way) and "he" (harmony). It is explained that the Way represents a shared vision of human…

There is a legal requirement that schools engage with the spiritual aspects of education, which encompasses pastoral care. This reflects the ethical sensibility that is present in individuals and underlies interactions with Others; and which should be part of the ethos of all educational institutions and especially schools. This is because…

This paper reports on the collaborative development of a "National Framework for Inclusion" under the auspices of the Scottish Teacher Education Committee by a working party representing each of the Scottish Universities providing initial teacher education. Recent research, international legislation and Scottish education policy have…

This paper discusses the findings and implications of a semi-randomised control trial study on the effectiveness of circle time (CT) on primary school students' social and emotional learning, as well as classroom teachers' and students' experience of CT. A social and emotional learning programme was delivered through CT by trained classroom…

With gap year activities, including expeditions, for young people worth an estimated £2 billion annually, the subject of transfer (or ensuring that outcomes offer positive benefits to participants' general lives) from these experiences is an important topic in outdoor education. This paper argues that many of the claims for a positive behavioural…