Wellbeing as the foundation of learning

Jukka Sinnemäki, Teacher

Teacher’s routine work

Ordinary life in school involves nowadays supporting and guiding various individual processes. In my classroom there are challenges and as a teacher, I can perceive many students struggling to reach their optimal learning capacity. One continuing challenge is resourcing: special measurements and individual teaching arrangements demand lots of time and resources. All the investments fall short of the intended results if the student is tired, hungry or there is a lack of basic security.

The cornerstone for everything else is student wellbeing

Investing in wellbeing has decisively elevated both school satisfaction and learning results. Inside my classroom, the transformation process started from moving; exercise challenges, activity measurements, and the possibility for the students to affect their ordinary school days increased motivation. When we first started to measure activity and rest, we noticed correction needs in our daily health routines. The goals helped us recognize the impact of the change in learning outcomes and classroom atmosphere

The changes in wellbeing were also visible at home. The measured results informed also the parents of the lifestyle and health routines of the students. It is easier to discuss issues when, for example, there are real-time knowledge and understanding of a sufficient amount of rest. There has been a constant effort in developing more dialogical and interactional collaboration between the homes and the school: Through the communication platforms/devices used in Finnish basic education (i.e., Wilma) we can see how our children are doing/faring at school. However, while the numbers and other messages via these communication channels tell us of the results and accomplishments our children have reached, they do not give us keys/guides on how to support and help the goals set by the students.

The KnowNow-wellbeing key was born out of a fresh perspective

For several years, I have been collaborating with the students and parents using this new tool. At first, the tool went unnamed, but we have since named it the KnowNow-wellbeing key. The key unifies pedagogy and technology seamlessly, hence providing unique guidance and actionable counsel for students, schools, and homes to improve overall wellbeing. The principal aim is to produce and cultivate student wellbeing that translates into better learning results, deeper focus and commitment, and more responsible behavior (both in and out of school).

Providing the teacher with a broader understanding of the conditions of individual students returns in more comfortable and fruitful encounters with children via contributing the tools needed for helping and discerning the genuine challenges children face in school. At present, the parents of my students furthermore value that school is a safe and anti-bullying environment, that school is a comfortable place to be in, and that the child fares well both in and out of school. Based on my experience, increasing wellbeing automatically results in increased learning results. I have made videos of the subject in Finnish (translation available in English and Hungarian).

Video with Finnish text