One in ten international school students have attitudinal roadblocks to learning

Student wellbeing underpins all educational outcomes. From attendance and attainment to progress and employability skills, students who are supported to be mentally healthy and have a positive outlook towards education are more likely to succeed. And while wellbeing and mental health are certainly not new issues, they have received increased global attention over the last few years.

At GL Education, we have this week published a large-scale study into students’ attitudes to school and themselves as learners, with welcome contributions from Colin Bell as well as a number of COBIS member schools, including the International Community School Amman and King’s College Madrid.

Our study analysed data from over 95,000 students in the Middle East and South East Asia from our Pupil Attitudes to Self and School (PASS) attitudinal survey in what we believe is the largest study of its kind. We were able to explore emerging patterns in wellbeing in international schools, and while every school and every student are of course different, some interesting findings came to light.

More than one in ten students were identified as having low scores that were likely to be barriers to learning. For example, 15% of students reported low or moderate satisfaction in their general work ethic and 13% had a similar negative response to self-regard as a learner. This is particularly relevant when we consider that international schools often have exceptionally high academic expectations for their students.

If those students lack confidence around their work ethic and ability as a learner, combined with the pressure of high expectations, there is a strong risk of a negative impact to their wellbeing if appropriate support is not in place. This is a message that COBIS is also promoting – both through its conference programme and its Patron’s Accreditation. As Colin writes in the report, “Education around mental health in schools is key and we will do our utmost to spread the word that, ‘it’s ok not to feel okay.’”

The study also compared international schools to UK schools and found that international schools scored slightly lowerin several factors, including preparedness for learning. We can hypothesise that the transitory nature of many expat communities, as well as high levels of EAL students, may impact those students’ confidence as learners.

This is where schools can use data to ask the right questions for their individual context, and to take steps to implement policies and interventions to support and improve student wellbeing. For example, at the International Community School in Amman, Jordan, teachers take a #wellbeingfirst approach throughout school life, underpinned by rigorous use of the ‘data triangle’ of ability, attainment and attitudes to learning.

This initial study arguably raises more questions than it answers. For example, relatively few attitudinal differences were identified between schools in the Middle East and in South East Asia, which will probably surprise teachers who have worked in both regions.

As we gather more data on student attitudes and wellbeing, alongside other information around ability, attainment and attendance, for example, we will be able to ask and start to answer more fine-grained questions; to reflect on current levels of student wellbeing in our schools regionally, nationally and internationally; and to use these insights to improve the mental health and wellbeing of our students.

You can read the full Global Perspectives report here.

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Hannah Marr has worked in publishing for over 10 years and is now a senior publisher at GL Education. She has a BA in English and Linguistics from Cambridge University and an MA in Literary Linguistics from Nottingham University, and before joining GL Education, she worked within international education at Macmillan Education for seven years, focusing on EFL and literacy.James Neill, GL Education’s International Director, works with British, bilingual and international schools to support their use of GL Education's assessment portfolio. James has worked in education since graduating from the University of Nottingham with a degree in Physics and a PGCE in 1997, and he has taught both physics and science at schools in Nottingham, Thailand and London.