On Friday, November 2, WTAW – in partnership with the Positive Education Schools Association (PESA) – will celebrate the first-ever ‘Positive Education Day’ and is inviting students and teachers to ‘Colour your threads for Pos Ed’ in a bid to make wellbeing visible in schools.

Already more than 60 schools from around Australia have signed on to support the initiative.

Positive Education combines best teaching practices with aspects of positive psychology that promote student safety and wellbeing.  

Positive psychology interventions include decision-making, coping skills, problem-solving skills, relaxation and creative brainstorming. 

Using these in positive education improves mental health and life satisfaction, reduces depression and anxiety and improves academic success and creative thinking.

Participants are being encouraged to make a gold coin donation and WTAW founder Pauline Carrigan says all money raised will go towards assisting disadvantaged schools and their communities undertake their own journeys of Positive Education and wellbeing. 

“One of the very foundations of Positive Education is about sharing knowledge and helping others enhance wellbeing,” she said.

“Since beginning their own journeys in Positive Education, schools in the Upper Hunter are already seeing tremendous impacts on the wellbeing of staff and students, improvements in student behavior and studies show that it won’t be too long before we also start seeing the flow on benefits to academic performance.

“So just imagine if this were happening in every school around the country and just imagine what this could mean in the long term for the mental health of the entire population.

“We have a dream to one day see every school in Australia turned into a sea of colour on Positive Education Day.”

Positive Education Day will take place on November 4 annually.

However, this year’s event falls on Friday, November 2, to align with the school week.