Poster Presentation International Positive Psychology Association 8th IPPA World Congress 2023

The power of the student voice - moving from rhetoric to reality (#672)

Laura Garrison-Brook 1 , Anita Andersen 1 , Sandy Brower 2 , Michele Robison 3 , Bill Vining 1
  1. Discovering My Purpose, Alpharetta, GA, United States
  2. Wellness, Mayfield School, Mayfield, NY, USA
  3. Dr. Michele Robison, Coeur D'Alene, ID, USA

The science has spoken. Benefits abound when Positive Education is introduced to the educational curriculum. Yet, Positive Education has not truly taken hold, particularly in the United States.

The Positive Education Consortium has a mission to ignite the spread of Positive Education throughout the U.S. and beyond. We believe the spark lies within the students themselves. We believe their energy, enthusiasm and their desire to improve their lives and make the world a better place to live, will propel Positive Education forward. We need to listen to students’ voices and they need the opportunity to share with the world the impact Positive Education has had on them and will have on their peers when PosEd arises within all schools worldwide.

Our shared challenge is how to help students, teachers and schools feel empowered to embrace this type of learning. Our mission is for educators and students to share their stories around what has positively impacted them and transformed their lives for the better in the classroom and on the school campus. These stories will inform peer-to-peer mentoring prompts to inspire other students to benefit from these PosEd examples of success.

This poster is the start of a conversation, including: 

  • An introduction to the Positive Education Consortium, who we are, our vision and mission.
  • An invitation to educators to share their stories of those extraordinary students who have made amazing strides in their academic and personal journeys. 
  • An invitation to educators and schools to help expand the conversation and lift up student voice, allowing them to share what they need to thrive and how positive education has already served them well

The Positive Education Consortium (PEC) is a nonprofit organization crafted in 2022 that sprung from colleagues who connected through the World Positive Education Accelerator (Dallas, 2018). Inspired by Dr. Martin Seligman, who sits on the Advisory Committee, PEC has directed its attention on the power and energy of students to bring this work to life.

  • Please select up to 3 keywords from the following list to best describe your submission content: Education, Meaning and Purpose, Parenting