Managing the Risk of COVID-19 on the wellbeing of students at St Margaret’s Anglican Girls School in 2020

Nikki Townsend Dean of Students

Risk involves uncertainty about the effects of a variable with respect to something that people value. This could be health, wellbeing, education, wealth, property or the environment. Risk often focuses on the negative and unwanted consequences. Legislation requires organisations to have Risk Management policies in place and rightly so. Independent School Queensland (2020) states: ‘Risk is an integral part of the daily operations of a school and it is critical that school governors understand their roles and responsibilities in shaping the risk culture of the school. Boards who understand this facilitate effective risk management which supports better decision making.’ Despite this legislative requirement, were schools across the world ready to deal with and manage the risk of COVID 19 outbreak that swept the globe? Within minutes of Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s school lock down address on 28 March, St Margaret’s had taken action. The preparation was made easier as the Educational Leadership Team had been pre-planning the path ahead for nearly a month beforehand. This article will outline how St Margaret’s managed students’ wellbeing throughout the COVID-19 crisis. In a matter of weeks, the Coronavirus had turned our community upside down. This impacted people differently. Not only was the severity of the outbreak difficult for adults to comprehend, but our young people were also affected, leaving many feeling confused, overwhelmed and disappointed. The global pandemic had a profound impact on our adolescents with many being forced to miss out on so many rites of passage. Some were disappointed, others were becoming anxious or depressed, all of which was completely understandable given the unforeseen situation. Knowing that although these feelings are usually a normal part of growing up, how students respond will determine the impact it will have on their future happiness. As adults, we needed to remember that we all have a lot of choice regarding how we respond to these feelings. All of these emotions should be considered healthy, positive and essential to a young person’s emotional, intellectual and social development. Therefore, staff and parents were briefed on the importance of how adults could assist students and manage their emotions by recognising that their feelings are real and encouraging them to look at the problem objectively. SUNATA 49

Research shows there are specific risk factors that increase the likelihood of teenagers developing a mental health problem. Some are set in concrete while others were inadvertent. Certainly, educators knew that students’ wellbeing was paramount at this time and this needed to be a school focus due to these drastic changes to their daily lives. Realising that adolescents are considered to be more at risk of anxiety and depression disorders which may affect their mood, thinking and behaviour, which in turn impacts on their ability to function and perform normal activities, thoughtful planned ideas needed to be considered. Given the uncertainty of the situation, it was therefore vitally important for our school to remain vigilant during this time of online learning to identify any signs of distress, even though students may not have had any prior history of a mental health disorder. Early intervention was more important than ever. The school was concerned for the wellbeing of students across all dimensions – physical, social and emotional, academic and spiritual. Social distancing, isolation and home online learning removed regular contact with friends, teachers and mentors. The school had to adapt to this new online environment and approach student wellbeing in a variety of new ways. During this time of online learning the Pastoral Care Team introduced the Student Wellbeing Hub. The Hub consisted of four main areas including Student Wellbeing Apps, Relaxation Exercises, Mental Health Tips and Support Numbers. The Pastoral Care Team encouraged teens to focus on the things that they could control –– such as their learning, diet, exercise and sleep. The school’s Prefect body devised a series of challenges for the whole school to keep them connected and to have fun. A daily gratitude journal and activity tracking was also encouraged. Students also posted photos of things on their year level platform that made them happy and explain their silver linings for learning. Form teachers and Academic Advisors continued their roles, meeting in groups and individually online with students at least once a week to touch base to see how they were going. Year level assemblies continued being an important touchpoint with the Heads of Year and students and prefects had regular segments which replaced our Whole School Assembly. A team of 18 staff members were allocated to make fortnightly calls to secondary parents to check how their daughter was coping to ensure their learning progressed successfully. The school newsletter highlighted great parent resources by SchoolTV to support their children. All these endeavours were put in place to ensure that we knew our students were connecting with work, their teachers and each other, as well as coping with the new paradigm. At St Margaret’s we value the pursuit of continued growth and wellbeing. Wellbeing is a full integration of intellectual, physical, social, emotional, spiritual and vocational wellbeing. Each area contributes to a sense of wellbeing and quality of life and each affects and overlaps the other. On all accounts, feedback from students, parents and staff was overwhelmingly positive on how we managed the risk of COVID-19. All were very impressed with the measures taken by all staff to care emotionally and academically for their daughters.

Reference:

Independent School Queensland,2020, Risk Management Framework, viewed 29 May 2020, https://www.isq.qld.edu.au/our-work-withschools/risk-management-framework

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