UNSW’s Education Festival 2021 | Page 20

Empowering Students with Wellbeing & Resilience Skills and Strategies

Ms Amanda Carlon , Ms Olivia Tunks
In 2021 , the Co-Curricular & Student
Development team launched a university wide
development program , Leadership Foundations .
This program aims to assist students develop
core personal and professional skills .
experience through a series of six modules , one
of the modules being Wellbeing & Resilience .
This module focuses on evidence-based skills
and strategies to expand personal capacity
when encountering challenges . The theories
Amanda Carlon ,
BA
Amanda is the lead content generator and group-based experience designer for UNSW ’ s leadership development program . Throughout her 10-year career in universities ( UNSW Sydney and Middlesex University London ) she has worked with hundreds of students , designing and delivering training and development programs . Amanda holds a BA ( Anthropology , Sociology & Social Policy ) and a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment . She has a passion for creating engaging and inclusive learning experiences .

Poster Authors

A needs analysis with UNSW students and
academics informed the program and revealed
gaps in stress management and the ability
to adapt to change . Leadership , emotional
intelligence and resilience have been identified
as desirable skills for graduates entering
the workforce and for successful career
progression ( WEF , 2020 ; PwC , 2021 ). The
need to develop resilience skills has also been
amplified by the pandemic .
Drawing from expert thought leaders in a range
drawn upon include PERMA + ( Seligman , 2013 ;
Seligman , 2012 .), 5-Ways to Wellbeing ( Aked et
al ., 2008 ), SEARCH framework ( Waters , 2019 ),
and the Resilience Factor ( Reivich & Shatté ,
2002 ).
As part of the learning experience students
create a personal self-care plan and practice
skills that can be used to navigate setbacks
and change . Students then reflect how they
plan to use the skills and strategies , what
they would like to develop further , and identify
Olivia Tunks ,
BSc ( Psych ), MLS & T ( Prof ), AFHEA
Olivia is an Educational Designer with qualification in Learning Sciences and Technology . Since 2017 , Olivia has been designing learning experiences for powerful impact across several student success measures in universitywide programs and initiatives . Technology-Enhanced Learning ( TEL ) is central to her approach alongside effective pedagogical principles and practices . Olivia has a passion for evaluation ensuring students demonstrate graduate capabilities and learning outcomes . Olivia is an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy ( AFHEA ).
of fields including organisational psychology ,
support / s they can reach out to for assistance .
positive psychology , neuroscience , human
We have received exceedingly positive
development , and further areas ( Brown , 2018 ;
feedback from students about the Wellbeing &
Goleman , 1995 ; Goleman , 2001 ; Edmondson ,
Resilience module .
1999 ) we designed a blended learning
References :
Aked , J . Marks , N . Cordon , C . & Thompson , S . ( 2008 ) 5-Ways to Wellbeing : A report presented to the Foresight Project on communicating the evidence base for improving people ’ s well-being . Centre for well-being , nef ( the new economics foundation ).
Brown , B . ( 2018 ). Dare to Lead . London , England : Vermilion .
Edmondson , A . ( 1999 ) Psychological Safety and Learning Behavior in Work Teams . Administrative Science Quarterly , Vol . 44 , No . 2 ( Jun ., 1999 ), pp . 350-383 . Johnson Graduate School of Management , Cornell University .
Goleman , D . ( 1995 ). Emotional intelligence . Bantam Books .
Goleman , D . ( 2001 ). An EI-based theory of performance . In Cherniss , C . & Goleman , D . ( Eds .), The emotionally intelligent workplace : How to select for , measure , and improve emotional intelligence in individuals , groups , and organizations ( pp . 27 – 44 ). Jossey-Bass .
Reivich , K ., & Shatté , A . ( 2002 ). The resilience factor : 7 essential skills for overcoming life ’ s inevitable obstacles . Broadway Books .
Seligman , M . E . P . ( 2012 ). Flourish : A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being . New York , NY : Simon and Schuster .
Seligman , M . E . P . ( 2013 ). Building the state of well-being : A strategy for South Australia ( Adelaide Thinker in Residence 2012 – 2013 ). South Australia : Government of South Australia .
WEF ( World Economic Forum ) ( 2020 ) The Future of Jobs Report 2020 . https :// www . weforum . org / reports / the-future-of-jobs-report-2020 .
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