Opportunity to give. Several respondents mentioned experiences at school where
they had helped younger children or raised money for charities, and mentioned how
good this had made them feel - “special”, “a good feeling∖ Awareness of how giving
felt had led to more altruistic attitudes, and some respondents volunteered that
opportunities to give during school had led to altruistic behaviours in adulthood, such
as giving to charities, voluntary work and informally lending a hand.
5.3 Conclusions
Subject areas that challenge the status quo, learning in groups that are mixed, and
learning in locations that are unfamiliar are effective in generating those wider
benefits of learning that contribute to civic participation, social cohesion and a very
positive quality of life. Those who benefit from these learning experiences and
contexts are often those who come to learning with relatively high levels of
confidence in their abilities, and/or in themselves, and/or socially.
Those who come to learning lacking confidence in their abilities, as individuals and
socially, are more likely to engage in and benefit from learning in locations that
already have meaning to them within groups that share some characteristics. Group
learning is particularly effective in terms of promoting psychological health, the
formation of liberal attitudes, and in developing communication and teamwork skills.
These are wider benefits that contribute to active citizenship and social cohesion.
The teacher is of tremendous importance in determining the effects of learning upon
people’s lives, through providing support, encouragement and guidance, through
facilitating group processes and group learning and through acting as a role model.
This has policy implications for teacher training, but perhaps more fundamentally, for
giving teachers more time and less stress. The reduction of administrative burdens,
more flexible curricula and small class sizes might be considered - especially in
relation to courses in basic skills, where support and encouragement appear to be
particularly significant in terms of generating both wider benefits and academic
success.
6. Adaptation and change
We turn now to focus primarily on the effects of education and learning after school.
We analyse these under the following headings:
- adaptation and change management;
- family lives;
- health;
- social capital.
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