The research investigated the factors that influence how young people from all backgrounds understand “purpose” and living a “good life”.
Undertaken by the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues at the University of Birmingham – which has led much of the research into character education – the project involved 3,250 young people, including students in non-mainstream settings such as pupil referral units and youth offender institutions.
It found that 27.4 per cent of the non-mainstream pupils responded positively to statements regarding their life’s purpose, compared with 24.2 per cent of pupils in mainstream settings.
As such, the report – Flourishing from the Margins – argues that “marginalisation” in education does not necessarily have a negative effect on how pupils understand their purpose in life.
The research has led to the publication of a range of resources and lesson plans, inspired by the Jubilee Centre’s existing character education curriculum, to help teachers and others to discuss character strengths with their students and how they affect perceptions of what it means to live a “good life”.
The research found that the majority of non-mainstream participants “considered supporting one’s family, being close to one’s family, being a good person, and striving to do one’s best to be ‘very important’ to their idea of living a ‘good life’”. Such responses were less common from mainstream respondents.
The report underlines the importance of “circles of influence” – both inside and outside education – on perceptions of what constitutes living a “good life”.
The students categorised as “having purpose” were more influenced in their views by those close to them, including friends and family, and especially teachers and those in the wider community. This influence was widely perceived to be positive.
Aidan Thompson, a co-author of the report, said: “This study has found that young people from marginalised backgrounds don’t see their circumstances as being disadvantageous to their sense of purpose.
“Where young people are engaging in non-mainstream education provision, a focus on character-led teaching can help aid this development of purpose and encourage young people to live a ‘good life’.”
- To download the project resources, view the project film and to download the report Flourishing From the Margins, visit the project webpage at www.jubileecentre.ac.uk/flourishingfromthemargins