Tending to the emotional, mental, and physical well-being of children has always been a challenge for parents. But in today’s society with the ubiquity of social media and increased academic competition, growing up is far more complex than ever before.
According to a new article from Nord Anglia’s INSIGHTS, achievement culture is putting a massive strain on the mental health of young people. Recent research found that 70% of young adults believe their parents value them more when they are successful at school and 1 in 4 young adults think that achievement matters more to their parents than who they are as people.
Dr. Mitchell Salerno, our Head of School at Windermere Preparatory School, recently shared his insights on Nord Anglia’s article titled ‘Helping Kids See That They Matter For Who They Are And Not What They Achieve’.
Why mattering matters for young people
“When I read the article in INSIGHTS, I immediately thought of our desire at Windermere Prep to create a cohesive, aligned, and united (Unitas) academic program that prepares our learners to be the best version of themselves,” shared Dr. Salerno.
“In the article, we read that focusing on ‘mattering’ is essential for our students' well-being and development,” he said. “At Windermere Prep, adding the Primary Years Programme and the Middle Years Programme to our already successful Diploma Programme is a way to develop ‘mattering’ and to provide our students with a pathway to build the best versions of themselves.”
“Our Windermere Prep mission statement ends with a simple, but profound statement, “for the global community.” As we read in the article, “Volunteering and service to others is a good exercise in altruism. But it is also good for kids’ own well-being,” Dr. Salerno explained. “One way for parents to tend to their kids is to encourage opportunities for them to see and meet the needs of others through authentic volunteer work and service.”
“At Windermere Prep, we believe that learning and self-improvement are essential, not only to prepare us for university, but also for the global community. When we learn to see others and then serve others, we see that others matter and we matter,” he concluded.
Read INSIGHTS in English | Read INSIGHTS in Spanish | Read INSIGHTS in Chinese
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