A mixed methods study exploring how Social Emotional Mental Health (SEMH) special schools monitor pupils SEMH development.

  • Siara K Nawaz

Student thesis: Doctoral ThesisDoctor of Educational Psychology (DEdPsy)

Abstract

Monitoring pupils' SEMH development plays an important role in developing pupils' SEMH needs, which significantly impact their engagement with learning and later life outcomes, (David et al., 2015; Smithers et al., 2018). There is limited literature on monitoring SEMH development and this exploratory research aimed to contribute to the literature on monitoring SEMH development. A mixed methods approach was used to gather the views of staff within SEMH special schools. A web-based survey was disseminated to all SEMH special schools within England, 68 SEMH special schools contributed to the survey data. Staff from 13 SEMH special schools participated in the online semi-structured interviews. The findings from the current research found SEMH special schools use a wide range of approaches to monitor pupils’ SEMH development. The Boxall Profile, Strengthens and Difficulties Questionnaire, Outcome Star, Emotional Literacy Assessment, Pupil Attitude to Self and School, and Beck Youth Inventory were all popular approaches identified by participants. Participants also highlighted monitoring was more than a teacher completing a survey and consisted of; pupil and parent involvement, observational data, staff meetings and data tracked by schools. Several factors influence SEMH special schools’ decision when selecting an approach, the usefulness of the data and evidence informed approaches were amongst the commonly identified factors. This research was also interested in how the SEMH monitoring approaches were used. The findings highlight several people are involved in monitoring pupils’ development including all staff within SEMH schools, parents and pupils. Additionally, the frequency of administering an approach varied and was dependent on the type of approach selected. Furthermore, the data gathered informed teaching practice, whole school practice and wider processes such as annual review meetings. Practical guidance has been created to support SEMH special schools to begin to make an informed decision when selecting an approach to monitor pupils' SEMH development.

Date of Award2 Dec 2021
Original languageEnglish
Awarding Institution
  • University of Bristol
SupervisorDan P O'Hare (Supervisor) & Jak L Lee (Supervisor)

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