New animations explore the impact of school discipline on pupils’ mental health and wellbeing

Two new animations have shed light on the impact of behaviour management in English secondary schools on pupils’ mental health and wellbeing. They are based on findings from an NIHR ARC West project which originated from its Young People’s Advisory Group (YPAG).

As part of the project, members of YPAG interviewed pupils about their experiences of school discipline. These interviews are the inspiration for the animations, with voiceovers by YPAG members.

The first video, ‘A Day in the Life’ tells the story of two pupils in the same classroom. It describes the impact discipline has on everyone, whether it’s the pupils who are subjected to it or those who comply to avoid it.

One pupil is constantly told off and sent to isolation for his behaviour. He says: “The staff hate me. I now have a label for being naughty and feel I have to live up to that. I feel stuck and don’t know how to change things.”

The other pupil tries really hard to follow the rules, saying: “I try my best to comply, sit there and be quiet, but I don’t feel myself anymore. I feel like a robot trying to survive the day, zapped of my energy and suppressed.”

The second video, ‘Isolation’, tells the story of a pupil who is regularly sent to isolation. She says: “They go crazy if you miss a day of school, but then they’ll throw you in isolation like there’s no tomorrow. It makes me so angry.”

Dr Sarah Bell, Senior Research Associate in Qualitative Research and a lead researcher on the project, said:

“These animations really bring the issues to life. The impact of behaviour management in schools is far reaching. No one in the classroom is left unaffected. I have a background in teaching so I know how challenging a classroom setting can be. But there are other ways to improve pupil behaviour. We are looking at some other possible approaches that might be more effective and less harmful.

“I was so impressed with our YPAG members who were fantastic peer researchers. A career in research awaits!”

Azin, one of the YPAG members who worked on the project, said:

“I really enjoyed getting to work on this as it gave me an opportunity to see the process from beginning to end. It also inspired me to take sociology forward at university, which I am very grateful for 😊”

Find out more about the project

Watch the animations