A longitudinal study of student wellbeing in Singapore secondary schools using the PERMA framework

Abstract

Student wellbeing has gained prominence in recent educational policy discourse. Thus, conducting an examination of wellbeing trends across the schooling years is vital as it can inform educators on the effectiveness of current programs and to pinpoint specific timeframes for targeted interventions. To make meaningful global statements about the patterns of student wellbeing, it is essential to consider the findings arising from different cultural contexts and wellbeing metrics. Singapore offers a compelling case for such an investigation given its educational landscape that combines high-stakes national examinations with a focus on holistic student development. The current study uses the PERMA framework to analyse student wellbeing trends and gender differences in secondary schools in Singapore, therefore offering a comparative account to studies conducted in other countries. The sample consisted of 2,881 students in 11 government schools. The m-PERMA-Profiler was administered to the students over three years. The findings indicate a decline across all PERMA elements from secondary one to secondary two, while most of the PERMA elements remained relatively stable from secondary two to secondary three. There was an increase in the level of positive emotions and positive relationships for boys during this period. However, the level of all the PERMA elements at secondary three were still statistically lower than in secondary one. There were no gender differences across most PERMA elements at most time points, with the exception of boys exhibiting higher levels of positive emotions and engagement at the beginning of secondary three. The findings indicate that wellbeing during the adolescent years is heavily dependent on context and cultural factors, hence specific milestones faced by students in different countries and educational systems need to be accounted for in assessing student wellbeing.