Action Team Handbook 2012 [1.9M] [PDF] - KidsMatter
Action Team Handbook 2012 [1.9M] [PDF] - KidsMatter
Action Team Handbook 2012 [1.9M] [PDF] - KidsMatter
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ACTION<br />
TEAM<br />
HANDBOOK<br />
<strong>2012</strong>
Acknowledgement<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Australian Primary Schools Mental Health Initiative<br />
has been developed in collaboration with beyondblue, the<br />
Australian Psychological Society, the Principals Australia<br />
Institute and, with funding from the Australian Government<br />
Department of Health and Ageing and beyondblue.<br />
Disclaimer<br />
While every care has been taken in preparing this publication,<br />
Beyond Blue Ltd, The Australian Psychological Society Ltd,<br />
Principals Australia Institute Inc and the Commonwealth<br />
of Australia do not, to the extent permitted by law, accept<br />
any liability for any injury, loss or damage suffered by any<br />
person arising from the use of, or reliance upon, the content<br />
of this publication.<br />
Important Notice<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Australian Primary Schools Mental Health Initiative<br />
and any other <strong>KidsMatter</strong> mental health initiatives are not to<br />
be confused with other businesses, programs or services<br />
which may also use the name ‘Kidsmatter’.<br />
Copyright<br />
© Commonwealth of Australia <strong>2012</strong><br />
This work is copyright. Provided acknowledgment is made<br />
to the sources, schools are permitted to copy material freely<br />
for communication with teachers, staff, students, parents,<br />
carers or community members. You may reproduce the whole<br />
or part of this work in unaltered form for your own personal use<br />
or, if you are part of an organisation, for internal use within your<br />
organisation, but only if you or your organisation do not use<br />
the reproduction for any commercial purpose and retain this<br />
copyright notice and all disclaimer notices as part of that<br />
reproduction. Apart from rights to use as permitted by the<br />
Copyright Act 1968 or allowed by this copyright notice, all<br />
other rights are reserved and you are not allowed to reproduce<br />
the whole or any part of this work in any way (electronic or<br />
otherwise) without first being given the specific written<br />
permission from the Commonwealth to do so. Requests and<br />
inquiries concerning reproduction and rights are to be sent to<br />
Communications Branch, Department of Health<br />
and Ageing, GPO Box 9848, Canberra ACT 2601,<br />
or via e-mail to<br />
copyright@health.gov.au.<br />
While the resources are available freely for these purposes,<br />
to realise the full potential of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary, it is<br />
recommended that the resources be used with the<br />
appropriate training and support under the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Initiative.<br />
Last updated March <strong>2012</strong>
CONTENTS<br />
05<br />
OVERVIEW: WHAT IS KIDSMATTER PRIMARY?<br />
PAGE PAGE PAGE PAGE PAGE PAGE PAGE31<br />
06<br />
ABOUT IMPLEMENTING KIDSMATTER PRIMARY<br />
IN YOUR SCHOOL<br />
11<br />
KIDSMATTER PRIMARY SCHOOL ACTION TEAM:<br />
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES<br />
18<br />
KIDSMATTER PRIMARY IMPLEMENTAION PROCESS<br />
23<br />
KIDSMATTER PRIMARY PLANNING TOOLS<br />
27<br />
HOW MIGHT KIDSMATTER PRIMARY BUILD<br />
ON WHAT WE ARE ALREADY DOING?<br />
STAFF SURVEYS
4<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Overview<br />
What is<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary?<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary is a flexible, whole-school<br />
approach to children’s mental health and wellbeing<br />
for primary schools. It works both on its own and<br />
as an umbrella under which a school’s existing<br />
programs can comfortably fit.<br />
FOR MORE<br />
INFORMATION<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
provides the proven methods,<br />
tools and support to help<br />
schools, parents and carers,<br />
health services and the wider<br />
community nurture happy,<br />
balanced kids.<br />
Further information about <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary can be found on the website,<br />
including contact details for the <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary state and territory coordinators:<br />
www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary<br />
For specific enquiries about <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary implementation, phone the<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> front desk 1800 543 767<br />
(1800 KIDSMP), or email<br />
frontdesk@kidsmatter.edu.au.<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary is a national initiative that<br />
aims to contribute to improving student mental<br />
health and wellbeing, reducing mental health<br />
difficulties amongst students, and increasing<br />
support for students experiencing mental<br />
health difficulties.<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary was developed in collaboration<br />
with beyondblue, the Australian Psychological<br />
Society, and the Principals Australia Institute,<br />
and with funding from the Australian Government<br />
Department of Health and Ageing and beyondblue.<br />
As a collaboration between education and health,<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary encourages joint involvement<br />
of both education and health sectors.<br />
Through <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary, schools undertake<br />
a two-to three-year cyclical process in which<br />
they plan and take action using a comprehensive<br />
whole-school approach to mental health<br />
promotion, prevention and early intervention.<br />
It allows for flexibility and can be tailored to<br />
schools’ local needs. In this way, <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary builds on the work schools are already<br />
doing to address the mental health of their<br />
students through national, state, territory and<br />
sector-based initiatives and policies. <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary provides a range of resources and support<br />
throughout the journey.<br />
The purpose<br />
of this handbook<br />
This handbook is a companion volume to<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary Essential Reading. It provides<br />
information about the importance of children’s<br />
mental health and wellbeing, the school’s role<br />
in working to improve this, and the key elements<br />
of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary that have been designed<br />
to support schools in doing this work.<br />
This handbook aims to provide useful information<br />
to the people and teams – known as the <strong>Action</strong><br />
<strong>Team</strong>s – in schools who lead and drive the<br />
implementation of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary. It<br />
contains the tools necessary to guide them<br />
along this journey.
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 5<br />
About implementing<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary in<br />
your school<br />
Teachers play a central role in implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary.<br />
The initiative has been carefully designed to ensure that all school<br />
staff will feel supported with resources and skills.<br />
Effective school change requires leadership<br />
and school community support – it needs<br />
to connect to core school values and goals.<br />
Change involves a long-term approach that<br />
systematically addresses key aspects of<br />
school structures and processes and these<br />
are built into the school’s strategic plan as<br />
part of an ongoing cycle of improvement.<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s are the key drivers of <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary. Using the core activities and tools of the<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary Initiative, the school <strong>Action</strong><br />
<strong>Team</strong> works through a step-by-step process that<br />
is underpinned by theory and evidence-based<br />
research, taking the school through a series<br />
of professional learning components to support<br />
and inform the change process.
6<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Your school<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> <strong>Action</strong><br />
<strong>Team</strong> is essential<br />
Implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
requires a planned and coordinated<br />
whole-school approach. It will be<br />
driven by a strong and enthusiastic<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> and Principal who can<br />
demonstrate and articulate commitment<br />
through active engagement in all stages<br />
of the initiative.<br />
The <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> is a vital element to the successful implementation of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary. To be<br />
most effective, <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s should consist of three or more members who are representative of<br />
the school community. Members may include teachers, parents and carers, school leadership and<br />
student wellbeing staff. <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s should meet regularly to plan and coordinate the<br />
implementation of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary.<br />
This <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong>, together with the professional learning, implementation support,<br />
network meetings and the state and territory <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary staff, provide the essential support<br />
to schools. The <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> is expected to meet at least twice per term for a couple of hours over<br />
the period of the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary implementation – approximately 18 months to three years.<br />
Thereafter, schools can tie the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary process into their cyclical review and strategic<br />
planning process.<br />
Aim<br />
for a continuum of<br />
improvement across the<br />
core components<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary acknowledges that each<br />
school is different and that efforts may already be<br />
underway to address students’ mental health at<br />
your school. You should therefore aim to identify<br />
how well your school is currently meeting the<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary goals, and set school-specific<br />
goals addressing each of the four core <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary components. Your school is encouraged<br />
to move forward at a pace that is manageable, no<br />
matter how small the steps. <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary is<br />
flexible and can adjust to specific individual school<br />
circumstances. Ongoing review and renewal are<br />
promoted throughout the implementation of<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary.<br />
The idea is that <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary is never<br />
‘finished’. Once one set of goals has been<br />
achieved in a component, new goals can be<br />
set and worked on, or past goals can be revisited<br />
and refreshed. In this manner, <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
is continually responding to the changing needs<br />
of new students, staff and families who enter<br />
the school community each year.<br />
CORE COMPONENTS<br />
1<br />
2<br />
3<br />
4<br />
Component 1:<br />
Positive school community<br />
Component 2:<br />
Social and emotional<br />
learning (SEL) for students<br />
Component 3:<br />
Working with parents and carers<br />
Component 4:<br />
Helping children with<br />
mental health difficulties
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 7<br />
The importance of the<br />
implementation process<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary Briefing<br />
(for principals and leaders)<br />
Your school may already be undertaking mental<br />
health and wellbeing activities and have effective<br />
planning practices and processes in place.<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary provides a process that your<br />
school can use to assess and evaluate your<br />
current practice. Where schools would like to<br />
review their needs comprehensively in relation to<br />
mental health and wellbeing, <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
will systematically guide the planning and<br />
implementation of a whole-school approach.<br />
This process prioritises consultation and<br />
professional learning with all staff so that their<br />
needs, concerns and participation are central<br />
to the planning and implementation process. It<br />
enables your school to identify its specific needs<br />
and concerns against the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Target Areas and Goals, which are based on<br />
evidence and use theoretical frameworks. You<br />
can then develop strategies that best address<br />
these concerns and review progress as necessary.<br />
It is flexible, so that you tailor it to meet the specific<br />
needs of your school, provide an opportunity for<br />
reflection, and build on what is already being<br />
achieved in the area of student mental health and<br />
wellbeing. In short, it supports the change process.<br />
Overview of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
(for all interested people)<br />
Getting Started<br />
Working with <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
(for non-school staff)<br />
Attend the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
professional learning events<br />
Change starts with the individual. <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary provides a range of free events that inform<br />
and guide staff through a professional program of<br />
learning. One aim of the training is to enable one<br />
or two staff members selected by your <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
to be trained as professional learning facilitators<br />
in <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary Components 1 through to 4.<br />
They will conduct professional learning in each of<br />
the four <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary components with the<br />
whole staff to improve knowledge of mental health<br />
and wellbeing. The discussions, learning and<br />
feedback gained from these professional learning<br />
sessions all contribute to the change process.<br />
Nine different professional learning events<br />
are illustrated on the right of this page.<br />
(essential for School<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s)<br />
Implementation and<br />
Support Meetings<br />
(an ongoing series<br />
for <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s)<br />
Facilitating Components<br />
1, 2, 3, and 4<br />
(separate events<br />
for school facilitators)
8<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Seek external<br />
supporters and<br />
critical friends<br />
Where possible, it is strongly recommended that your school <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
sources external supporters and critical friends who can assist with the<br />
implementation of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary. <strong>KidsMatter</strong> schools have found<br />
this support helps them stay focused and motivated and brings alternate<br />
perspectives and resources. External supporters and critical friends, while not<br />
typically involved in school processes, are often already engaged in the<br />
school community in some way. External supporters can assist schools<br />
in professional learning delivery – in fact, this is highly recommended<br />
for the delivery of Components 3 and 4.<br />
Critical friends and supporters can be sourced in a variety of different ways.<br />
They may be:<br />
• education system personnel – student wellbeing officers,<br />
school counsellors or school psychologists<br />
• health and community personnel – mental health promotion<br />
officers, mental health workers, community health or community<br />
development officers<br />
• members of an <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> from another <strong>KidsMatter</strong> school<br />
who are able to share learning from their own experiences<br />
• parents or carers with specialist skills or knowledge in mental<br />
health and wellbeing.<br />
Critical friends and supporters will have knowledge, skills and experience in:<br />
• mental health and wellbeing<br />
• parenting<br />
• working with diverse cultures, or<br />
• working with school culture change.<br />
They may have previous experience in implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary.
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 9<br />
It is helpful for individuals wishing to support <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary to attend the<br />
Working with <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary professional learning event which provides<br />
information about <strong>KidsMatter</strong> and how they can provide support and contribute<br />
to the implementation of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary in schools.<br />
While the role of critical friend is, by definition, a flexible and supportive role,<br />
the premise behind it involves the following ideas:<br />
• providing an alternative perspective for the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> to consider<br />
• supporting the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>’s activities, possibly including<br />
attending meetings and using knowledge of group functioning<br />
to facilitate group processes<br />
• using previous knowledge, expertise and experiences to prompt critical<br />
reflection by the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> on ideas, beliefs and practices<br />
• assisting the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> to find information and solutions to problems<br />
• motivating the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> to continue when the initiative seems<br />
to be slowing<br />
• inspiring the <strong>Action</strong><strong>Team</strong>.<br />
The critical friend may also support schools by facilitating professional<br />
learning in some or all of the four components.
10<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary<br />
School <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
Roles and<br />
responsibilities<br />
Purpose of the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
The role of the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> is to:<br />
understand <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary and how it will<br />
benefit and work for your school community<br />
plan and lead the implementation of<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary within the school.<br />
Membership<br />
Each member of your <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> is there to act as a spokesperson for each of the key<br />
groups that form your school community. The members of an <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> vary depending<br />
on who is a part of your school community and may include:<br />
• the school principal or a member of leadership staff (strongly recommended)<br />
• a representative from the wellbeing or welfare team<br />
• a classroom teacher<br />
• a parent or carer representative<br />
• a representative of administration and other support staff<br />
• a leader of the community who might support a key group in your school,<br />
for example, a Local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island elder, religious or<br />
cultural leader<br />
• community service staff who currently support your school, for example,<br />
school student support officers and other allied health professionals such<br />
as occupational therapists<br />
• a student representative, from the student council or other student<br />
group, who is able to actively contribute to the team.<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s can also be school teams for other initiatives that are happening<br />
at your school, who now identify <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary as a specific focus for the group.
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 11<br />
Key tasks and<br />
responsibilities<br />
of the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
School principal and leadership staff<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary strongly recommends the<br />
participation of a school principal or member of<br />
leadership staff on the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>. The <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary evaluation and other <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
school feedback have shown that commitment from<br />
principals and school leadership staff is a key<br />
success factor in implementing and sustaining<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary in participating schools.<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> Leader<br />
Every team, in any area of life, benefits from<br />
a leader who can coordinate what has to be done<br />
to achieve particular team goals. An <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
leader has the responsibility of coordinating the<br />
steps and activities that need to happen at your<br />
school during the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary journey.<br />
This can include scheduling meetings for the<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> to discuss <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary,<br />
scheduling implementing activities such as the<br />
Staff Survey, and generally monitoring the<br />
progress of the initiative at your school. Other<br />
members would have their own responsibilities<br />
that ideally they have chosen or have appropriate<br />
skills and resources. The <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> leader does<br />
not have to be the principal or leadership staff<br />
representative on the team.<br />
Meeting Chair<br />
The responsibility of meeting chair can be<br />
shared by <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> members and doesn’t<br />
necessarily need to be the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> leader.<br />
This person’s responsibility will be to:<br />
• guide the meeting according to the<br />
agenda within the time available<br />
• ensure items for discussion end<br />
with a decision, action and outcome.<br />
In coordinating the initiative across the school,<br />
the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> will undertake the following<br />
key tasks:<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
gather relevant existing school data<br />
coordinate the delivery of the<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary staff presentation<br />
to all staff at the school<br />
organise and administer the<br />
Staff Survey to all staff in the school<br />
coordinate the collation of the<br />
Staff Survey responses<br />
analyse the School Mental<br />
Health Map<br />
develop and implement a School<br />
<strong>Action</strong> Plan for each <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary component that is tailored<br />
to school needs<br />
liaise with health and community<br />
supports and agencies to assist<br />
implementation in the school<br />
consult and meet with their external<br />
support personnel (critical friend)<br />
and attend school support network<br />
meetings on a regular basis<br />
provide a record of school progress<br />
in developing, implementing and<br />
reviewing the components.
12<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
In addition, the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> will also play a major<br />
role in fostering ownership and engagement in the<br />
school community.<br />
This will involve:<br />
• building a shared school vision that<br />
highlights the contribution schools can<br />
make to children’s mental health and wellbeing<br />
• articulating that all staff members have an<br />
important part to play in promoting student<br />
mental health and addressing mental health<br />
concerns across the school<br />
• enhancing positive, collaborative working relationships with<br />
school staff so that their needs and concerns are addressed<br />
and to ensure they feel valued and included in the planning<br />
and implementation process<br />
• providing information about the links between<br />
children’s mental health and school success<br />
and supporting relationships with mental health<br />
professionals and community services to foster<br />
this in the school<br />
• keeping all school staff and the wider school<br />
community up-to-date with the progression<br />
of the initiative<br />
• guiding, inspiring, motivating and supporting<br />
the school staff to implement the initiative<br />
• striving to hear everyone’s voices and foster<br />
inclusiveness of the whole school population.<br />
The <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
will have access to data from the<br />
school community and, accordingly,<br />
confidentiality will be required. <strong>Action</strong><br />
team members may also become known<br />
within the school as contact people in<br />
relation to mental health and wellbeing.<br />
Members should not feel pressured to<br />
respond in ways that are outside<br />
of their usual role within<br />
the school.<br />
What makes for a successful school <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>?<br />
Well-functioning, effective groups tend to be cohesive, have all members actively contribute (Johnson<br />
and Johnson, 2003) and have a shared group vision (Akrivou, Boyatzis & McLeod, 2006). In addition,<br />
successful groups tend to have strong and consistent supportive leadership (Sobeck, Abbey & Agius,<br />
2006) that results in active involvement in defining priorities, offering incentives, establishing consensus<br />
and managing the implementation process (Durlak & DuPre, 2008).<br />
Successful <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s typically have a well thought out, coordinated, whole-school approach that is<br />
driven by a strong and enthusiastic leadership team and a supportive principal who can demonstrate<br />
and articulate commitment through active engagement in all stages of the initiative. Rather than having<br />
to seek approval outside of meetings, the presence of a leadership staff member like the school principal<br />
or deputy principal on the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> allows for approval to be given in meetings.<br />
An effective team also has simple procedures in place to assist with decision-making and problemsolving<br />
(Speer & Zippay, 2005). This includes having clear agendas, thoroughly documenting meeting<br />
minutes and progress reports, and matching allocated tasks to the skill-set of individual group members<br />
so that members’ roles and responsibilities are clearly defined (Armstrong & Priola, 2001).
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 13<br />
What has helped other <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s<br />
implement <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary?<br />
School <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s that have participated in<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary have found that a number of<br />
factors contributed to their functioning and success<br />
in implementing component plans. These have<br />
included:<br />
Membership stability<br />
A high level of staff turnover is often an issue in<br />
the school context. Staff changes, causing high<br />
membership instability, can impact upon a group’s<br />
belief in the continuing ability to achieve its goals.<br />
Schools may need to make allowances for this by<br />
having proxy team members attend <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
training or becoming involved in a minor way. This<br />
is particularly important when it is anticipated that<br />
staff changes are likely or imminent.<br />
Representative membership<br />
• having the principal as a member<br />
of the team<br />
• having parents or carers as members<br />
from the beginning<br />
• having a cross-section of representatives<br />
from the school community<br />
• inviting proxy team members or others<br />
from the school who could become team<br />
members if needed.<br />
Meetings<br />
• scheduling regular times to meet<br />
• ensuring release time from teaching<br />
duties for meetings<br />
• developing a detailed agenda for each<br />
meeting to keep track of timelines, plans,<br />
goals and achievements<br />
• setting planned review meetings<br />
• using a data projector so everyone can<br />
see the component plans<br />
• sharing food while meeting or providing<br />
food (especially where staff give up their<br />
own time).<br />
School and <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> members<br />
• making time to complete tasks<br />
• making <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary a priority<br />
in the school including at staff meetings<br />
– it’s otherwise easy for other issues<br />
to take over<br />
• working collaboratively with school staff,<br />
parents, carers and the wider community<br />
• encouraging all members to contribute<br />
actively to the group<br />
• being committed and enthusiastic<br />
• taking small steps – whole-school change<br />
takes time<br />
• working hard to get all staff on board<br />
– whole-school collaboration is vital<br />
for success<br />
• planning collaboratively – teachers<br />
modifying strategies for their own classes.<br />
Planning for sustainability<br />
• recognising that <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> membership<br />
will not remain static<br />
• actively monitoring and preparing for<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> membership to ensure<br />
succession planning can be built<br />
into plans.<br />
NOTES
14<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
<strong>Team</strong> effectiveness develops over time<br />
It takes time for a group to develop and work<br />
effectively. Group development theory<br />
suggests that groups have a natural cycle<br />
and go through different stages. Educational<br />
Psychologist, Bruce Tuckman (1965)<br />
identified five distinct stages that groups<br />
typically move through. Groups need to<br />
experience the initial stages of forming,<br />
storming, and norming before maximum<br />
effectiveness is achieved in the performing<br />
stage. Group developmental theory has an<br />
underlying assumption that most groups do<br />
not operate forever and as such, the final<br />
stage is adjourning, which involves group<br />
termination. These five stages can be helpful<br />
in understanding the way in which school<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s evolve on the road<br />
to becoming more effective.<br />
As you can see from the table on the<br />
following page, conflict (storming) is a<br />
natural part of group development and<br />
learning to deal effectively with it is an<br />
important part of group development.<br />
Groups that are not able to deal with conflict<br />
effectively when it occurs risk staying in the<br />
storming phase and therefore potentially<br />
disbanding. It is also important to note that<br />
groups may regress back to the storming<br />
stage when issues arise. Moreover, not all<br />
groups are successful in progressing<br />
through each of the different stages.<br />
See the table on the next page for more<br />
information about Tuckman’s theory of group<br />
development. You can use this information to<br />
support the school <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>’s transition<br />
through each stage and to assist in reflecting<br />
on what your role might be.<br />
As an <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>, consider:<br />
How will you know you have reached each<br />
of the different stages of team functioning?<br />
NOTES
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 15<br />
Forming<br />
Group tasks<br />
Getting to know each other<br />
• Developing trust and openness<br />
• Sharing and belonging<br />
• Defining the tasks and how they<br />
will be accomplished<br />
How will we know we have reached this stage?<br />
Group behaviour<br />
Members may display anxiety or apprehension about what the group is going<br />
to do but will also be excited about starting something new. There will tend to<br />
be dependency on the group leader and many questions will be asked. Some<br />
members may dominate the group and development of sub-groups and<br />
splitting may occur.<br />
Storming<br />
Group tasks<br />
Defining one’s place in the group<br />
• Establishing roles and relationships<br />
• Dealing with conflict over one’s position in<br />
the group: individual versus group needs<br />
• Dependence versus independence<br />
• Deciding whether or not to accept and<br />
commit to group goals<br />
How will we know we have reached this stage?<br />
Group behaviour<br />
Members can display heightened emotions or ambivalence. There may be<br />
some hostility or resistance towards leaders, or <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary and group<br />
member focus is generally on difficulties or obstacles. Conflict is common in<br />
this stage, especially regarding roles in the group and power and control.<br />
Scapegoating and member drop-outs are also often seen in this stage.<br />
Norming<br />
Group tasks<br />
Development of trust, cohesion and genuine<br />
support between members<br />
• Establishment of group norms<br />
– rules, limits, consequences<br />
Group behaviour<br />
In this stage, development of group spirit, cooperation and support occurs.<br />
The team is starting to work well together. All members are welcomed and<br />
accepted in the group. Group members develop a shared ‘can do’ attitude<br />
and experience freedom of communication.<br />
How will we know we have reached this stage?<br />
Performing<br />
Group tasks<br />
Becoming self-sufficient<br />
• Resolving dependency issues<br />
• Using own and others’ skills and resources<br />
• Supporting and challenging each other to<br />
achieve goals<br />
• Identifying with the group and feeling a sense<br />
of solidarity<br />
Group behaviour<br />
Group members are resourceful, goal-oriented, friendly and supportive<br />
towards one another and highly energised. They experience a sense of<br />
satisfaction about achievements and the contributions they have made and<br />
the group achievements to date. Behaviour is less dependent on the leader.<br />
(Unfortunately not all groups reach this stage.)<br />
The team has settled its relationships and expectations.<br />
How will we know we have reached this stage?<br />
Adjourning<br />
Group tasks<br />
Planning for goal maintenance<br />
• Completing unfinished business<br />
• Dealing with feelings about termination<br />
• Ritual ending or celebration<br />
• Disengagement<br />
Group behaviour<br />
When the end of the work period is near, the behaviour of some members<br />
may deteriorate or regress. Behaviours that were seen in the initial two<br />
phases may resurface due to feelings of sadness, loss, concern or grief for the<br />
leaving leader or termination of group. This may be shown in many questions<br />
being asked again. It is important to Identify and celebrate group<br />
achievements before termination or as part of starting the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Review process.<br />
How will we know we have reached this stage?
16<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Get to know<br />
the resources<br />
for <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary<br />
implementation<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary provides your school’s <strong>Action</strong><br />
<strong>Team</strong> with the information, resources and support<br />
they need to have the best chance of effectively<br />
implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary. This includes:<br />
State and territory staff<br />
who provide professional<br />
learning and support to your<br />
school, and build partnerships<br />
with health and education<br />
sectors. Contact details are<br />
on the website.<br />
Professional learning events<br />
for school and non-school based<br />
professionals to support your<br />
school throughout the <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary journey. Register on<br />
the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> website.<br />
Website<br />
www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary<br />
with a comprehensive and growing<br />
range of resources, including<br />
the following:<br />
Programs Guide: to assist schools in making informed decisions when selecting<br />
appropriate social, emotional and mental health programs<br />
Information sheets: for teachers, parents and carers, and health professionals<br />
Posters: designed to promote the four components and key <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
messages for displaying around the school<br />
Online event calendar: staff register to attend events in their local region<br />
Online tools: developed to assist schools in planning<br />
School stories: share strategies and best practice<br />
E-newsletters: both state-based and national<br />
Documents: Teaching and learning resources to download, like the <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary Essential Reading and this <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong>
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 17<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary<br />
Implementation process<br />
The following flow chart<br />
outlines the implementation<br />
process of <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary in your school.<br />
Register interest<br />
on <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
website<br />
• Leadership attends <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Briefing<br />
• People interested in additional information attend <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Overview<br />
and, for non school staff, Working with <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Obtain school<br />
community<br />
support<br />
• Deliver <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Briefing to staff<br />
• Complete <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Statement of Committment<br />
Establish school<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> to<br />
drive <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
in your school<br />
• <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> attends Getting Started<br />
• <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> coordinates implementation<br />
The school <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>, after having attended Getting Started professional learning, will undertake<br />
the following, which is detailed in the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> step-bystep implementation process<br />
• Seek a ‘critical friend’ to attend Working<br />
with <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary and to provide<br />
ongoing support to the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>.<br />
• Conduct Staff Surveys with staff and<br />
gather other data from the school<br />
community and assess results.<br />
• Identify professional learning facilitator(s)<br />
who attend Facilitating Components 1, 2,<br />
3, and 4.<br />
• Send a minimum of one or two members<br />
to implementation support and network<br />
meetings.<br />
• Organise with school leadership for all<br />
staff to attend four three-to-four-hour<br />
sessions of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> component<br />
professional learning (in-school).<br />
• Consult with and involve, wherever<br />
possible, the broader school community<br />
in the development and implementation<br />
of the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary mental health<br />
and wellbeing component plans.<br />
• Ensure regular feedback to the<br />
school leadership and broader school<br />
community.<br />
• Place the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary mental<br />
health and wellbeing component plans<br />
together as one document within the<br />
school’s broader strategic plan and cyclic<br />
school improvement/review process.
18<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
The <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Implementation Process<br />
Getting started<br />
Once your school has committed to <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary, the first step is to form your <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
and attend the Getting Started event. This session<br />
provides information about the content of <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary, its underpinning mental health concepts, and<br />
processes and tools for aiding implementation while<br />
supporting school priorities and strategic planning.<br />
Schools receive all the resources they require to begin<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary.<br />
Getting started<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> communicates<br />
with the school community<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> communicates<br />
with the school community<br />
It is important that there is ongoing communication<br />
about <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary between the school<br />
community and the members of the school <strong>Action</strong><br />
<strong>Team</strong>. This can be done through ensuring school<br />
staff and interested community members have seen<br />
the ‘Introduction to <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary Film’ and been<br />
provided with introductory information, as well as<br />
regular updates as the initiative develops. There are<br />
many ways your school may decide to share<br />
information with students, staff, parents and the<br />
broader community. For example, it may include<br />
newsletter articles, updates at staff meetings, space<br />
in the staff room and front reception area. Keeping<br />
your principal regularly briefed about this<br />
communication is a critical role of the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>.<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> also regularly develops new tools to assist<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s, which are available on the website<br />
www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary.
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 19<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> distributes the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary Staff Surveys to all staff<br />
An essential element of successfully implementing a whole-school initiative such as <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary is to ensure that the opinions and concerns of staff are taken into account, together with<br />
those of students and parents and carers. Teachers and school staff are highly valued and need<br />
to be included early in the planning process, especially since they will be closely involved in<br />
implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary.<br />
The staff consultation process for <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary requires all staff to complete four short<br />
surveys. The survey asks staff for their perspectives on what they, and the school, are<br />
currently doing to promote students’ mental health and wellbeing, and their views on the<br />
school’s current activities. This relates directly to the areas covered by the four components.<br />
The surveys can be found in the next section: <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary planning tools. Staff can complete the<br />
surveys online (www.cvent.com/d/vcqlnj) for automatic collation of results. Let your state or territory<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary project officer know if you would like to do the survey online so that your school<br />
can be provided with password access to your results. Alternatively, the surveys can be photocopied<br />
and distributed to all staff. The Excel Staff Survey Collation Tool, available on the website, can be used<br />
to hand-enter the data from the survey and create graphs to provide a useful picture of the staff<br />
response for each question. Either way, once the information has been collated, short<br />
summary statements should be made on your School Mental Health Map in the space<br />
provided. These statements should succinctly describe the current situation at your<br />
school according to the staff perceptions from the survey.<br />
Gathering initial views is important as your school commences implementation.<br />
This provides a starting point for collecting evidence and measuring progress from<br />
this point as your school progresses along the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> journey. Then each survey<br />
is conducted again, after each round of training. This will help your school assess change<br />
by comparing pre and post-training results, ensuring that the views of staff have relevance and<br />
meaning in informing the changes and improvements the school makes as a result of the Kidsmatter<br />
Primary Initiative. The completion of all four surveys at the start of the journey, and again after each<br />
of the four component training sessions, will provide you with substantial information to enable you<br />
to measure your progress. This information will automatically be collated and transferred onto a<br />
mental health and wellbeing map focused around the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Target Areas for your school, to<br />
assist you with developing your component plans. It is recommended that schools then survey staff<br />
annually thereafter to ensure a continued cycle of improvement. This information will form the basis<br />
of the processes used to recognise your school as a ‘<strong>KidsMatter</strong> School’ when you complete the<br />
necessary steps.<br />
It is recommended<br />
that all four staff<br />
surveys are completed<br />
well before any<br />
whole-school component<br />
training begins.
20<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> identifies a facilitator<br />
to deliver the component training<br />
The facilitator or facilitators might be sourced<br />
from staff at your school or an external<br />
education, health or community agency. The<br />
state and territory <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary staff<br />
can help you identify appropriate people to<br />
facilitate professional learning at your school.<br />
It is highly recommended that school <strong>Action</strong><br />
<strong>Team</strong>s work in partnership with appropriate<br />
mental health and parenting support<br />
professionals in the delivery of Component<br />
3, and mental health professionals in the<br />
delivery of Component 4.<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary provides professional<br />
learning and support for these facilitators.<br />
They register online on the <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary website, and attend one-day<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary professional learning<br />
facilitating sessions for each component.<br />
Each day familiarises participants with the<br />
content of the component area and the wholeschool-staff<br />
processes of the professional<br />
learning. It also prepares participants to<br />
deliver the professional learning effectively<br />
to schools.<br />
Whole-staff professional learning<br />
in each component<br />
When ready, the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> arranges for<br />
all staff, including ancillary staff, to participate<br />
in the component professional learning.<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> recommends you commence with<br />
Component 1 as this lays the foundation for all<br />
the other components. Training is usually held<br />
at the school and can be delivered in one<br />
three-to-four-hour session, or over a number of<br />
sessions, depending on what is convenient for<br />
the school and the facilitator. It is expected that<br />
over about an 18-month to three-year period all<br />
staff will attend the professional learning in all<br />
four components. Schools need to schedule<br />
the professional learning and work through<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary at a pace that suits their<br />
community. To suit specific school needs,<br />
options include breaking down whole<br />
components into smaller after-school sessions.<br />
Speak to your state or territory <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary Project Officer about what might best<br />
suit your school.<br />
Accessing a supporter or critical friend,<br />
and attending implementation support<br />
and network meetings<br />
Some schools have greater access to a<br />
range of support systems, such as <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary networks, community, cultural or health<br />
agencies and student support services. If your<br />
school has fewer options, think creatively and<br />
proactively about the different people and forms<br />
of support available within your community.<br />
It may be helpful to begin sourcing external<br />
supporters or critical friends by liaising with your<br />
existing connections within the community. For<br />
example, if you have worked successfully with<br />
a school psychologist in your region, approach<br />
them to discuss the role and ascertain whether<br />
they or one of their colleagues would be<br />
interested in supporting your school. Often<br />
parents may have specialist expertise or<br />
experience. It is also strongly recommended<br />
that you contact your state or territory <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary coordinator or project officer to discuss<br />
the availability of experienced external<br />
supporters or critical friends in your local area.<br />
All those interested in supporting <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary at any level are strongly encouraged<br />
to attend Working with <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
professional learning, to better understand<br />
the possibilities for supporting the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
and school.<br />
Implementation support and network meetings<br />
provide another avenue of support for<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary schools. These workshops<br />
are organised by <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary state and<br />
territory staff to provide an opportunity for<br />
sharing experiences and exchanging ideas<br />
about the implementation of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary.<br />
In addition to building networks and collegial<br />
support, these workshops also provide<br />
additional professional learning and support<br />
from <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary staff to enhance the<br />
implementation process.
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 21<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> leads the school to address each <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary component<br />
Specific target areas and goals have been identified for each of the four <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
components. Within the component, each goal needs to be addressed. It is recommended that<br />
you do this in a planned, strategic and systematic way. If your school doesn’t have a preferred<br />
process, we highly recommend that you develop an overall component plan.<br />
Define the issues by writing<br />
a summary statement to describe<br />
your school’s current situation<br />
This first step helps to clarify the current situation at your school in<br />
relation to the issue and exactly what needs to be addressed. List<br />
issues identified, including any supporting data, ensuring the needs<br />
and views of the school community have been included.<br />
Set goals based on each<br />
summary statement<br />
Setting goals enables you to identify what you want or need to do<br />
in relation to the identified issue i.e., what you are going to work on.<br />
Don’t forget to consult with the school community during this process.<br />
Identify any concerns<br />
in achieving goals<br />
This step helps to identify and explore any concerns or barriers at<br />
your school that might get in the way of you achieving goals. It is<br />
important here to consult with your school community.<br />
Develop a broad range of<br />
options/strategies to address<br />
concerns and achieve goals<br />
This step provides the opportunity to brainstorm, together with your<br />
school community, a broad and creative range of options/strategies<br />
for addressing the concerns and meeting the goals.<br />
Evaluate feasibility of each<br />
option/strategy<br />
Once the options have been identified, the feasibility of each<br />
one is evaluated in this step.<br />
Formalise the component plan<br />
The feasible options/strategies that best address the identified<br />
concerns and will achieve the goals set are put into a coherent plan,<br />
with times to review and resources required. Schools might consider<br />
how to present the plan to the school community for their feedback<br />
prior to being finalised.<br />
Implement the plan and review<br />
The action plan can now be carried out, and should be reviewed<br />
at regular intervals and adjusted if necessary. The action plan is<br />
incorporated into the school’s strategic plan as part of core business.<br />
Using evidence – for example from School Survey<br />
results or data or consultation with parents, carers<br />
or students – and ideas generated during the<br />
component professional learning sessions, <strong>Action</strong><br />
<strong>Team</strong>s develop a plan of action and strategies for<br />
each component. These strategies are written into<br />
the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary component plans. This<br />
process is used to develop a plan that incorporates<br />
planning through problem-solving and a review<br />
of the implementation of each component.<br />
The planning process is comprehensive and<br />
designed to deal with implementation issues that<br />
may arise, including addressing any concerns or<br />
issues that teachers and school staff that may be<br />
present in the school.<br />
If you need them, there are instructions for working<br />
through the planning process in the next section.<br />
You will also find four blank component plans at the<br />
end of this handbook that can assist you to develop<br />
your school’s component plan.<br />
Electronic copies of all tools are available<br />
on the website www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary<br />
or contact us on 1800 543 767 or at<br />
frontdesk@kidsmatter.edu.au.<br />
These <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary component plans sit<br />
together as the mental health and wellbeing arm of<br />
the school’s strategic plan. This is why providing<br />
regular progress updates and support to school<br />
leadership is so important. There should be no<br />
surprises when the final <strong>KidsMatter</strong> mental health<br />
and wellbeing plan, comprising the four component<br />
plans, is presented to the leadership team in<br />
your school.
22<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary<br />
Planning tools<br />
The step-by-step implementation process<br />
Follow these instructions for each step of the process:<br />
STEP<br />
Use the process to define the<br />
issues by writing a summary<br />
statement to describe your<br />
school’s current situation<br />
STEP<br />
Set school-specific goals based<br />
on each summary statement<br />
A summary statement of your school’s current<br />
situation for each <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary goal has<br />
already been created in the Staff Survey collation<br />
tool.<br />
Write the summary statement for each goal on the<br />
component plan.<br />
List additional issues identified from school<br />
community. Include any supporting data, ensuring<br />
the identified needs and views of the school<br />
community have been included.<br />
Identify a school-specific goal based on each<br />
summary statement for your school to work on.<br />
Make the goals clear and simple (for example, staff<br />
will increase parent contact by 25 per cent by the<br />
end of term).<br />
Write the goal next to each summary statement on<br />
the component plan.<br />
Don’t forget to consult with the school community.<br />
When goal-setting,set SMART goals:<br />
Useful tip:<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>s need to be sensitive to the<br />
issues that they are identifying and decide if it<br />
is in the best interests of the school to share<br />
some specific concerns with the broader<br />
community and how this can be done<br />
appropriately. Privacy and confidentiality need<br />
to be in place to respect the school community.<br />
Specific:<br />
Measurable:<br />
Achievable:<br />
Relevant:<br />
Goals should be well-defined<br />
and clear.<br />
How will you know when the goal<br />
is achieved? What will you see?<br />
What will be different?<br />
The goals should be realistic and<br />
take into account the current<br />
situation.<br />
The goals should meet the needs<br />
of the school and consider why the<br />
goal is important to the context.<br />
Time specific: Be clear about when the goals are<br />
to be achieved.
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 23<br />
STEP<br />
Identify any concerns in<br />
achieving goals<br />
STEP<br />
Develop a broad range of<br />
options or strategies to address<br />
concerns and achieve goals<br />
List any concerns you have in achieving the<br />
school-specific goal for each <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
goal. It is important here to consult with your school<br />
community and listen to their concerns.<br />
Concerns can be identified from relevant<br />
information using the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary Staff<br />
Survey collation tool, including:<br />
– Teacher and school staff attitude or belief survey<br />
questions for this component.<br />
– Collated significant comments or concerns from<br />
individual staff.<br />
List the concerns next to each school-specific goal<br />
on the component plan.<br />
Use a brainstorming process with your school<br />
community to generate as many ideas as possible<br />
to address the concerns and school-specific goals<br />
for each <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary goal. School stories<br />
and ideas generated at the Facilitating<br />
Components 1, 2, 3 and 4 sessions and the<br />
website will assist with this.<br />
Suspend judgement of each idea until the next step,<br />
as this may interfere with the creative process.<br />
This step is best done using a range of strategies<br />
to gather ideas – a whiteboard or butcher’s paper<br />
near the school office, student focus groups, a<br />
tear-off sheet in the school newsletter. Do not<br />
decide which strategies to include on your<br />
component plan until the next step.<br />
It is recommended that the whole-school<br />
community be involved in the brainstorming<br />
process. Consider delegating <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
members with responsibility for getting feedback<br />
from different members of the school community<br />
such as staff, parents and carers, and students.<br />
At the end of this process you should have a long<br />
list of possible options or strategies to address the<br />
concerns and school-specific goals for each<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary goal.<br />
Useful tip:<br />
The initial burst of strategies during brainstorming<br />
will usually generate ones that would have been<br />
considered anyway. It is important to move beyond<br />
this point and be creative about options.
24<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
STEP<br />
Evaluate the feasibility of each<br />
option or strategy<br />
STEP<br />
Formalise your component plan<br />
You are now ready to decide on the most feasible<br />
strategies for addressing each <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
goal of the component. When evaluating the<br />
feasibility of each option, consider the following<br />
issues:<br />
How well does your option meet your schoolspecific<br />
goal?<br />
What will be the ‘cost’ of this option – time,<br />
money, staffing?<br />
Do we have the resources (time, money, staffing)<br />
to achieve this option?<br />
What would be the outcome of this option?<br />
Does this option reflect a whole-school approach?<br />
Does this option reflect our school’s values, vision<br />
and mission and broader goals?<br />
Work down your list of options or strategies and<br />
write down the feasibility issues for each option.<br />
Evaluate the feasibility of each option<br />
(according to the issues) by assigning<br />
a rating out of 3<br />
1 = not feasible,<br />
2 = somewhat feasible,<br />
3 = most feasible.<br />
Highlight the most feasible options for each<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary goal.<br />
Do not include this information on the component<br />
plan – the best options will be finalised and put in<br />
the plan in the next step.<br />
The component plan only provides a general guide<br />
for implementation of each action. For more<br />
detailed planning, ask the staff members<br />
responsible for each particular action to prepare<br />
more comprehensive plans and time lines,<br />
consulting as required with the broader school<br />
community and principal. Over time, the component<br />
plan should be considered in relation to actions<br />
from the other components to ensure that one staff<br />
member or group is not burdened with too many<br />
tasks, and that work is manageable and dispersed<br />
across the school year. In planning actions, it is also<br />
important to ensure that resources are not overused<br />
and that dates for events do not clash.<br />
It is important to plan for a review of the component<br />
plan after the beginning of the implementation to<br />
enable any necessary adjustments to be made.<br />
This will allow the progress of the plan to be<br />
monitored and reviewed.<br />
Based on your feasibility ratings, choose the most<br />
appropriate actions to address each <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary goal.<br />
Add your agreed actions to the component plan.<br />
For each agreed action of the component plan,<br />
define:<br />
– Resources required – for example, professional<br />
learning programs, materials.<br />
– Person responsible.<br />
– Time frames – start and completion dates.<br />
– Review dates – when you will revisit and review<br />
your plan and make adjustments if needed.<br />
– Consultation on the draft component plan prior<br />
to finalisation and formal adoption. It is<br />
essential to include the school principal in this<br />
consultation, and the input of the community<br />
is also encouraged.
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 25<br />
STEP<br />
Implement the plan<br />
and then review<br />
Each component plan is developed, implemented<br />
and reviewed in turn.<br />
Begin delivering the actions described in your plan,<br />
according to the agreed time frame.<br />
Set regular <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> review meetings where<br />
you can revisit the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary mental<br />
health and wellbeing component plans and make<br />
adjustments if needed.<br />
In review, check that you are still working towards<br />
the agreed goals and making progress.<br />
Adjust the component plans following the review<br />
and continue to implement.<br />
Efforts in Component 1 can continue while schools<br />
turn their focus to Component 2, and so on.<br />
Strategies implemented under each of the<br />
components can be undertaken simultaneously<br />
and address more than one component.<br />
Once all four plans are developed, the individual<br />
component plans can be joined together to form<br />
a <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary mental health and wellbeing<br />
plan. School leadership can incorporate this as the<br />
mental health and wellbeing arm of the school’s<br />
strategic plan, as part of the school’s core business.
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary builds on the work schools are already doing in relation to addressing the mental health and wellbeing of their students.<br />
26<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
How might<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
build on what we are already doing?<br />
This table from the Getting Started professional learning event<br />
can be used to write down what your school is currently doing<br />
to promote mental health and wellbeing, noting how it may relate<br />
to your school’s vision.
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 27<br />
Component 1:<br />
Positive school community<br />
Component 2:<br />
Social and emotional<br />
learning for students<br />
School vision:<br />
How does <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
align with this vision?<br />
Component 3:<br />
Working with parents and carers<br />
Component 4:<br />
Helping children with<br />
mental health difficulties<br />
Could be printed on A3 paper for whole staff to contribute to.
28<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Checklist<br />
The steps below can be used to guide the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> through the<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary implementation process and to document your journey.<br />
TASKS<br />
NOTES<br />
CHECK<br />
Establishing <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> roles:<br />
Is the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> representative<br />
of the whole-school community?<br />
Leading the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>:<br />
Who is best placed to take<br />
on this role?<br />
Identifying external support<br />
or critical friend:<br />
Which external community, health<br />
or education based personnel could<br />
support the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong>?<br />
Are there any <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
schools nearby that the <strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong><br />
can connect with?<br />
Planning Meetings:<br />
How often will we meet?<br />
When will we meet?<br />
Planning professional learning:<br />
Who will be the facilitator(s)?<br />
Raising school staff awareness<br />
and delivering staff presentation:<br />
When will we present to all staff?<br />
Who will lead the presentation?<br />
Family and community<br />
awareness-raising:<br />
How will we raise awareness to the<br />
whole-school community?<br />
Distributing Staff Survey:<br />
When and how?<br />
Consulting with families, students<br />
and whole school community:<br />
When and how?<br />
Starting component planning:<br />
When and how?<br />
Plan for delivering professional<br />
learning for staff on each<br />
component.<br />
Delegating and sharing tasks<br />
across school community:<br />
When and how?
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 29<br />
References<br />
Akrivou, K.l, Boyatzis, R.E., & McLeod, P.L. (2006),<br />
The evolving group: Towards a prescriptive theory of<br />
intentional group development. Journal of Management<br />
Development, 25(7), 671 – 688.<br />
Armstrong, S.J. & Priola, V. (2001), Individual<br />
differences in cognitive style and their effects on task<br />
and social orientations of self-managed work teams.<br />
Small Group Research,32(3), 283 – 312.<br />
Durlak, J.A. & DuPre, E.P. (2008), Implementation<br />
Matters: A Review of Research on the Influence of<br />
Implementation on Program Outcomes and the Factors<br />
affecting Implementation. American Journal of<br />
Community Psychology, 41 (3/4), 327 – 350.<br />
Johnson, D.W. & Johnson, F.P. (2003), Joining together:<br />
Group theory and group skills (8th ed.). Needham<br />
Heights, MA US: Allyn & Bacon.<br />
Sobeck, J.L., Abbey, A., & Agius, E. (2006), Lessons<br />
Learned from Implementation School-based Substance<br />
Abuse Prevention Curriculums. Children & Schools,<br />
28 (2), 77 – 85.<br />
Speer, P.W. & Zippay, A. (2005), Participatory Decision-<br />
Making among Community Coalitions: An Analysis of<br />
Task Group Meetings. Administration in Social Work,<br />
29(3), 61 – 77.<br />
Tuckman, B.W. (1965), Developmental sequence in<br />
small groups. Psychological Bulletin, 63(6), 384 – 399.
30<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
Staff Surveys<br />
Instructions for online survey<br />
Staff can complete the surveys online for automatic collation of results<br />
(www.cvent.com/d/vcqlnj). To view your school’s results promptly, please<br />
contact your <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary project officer or the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Data Manager<br />
(surveysupport@kidsmatter.edu.au) to receive your username and password<br />
details to access your school’s secure reports. All surveys are completely<br />
anonymous and only show averaged results from your staff.<br />
Instructions for paper-based surveys<br />
Alternatively, the following surveys can be manually copied and distributed<br />
to all staff at a suitable time. The Excel Staff Survey Collation Tool is used<br />
to enter staff responses from the survey and interactively creates graphs to<br />
provide a useful picture for each question. The questions are directly linked to<br />
each Target Area on the School Mental Health Map. Short summary statements<br />
should be made for each Target Area and Goal on the Mental Health Map.<br />
These statements should succinctly describe the current situation at your<br />
school according to the staff perceptions from the survey.<br />
After school staff members have completed the survey, enter their scores into<br />
the spreadsheet by placing a number in the box which corresponds with their<br />
answer to each item, working down the column:<br />
1 = Strongly disagree 2 = Somewhat disagree<br />
3 = Neutral 4 = Somewhat agree<br />
5 = Strongly agree<br />
As survey scores are entered, a bar graph will automatically be generated for<br />
each question, and automatically transferred onto the School Mental Health<br />
Map, which provides an overall ‘picture’ of your school.<br />
<strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary School<br />
Mental Health Map<br />
The Mental Health Map sets out the four <strong>KidsMatter</strong> components with the Target<br />
Areas and Goals for each. The information from your completed Staff Survey<br />
collation is carried over to the Mental Health Map. Scores have been ‘averaged’<br />
for those Target Areas that are assessed by several questions, in order to<br />
estimate your school’s position in that Target Area.<br />
Write a summary statement in the space next to each graph which succinctly<br />
describes the current situation at your school according to your staff’s ratings<br />
(see example below).
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 31<br />
Staff Survey<br />
Component 1:<br />
Positive school community<br />
Survey instructions<br />
An important aspect of implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary is the consultation process with the school<br />
community and, in particular, school staff. Your<br />
responses to this survey will help inform the<br />
planning of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary in your school.<br />
Some questions are about your work and your<br />
opinions as a staff member and some questions<br />
ask for your impression of what your school does in<br />
different areas relevant to children’s mental health.<br />
• It is important that you give your honest<br />
views and not be overly positive. It is okay<br />
to disagree with statements if that is your<br />
honest view.<br />
• Your views about your school are<br />
important. Although not every question<br />
may seem relevant to you, please answer<br />
each question as best you can. Only leave<br />
a question blank if it definitely does not<br />
apply to you (e.g. it asks about your class,<br />
but you are not a teacher).<br />
• Gathering initial views and then posttraining<br />
view are important, as your school<br />
begins its journey. This provides a starting<br />
point for collecting evidence and can be<br />
used to assess progress as your school<br />
moves along the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
journey.<br />
Your responses are anonymous in this survey, so do not put your name on this form.<br />
Please circle the rating that best fits your opinion of each statement.<br />
1. Supporting students’ mental health and wellbeing is a central part of my role.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
2. Our school can make a real difference towards improving students’ mental health and wellbeing.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
3. Supporting students’ mental health and wellbeing helps reduce behavioural problems<br />
and improves their academic learning outcomes.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
4. I understand who makes up our school community and what’s important to them.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
5. Making the time to get to know students is a priority for me.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5
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<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
6. I feel valued and respected at our school.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
7. Relationships between staff members are respectful and responsive.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
8. Relationships between staff and students are respectful and responsive.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
9. Relationships between staff and families are respectful and responsive.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
10. Members of our school community feel welcome and included, and this is reflected in our<br />
policies and practices.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
11. Our school has specific policies and practices that promote inclusion and a safe environment.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
12. Our school communicates in a variety of ways to meet the diverse needs of our students<br />
and families.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
13. The contributions of diverse cultures and groups are encouraged in our school.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
14. Our school offers diverse opportunities for students and families to participate in a range<br />
of activities (e.g., special projects, social and community activities).<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
15. Our school provides opportunities for all members of the school community to share their<br />
views and contribute to school decisions.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
Do you have any other comments or concerns related to your school community?
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 33<br />
Staff Survey<br />
Component 2:<br />
Social and emotional<br />
learning for students<br />
Survey instructions<br />
An important aspect of implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary is the consultation process with the school<br />
community and, in particular, school staff. Your<br />
responses to this survey will help inform the<br />
planning of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary in your school.<br />
Some questions are about your work and your<br />
opinions as a staff member and some questions<br />
ask for your impression of what your school does in<br />
different areas relevant to children’s mental health.<br />
• It is important that you give your honest<br />
views and not be overly positive. It is okay<br />
to disagree with statements if that is your<br />
honest view.<br />
Your responses are anonymous in this survey, so do not put your name on this form.<br />
Please circle the rating that best fits your opinion of each statement.<br />
1. Improving students’ social and emotional skills supports their academic learning.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
2. There are many benefits from teaching social and emotional learning in my classroom, like<br />
improved behaviour and learning.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
3. I know about the social and emotional skills that children need to effectively manage feelings<br />
and behaviours, get on with others, make appropriate decisions, and solve problems.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
4. I know how to teach social and emotional skills to my students.<br />
• Your views about your school are<br />
important. Although not every question<br />
may seem relevant to you, please answer<br />
each question as best you can. Only leave<br />
a question blank if it definitely does not<br />
apply to you (e.g. it asks about your class,<br />
but you are not a teacher).<br />
• Gathering initial views and then posttraining<br />
view are important, as your school<br />
begins its journey. This provides a starting<br />
point for collecting evidence and can be<br />
used to assess progress as your school<br />
moves along the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
journey.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5
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<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
5. It is important that the social and emotional curriculum focuses on developing competencies<br />
for self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills and responsible<br />
decision-making.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
6. Our school is guided by evidence when it selects social and emotional learning programs<br />
for students.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
7. Social and emotional skills are taught formally and integrated as part of the regular<br />
curriculum at our school.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
8. Teaching of social and emotional learning is viewed holistically in our curriculum.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
9. I am a role model to students of social and emotional skills.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
10. I actively support students in developing social and emotional skills through daily interactions.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
11. I provide opportunities for students to practise and adapt their social and emotional skills in<br />
a range of daily interactions in and out of the classroom.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
12. Information is provided to families about our school’s approach to social and emotional learning.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
13. I work collaboratively with families in developing students’ social and emotional skills.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
Do you have any other comments or concerns related to your school community?
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 35<br />
Staff Survey<br />
Component 3:<br />
Working with parents<br />
and carers<br />
Survey instructions<br />
An important aspect of implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary is the consultation process with the school<br />
community and, in particular, school staff. Your<br />
responses to this survey will help inform the<br />
planning of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary in your school.<br />
Some questions are about your work and your<br />
opinions as a staff member and some questions<br />
ask for your impression of what your school does in<br />
different areas relevant to children’s mental health.<br />
• It is important that you give your honest<br />
views and not be overly positive. It is okay<br />
to disagree with statements if that is your<br />
honest view.<br />
• Your views about your school are<br />
important. Although not every question<br />
may seem relevant to you, please answer<br />
each question as best you can. Only leave<br />
a question blank if it definitely does not<br />
apply to you (e.g. it asks about your class,<br />
but you are not a teacher).<br />
• Gathering initial views and then posttraining<br />
view are important, as your school<br />
begins its journey. This provides a starting<br />
point for collecting evidence and can be<br />
used to assess progress as your school<br />
moves along the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
journey.<br />
Your responses are anonymous in this survey, so do not put your name on this form.<br />
Please circle the rating that best fits your opinion of each statement.<br />
1. Building collaborative relationships with parents and carers is a priority for our school.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
2. Children’s mental health and wellbeing is better supported when home and school work together.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
3. I build effective collaborative and supportive relationships with the parents and carers<br />
of my students.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
4. Our school supports me in improving my skills of communicating effectively with parents<br />
and carers about child development, learning, mental health and wellbeing.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5
36<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
5. I know how to communicate effectively with parents and carers in areas related to child<br />
development, learning, mental health and wellbeing.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
6. I always communicate effectively with parents and carers about their child.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
7. Our school helps me to identify resources and services that support parenting.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
8. Our school helps me by facilitating parent and carer access to resources and services.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
9. Our school actively promotes opportunities for parents and carers to connect with each<br />
other and develop support networks.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
10. I encourage parents and carers to make connections with other parents and participate<br />
in support networks.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
11. Our school facilitates access for parents and carers to community groups that provide<br />
support for families.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
Do you have any other comments or concerns related to your school community?
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 37<br />
Staff Survey<br />
Component 4:<br />
Helping children with<br />
mental health difficulties<br />
Survey instructions<br />
An important aspect of implementing <strong>KidsMatter</strong><br />
Primary is the consultation process with the school<br />
community and, in particular, school staff. Your<br />
responses to this survey will help inform the<br />
planning of <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary in your school.<br />
Some questions are about your work and your<br />
opinions as a staff member and some questions<br />
ask for your impression of what your school does in<br />
different areas relevant to children’s mental health.<br />
• It is important that you give your honest<br />
views and not be overly positive. It is okay<br />
to disagree with statements if that is your<br />
honest view.<br />
• Your views about your school are<br />
important. Although not every question<br />
may seem relevant to you, please answer<br />
each question as best you can. Only leave<br />
a question blank if it definitely does not<br />
apply to you (e.g. it asks about your class,<br />
but you are not a teacher).<br />
• Gathering initial views and then posttraining<br />
view are important, as your school<br />
begins its journey. This provides a starting<br />
point for collecting evidence and can be<br />
used to assess progress as your school<br />
moves along the <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
journey.<br />
Your responses are anonymous in this survey, so do not put your name on this form.<br />
Please circle the rating that best fits your opinion of each statement.<br />
1. I understand the factors that can put children at risk of experiencing mental health difficulties.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
2. I understand childhood mental health difficulties, including common signs and symptoms,<br />
and their impacts on children and families.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
3. Getting help and support early is very important for improving outcomes for students and<br />
families who may be experiencing mental health difficulties.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
4. Our school community is inclusive and accepting of members who may be experiencing<br />
mental health difficulties.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5
38<br />
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary<br />
5. Our school community has specific policies and practices that support students and families<br />
experiencing mental health difficulties to seek appropriate help.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
6. Assisting students who may be experiencing mental health difficulties is part of my role.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
7. I understand there are boundaries to my role in supporting students who may be<br />
experiencing mental health difficulties.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
8. I know the school protocols and processes for recognising and responding to students who<br />
may be experiencing mental health difficulties, including helping them to remain engaged in<br />
their education.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
9. I can recognise a student who may be experiencing mental health difficulties.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
10. Within the limits of my role, I am able to support a student who may be experiencing mental<br />
health difficulties.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
11. I follow our school processes, which facilitate support and referral for students who may<br />
be experiencing mental health difficulties.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
12. Our school has effective working relationships and clear referral pathways with local mental<br />
health services and supports families to access these services.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
13. Our school works effectively with families and professionals in caring for students’ mental<br />
health and learning needs.<br />
Strongly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Strongly agree<br />
1 2 3 4 5<br />
Do you have any other comments or concerns related to your school community?
<strong>Action</strong> <strong>Team</strong> <strong>Handbook</strong> <strong>KidsMatter</strong> Primary 39
www.kidsmatter.edu.au