Developing a Module to Enhance High School Students' Wellbeing in Pathein, Myanmar

Abstract

Student well-being plays a crucial role in fostering academic success and personal growth, particularly during adolescence. The objective of this study is to develop a psychological intervention module to enhance the subjective well-being for high school students at Pathein, Myanmar. The program includes various activities from positive psychology such as, Gratitude Exercises, Affirmations, Vision Boards, and Goal Setting. All the activities were adapted to the local cultural context based on experts’ advice and research. A pilot test was conducted with two students, observed by an expert. The intervention consisted of four sessions facilitated by two educators, focusing on fostering joy in learning, school connectedness, educational purpose and academic self-efficacy. The results indicated that the students experienced improvements in their overall subjective well-being, became more motivated in their learning, and showed higher levels of school involvement. Both students and educators appreciated the benefits of the program, which highlighted the positive effects of culturally adapted intervention on students’ subjective well-being. However, the small sample size makes it challenging to draw broad conclusions, and it might not show the wide range of experiences that high school students have. Future research should have a larger number of participants and test the effectiveness of the program and its application in educational settings.