bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

Fairoza Mansor



[Sponsored article]
With studies in 2018 and 2019 revealing that almost one in 10 people in Hong Kong are likely to have depression, and a third of young people in the city are suffering from stress, anxiety or depression, mental health is no longer an issue to be taken lightly.
“We’ve got a huge mental health issue globally – and here in Hong Kong – that has been tucked under the carpet for too long,” says Mark Steed, principal of Hong Kong’s Kellett School, who is the latest teaching expert to discuss pertinent topics surrounding education in the South China Morning Post’s recurring EdTalk video series of interviews.

“If schools don’t take the lead in addressing this, then we are not preparing young people properly for the world they are going into,” says Steed, who took on his role last August after moving from Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates.
“That’s why at Kellett we believe in equipping students with the resilience and skills to go into universities, then on to the workplace and the wider world.”
We’ve got a huge mental health issue globally – and here in Hong Kong – that has been tucked under the carpet for too long. If schools don’t take the lead in addressing this we are not preparing young people properly
Mark Steed, principal, Kellett School
This vision has culminated in a “bespoke curriculum”, named Positively Kellett, at the Hong Kong-based British international school founded in 1976, which has campuses in Pok Fu Lam and Kowloon Bay and caters to children aged four to 18 from preparatory levels up to Year 13.
Coping strategies for future challenges
The Positively Kellett initiative is structured to provide students with the skills to enable them to be “resilient for whatever life throws at them”, Steed says.
A major component of the programme includes a Resilience Retreat, in which students participate in a range of activities such as meditation and team-building exercises centred around preparing them for life’s adversities.
“If we can equip young people with the skills to deal with the challenges – be it related to social media, pressures of exams or even bullying – before they actually come to face them, we can halve the problem at [an] early stage,” Steed says.
Schools are in the future business; we are shaping the next generation, so we need to prepare them for the world of work ahead
Mark Steed
“Our overall strategy is to give young people these skills in advance so that when these things happen, they are able to cope.”
However, preparing Kellett’s students for the road ahead goes beyond simply mental health issues.
“After all, schools are in the future business,” Steed says. “We are shaping the next generation, so we need to prepare them for the world of work ahead.”

As such, educators need to look to the future, keep up with what’s going on in society and identify the future skills that are needed in the workplace, he says. These skills include being tech-savvy and having the ability to collaborate and be creative, as well as adapt and solve problems.
“The most important thing is having the mindset that change is the only constant going forward,” Steed says.
If we can equip young people with the skills to deal with the challenges – be it related to social media, pressures of exams or even bullying – before they face them, we can halve the problem at [an] early stage
Mark Steed
Nurturing ‘future ready’ students
To prepare students and instil that mindset into them, Kellett will be launching its inaugural mini MBA programme this August for Year 12 students.
Through partnerships with Hong Kong accountancy firms, banks and hotels, the programme aims to impart skills to students that are “grounded in the real world”, Steed says.
While the programme covers a range of subjects, the focus is centred on honing students’ personal impact and presence.

“Whether in an interview, during public speaking or in a group situation, how we present ourselves in those occasions and to the outside world is going to be extremely important,” Steed says.
The programme also features units on accounting and finance, marketing and promotion, as well as business strategy.
“The aim is that by the end of the year, these young people [will have] a really good idea of how businesses work, understand how an organisation or a firm makes a profit, be aware of how it markets itself and be able to make a judgment on its success,” Steed says.
We want students to have the mindset to pick themselves up when things go wrong and the resilience to see themselves through difficult times
Mark Steed
Most schools do not offer these kinds of insight and learning early on, he says.
“We've seen a massive dislocation between the ways the examination system has [unfolded] and the way in which the world of work [actually is] – they’ve moved in divergent directions.”
The ultimate goal is nurturing “future ready” students with the skills that “relate to the mid-21st century”, Steed says.
“Above all, we want students to have the mindset to pick themselves up when things go wrong, and the resilience to see themselves through difficult times.”


Why it’s time schools taught children mental resilience to cope with life’s challenges

EdTalk Kellett

Kellett School

The ‘bespoke curriculum’, Positively Kellett, at Hong Kong’s Kellett School aims to teach students skills for the future, so they are able to creatively collaborate, adapt and solve problems.

Kellett students learn to deal with challenges through team building exercises in their Resilience Retreat.

Kellett will be launching its mini MBA programme in August for Year 12 students to hone their personal impact and prepare them their working life.

Mark Steed, principal of Hong Kong’s Kellett School, discussing the coping strategies that children need at the latest EdTalk interview with Fairoza Mansor, host and editor at Morning Studio.

News

Hong Kong

Education

Huge global mental health issue among teenagers has been ignored for too long, says Mark Steed, principal of Hong Kong’s Kellett School
Positively Kellett, British international school’s ‘bespoke programme’, prepares young people for stresses and strains at work and wider world


Huge global mental health issue among teenagers has been ignored for too long, says Mark Steed, principal of Hong Kong’s Kellett School


Why it’s time schools taught children mental resilience to cope with life’s challenges

Huge global mental health issue among teenagers has been ignored for too long, says Mark Steed, principal of Hong Kong’s Kellett School Positively Kellett, British international school’s ‘bespoke programme’, prepares young people for stresses and strains at work and wider world

Huge global mental health issue among teenagers has been ignored for too long, says Mark Steed, principal of Hong Kong’s Kellett School

Positively Kellett, British international school’s ‘bespoke programme’, prepares young people for stresses and strains at work and wider world