Impact
‘We are delighted with feedback we have received from schools receiving high scores for the projects accessibility, relevance and impact. In 2019 we worked with an external researcher to assess the impact of Compassion Matters at a small sample of schools. The evidence gathered demonstrated has the project positively impacted on children’s social skills and pro-social behaviour while helping to lessen negative behaviour.
Each of our learning resources are designed to help participants develop competencies in three key areas Awareness, Understanding and Action. All of these outcomes are proven to support greater individual and collective wellbeing and improved academic performance. You can download further information about the research behind our model here.
Our Theory of Change infographic below explains the process and outcomes for participating schools and education charities.
Case Study: Dulwich Prep, London
In January 2019, Dulwich Prep, a school-based in South London, worked with the Dalai Lama Centre for Compassion to bring the centre’s Compassion Matters project to the school. The following video explores the children and teachers experiences of the project.
Case Study: Sun Academy and Star Academy, Stoke on Trent
Here at SUN Academy, Year 6 has just finished the fourth lesson on Compassion. Richard’s story had a profound effect on their outlook, especially the clear message of empathy and action. There was a much-improved level of concentration and focus in our PSHE lessons as a result off using these resources, and we will produce a hall display using them. The children have a much-improved level of empathy with each other and as a result, far fewer disagreements, especially at break times.
Iain Macdonald, Head of Academy, Sun Academy
In January 2019, Compassion Matters partnered with two schools in Stoke on Trent; The Sun Academy and The Star Academy both part of the Action Academy Trust. The schools approached Compassion Matters, having struggled to find high-quality materials to use to support PSHE and personal development lessons and a desire to develop a renewed focus on children’s well-being. Both schools serve communities facing significant challenges in terms of engagement with education and economic opportunities with both schools having over the national average number of children in receipt of free schools meals in their cohorts.
During our initial consultation with the schools, the teachers indicated significant challenges with the children’s social cohesion in and outside of the classroom leading to a problematic learning environment and confrontations between children often escalating to parents becoming involved. The schools wished to see children develop greater empathy, emotional regulation and social awareness during the project.
We worked with the two schools to support the running of our curriculum with 120 children during the spring term. Children explored our compassion module, which explores concepts such as empathy, the consequences of compassion and compassionate action. The lessons explore a deeper understanding of what compassion is, our emotional reactions and support children to see effective models for compassionate action. We worked together with the school to focus on compassionate action using recognition and reflection tools, such as wall charts and journals, developed in partnership with the schools year six teachers.
