The Boys Academy

In Denmark, 100 marginalised boys attended a summer camp for three weeks, during which they were introduced to positive psychology via “The Boys Academy” programme. Their objective was to introduce and help them develop the following strengths:

• self-control
• commitment
• perseverance
• social intelligence
• curiosity
• gratutide
• optimism

Following on from the programme, the boys showed significant improvements in their reading, spelling, maths, as well as wellbeing and school motivation. Perhaps incorporating character strengths into curriculum could prove useful and might even prevent school dropout of children at risk.

Reference

Andersen, F. Ø., Nissen, P., & Poulsen, L. (2016). Inclusion of Marginalized Boys: A Survey of a Summer School Using Positive Psychology Interventions. Journal of Educational Issues, 2(1), 231–247.