The complex nature of developmental milestones, mental ill-health and the transition to secondary school for adolescent boarding students

The complex nature of developmental milestones, mental ill-health and the transition to secondary school for adolescent boarding students Journal Article

Australian and International Journal of Rural Education

• Author(s): Mander, David, Hasking, Penelope
• Published: 2020
• Volume: 30
• ISBN: ISSN 1839-7387 (online) ISSN 1036-0026 (print)

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Abstract: This Rural Connections article discusses the challenges faced by students in transition to boarding school. Highlights from the article: Further research is required to understand mental ill-health among boarding students. Culturally informed and responsive practices are needed to guide developmental and mental health understandings when working with young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. A re-orientation towards the enormous potential of adolescence as a window of opportunity to offer positive intervention and prevention for young people experiencing, and at risk of, mental ill-health, seems particularly crucial. In this paper, we present a developmental and mental-ill health perspective on the transition to secondary school for boarding students. The developmental sciences have been described as the study of behavioural, biological and neuro-cognitive changes and processes that occur as an individual matures and grows (Dahl, Allen, Wilbrecht & Ballonoff Suleiman, 2018). Whereas mental ill-health is a general term that refers to a range of sub-clinical problems that can impact on how individuals feel, think and behave. The terms mental illness or mental disorder refer to clinical conditions diagnosed according to standardised criteria and which significantly interfere with how a person functions in life (Commonwealth of Australia, 2020). Here, we highlight some of the distinctive maturational processes that take place during the developmental period of adolescence and the nuanced way these and mental ill-health can impact on boarding students during the transition to secondary school. We argue that it is imperative for educators and boarding schools, researchers and governments alike, to collaborate and overcome a significant gap in empirical and cultural knowledge in this area.

• Urls: https://journal.spera.asn.au/index.php/AIJRE/article/download/263/281, https://journal.spera.asn.au/index.php/AIJRE/article/view/263