SWELE Program: An Unstructured Outdoor Play With Mindfulness-based Interventions to Promote Mental Health Among Students With Special Education Needs

Summary

This is an observational study with the aim of SWELE Programme is to raise mental health knowledge and awareness by implementing a play-based approach on Supporting Wellness in E-Child Learning Environments (SWELE) programme combining unstructured outdoor play activities with mindfulness-based interventions to promote mental health in children and adolescents with special education needs (SEN), in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is a 16-week SWELE programme and it will be conducted in two batches. Each batch has three special schools. The main activities include: One training workshop for three groups in each special school: 1) Scout Leaders (special schools' teachers), 2) SEN students (scouts in the school) to become Youth Mental Health Ambassadors and 3) for parents, school social workers, school nurses, schoolteachers and stakeholders; 30 minutes unstructured outdoor play with mindfulness activities 2 times per week for 16 weeks

After participated the SWELE programme, the primary outcomes include reducing anxiety symptoms, reducing negative emotions, improving social skills in peer relationships; and changing in playfulness level among SEN children and adolescents.

Main activities of SWELE programme:

* Unstructured outdoor free play integrated into the school's extra-curricular activities (Youth Mental Health Ambassadors) to promote SEN students' mental health for objectives 1-4.
* Use mindfulness-based podcasts, mindfulness games, mindfulness art for objectives 1-2.
* Through meditation and deep breathing technique, storytelling with relaxing waves piano music, yoga and mindful art for objectives 1-2.
* Training Workshops (Training of trainers) for Scout Leaders who will implement SWELE program in each special school.
* Youth Mental Health Ambassador Program for SEN students who are enrolled in Scout Club in each special school; SWELE training workshops for parents and schoolteachers will also be held in each special school for objectives 1-4.
* Examples of unstructured play might be creative play alone or with others, including artistic or musical games. imaginative games - for example, making cubbyhouses with boxes or blankets, dressing up or playing make-believe, exploring new or favorite spaces like school backyards, parks, playgrounds and so on.

Conditions

• Specific Learning Disorder
• Intellectual Disability, Mild to Moderate
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
• Physical Disability

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

SWELE Programme

This 16-week programme focuses on Supporting Wellness in E-Child Learning Environments (SWELE) programme by combining unstructured outdoor play with mindfulness-based interventions to promote mental health in SEN students, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no such SWELE programme to promote mental health for SEN students in Hong Kong, especially in the context of COVID-19 pandemic. A playful approach of unstructured play has also been found effective on promoting positive emotions and emotional competence among early adolescents (Harn \& Bo, 2019). Unstructured Outdoor Play coupled with Mindfulness-based Interventions via SWELE programme to Promote Mental Health for children and adolescents with SEN during COVID-19 pandemic. Very limited unstructured outdoor play-based programme integrated into the extra-curricular activities in the special schools in Hong Kong.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Chinese University of Hong Kong

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Regina Lee, PhD · Chinese University of Hong Kong

Eligibility

Min Age

6 Years

Max Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2023-11-15

Primary Completion

2024-05-31

Completion

2024-07-14