Rugby Players Ireland have teamed up with Ireland internationals Ryan Baird and Deirbhile Nic A Bháird to launch the newly enhanced Tackle Your Feelings Schools online platform.
The updated Schools Programme provides a brand-new online platform that will make it easier for teachers to deliver the programme, supported by greater accessibility and updates to content.
On the new platform, teachers are equipped with the tools and resources to guide their students through relevant resources where the students will complete tasks and exercises designed to make them more aware and knowledgeable about their own mental health and wellbeing.
The Schools Programme has been designed in a linear format, where each section builds on the previous one, with specific exercises and tasks built in to enable the students to take control of their own wellbeing.
When one section is complete, the next will unlock allowing the students and teachers to progress through the programme. The rugby player ambassadors also appear in short videos, giving their own experiences of mental wellbeing, acting as role models for students to be honest with themselves when it comes to their mental health.
A pilot study (with 8 teachers) was conducted in association with the University of Limerick to assess teachers’ perspectives on the experience of facilitating the TYF programme. Through this, teachers commented that TYF normalised conversations around mental wellbeing, as discussing wellbeing is “not the norm…not everyone is doing it… it should be instilled…in the whole curriculum”.
Teachers noted that implementing TYF Schools encouraged dialogue around mental wellbeing by also acting as “a catalyst for them to talk about it”.
The content for the programme, is developed using positive and sport psychology principles and is supported with comprehensive lesson plans for teachers, whilst students can easily access the content when in school or at home. The TYF Schools Programme includes an 8-lesson schedule, covering awareness, emotions, wellbeing characteristics and self-care.
“Tackle Your Feelings is an extremely important tool and the school’s programme is an incredible resource for teachers to deliver useful and valuable support for young people at what can be an overwhelming and challenging time in their lives,” said Baird.
“It is fantastic to see more and more young people equip themselves with the tools to best manage their mental wellbeing in a positive way.”
“Tackle Your Feelings is an incredibly beneficial programme and one that I wish I had access to when I was in school.,” added Nic A Bháird.
“The new platform has created a really user-friendly space for teachers to effectively communicate and deliver an outstanding positive mental wellbeing programme to the young people of Ireland.”
The programme is backed by the Z Zurich Foundation and Zurich Ireland.
“Zurich is proud to support the further development of the Tackle Your Feelings Schools Programme which provides increased resources and content for teachers delivering the programme,” said CEO Anthony Brennan.
“The development of the platform is based on positive psychology and sport psychology principles and the application of these principles provides a great support for students in helping to manage their mental wellbeing. It is fantastic to see two great role models Deirbhile and Ryan supporting this initiative, encouraging the young people of Ireland to become more aware of their own positive mental wellbeing.”
“We wanted to build on the great foundations the programme has established over the last 4 years,” said Campaign Manager at Rugby Players Ireland Hannah McCormack.
“This new platform ensures an even easier way for teachers to operate and effectively deliver the programme to their students in the classroom. We want teachers to feel comfortable and confident that they have resources and content to best support their students, something this new platform will significantly help with.”
Sport for Business Perspective:
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This is a great example of a programme being allowed to grow and develop over time, getting better with each iteration and learning from those who are both delivering it and using it in the classroom and online.
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