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The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact that mentoring has on Canadian early career teachers’ (ECTs’) well-being. The authors describe findings from a pan-Canadian Teacher Induction Survey (n=1,343) that examined perceptions and experiences of ECTs within K–12 publicly funded schools, with particular interest in retention, career interests and the impact of mentoring on well-being.

An online survey was used to examine perceptions and experiences of ECTs within publicly funded K–12 schools across Canada. For this paper, the authors selectively analyzed 35 survey questions that pertained to mentorship and well-being of ECTs, using quantitative and qualitative procedures.

The findings revealed a strong correlation between the mentoring experiences and well-being of the participating Canadian ECTs. The teachers who did not receive mentorship indicated significantly lower feelings of well-being, and conversely, teachers who participated in some kind of mentorship demonstrated much higher levels of well-being.

This paper draws on the selective analysis of the data from a larger study to elicit the connections between the mentoring support and perceived well-being. Due to inconsistencies in terminology and multifaceted offerings of induction and mentoring supports for ECTs across Canada, there might have been some ambiguity regarding the formal and informal mentorship supports. A longitudinal study that is designed to specifically examine the connection between the mentorship and well-being of ECTs could yield deeper understandings. A comparative study in different international contexts is commended.

The findings showed that the ECTs who did not receive any mentorship scored significantly lower feelings of well-being from external, structural, and internal well-being sources, and conversely, the ECTs who participated in some kind of mentorship scored much higher levels of feelings of well-being. Policy-makers should therefore continue to confidently include mentorship as an intentional strategy to support and help ECTs to flourish. However, inconsistent scoring between individuals and their levels of external, structural and internal well-being suggest that more research on the connection between mentoring and well-being of the ECTs.

Work-life imbalance seems to be more challenging for ECTs than policymakers who provide these expectations are aware. Therefore, excessive work demands and intensive workloads need to be given proper attention for their potential negative effects (such as stress, burnout and absence) on the beginning teachers’ health and well-being. Likewise, purposeful strength-based approaches should be undertaken to establish generative and pro-social efforts to enhance the connectedness, collaboration, collegiality and resilience-building opportunities for novice professionals within flourishing learning communities.

In this paper, the authors have undertaken the first steps in exploring the impact that mentoring has on Canadian ECTs’ well-being. The study increases the understanding of how mentoring can be used as a purposeful strategy to support the well-being of ECTs and retain them in the teaching profession in Canada and potentially in different international contexts.

The purpose of this multiyear research study is to examine leadership in K-12 schools using a positive organizational perspective to understand how to foster, support and encourage flourishing in schools. In this article, the authors describe the lived experiences of a small group of principals and vice-principals in K-12 schools describing how they have experienced flourishing in their work.

The research was carried out using a qualitative, phenomenological approach to examine the lived, concrete and situated experiences of a small sample of school administrators (N = 9) in two school districts in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Data were collected through individual interviews that were designed to be appreciative in nature. These lasted between 60 and 90 min, were recorded and transcribed. The interview data were deductively and inductively analyzed and arranged into themes that demonstrate the key components of positive leadership for flourishing in schools, derived from these participants' experiences.

Building on and extending their findings that school administrators feel a sense of flourishing when they focus on their work from the values of purpose, passion and play, the authors found that a fourth value, presence, was important for these participants to experience well-being at work. Principals’ sense of well-being was strongly related to the notion of balance in their work and life, which helped them address potential stress and ill-being. Findings suggest that a strengths-based, positive approach to school leadership offers an alternative perspective for supporting and encouraging well-being at work.

Limitations of this research include the small sample size and the appreciative focus with which the data were collected that meant that participants were providing their experiences from a positive perspective. This article offers a complementary perspective for researching well-being in schools, from a positive, strengths-based approach to examining the work of administrators.

The authors offer insights into the work of school leaders from an appreciative, strengths-based perspective on understandings and practices that may be useful to principals and vice-principals who wish to enhance their workplace well-being. The authors suggest that administrators can learn to craft their work in ways that highlight existing well-being conditions toward amplifying and sustaining well-being. Working from four animating values for flourishing seemed to promote well-being for this small sample of administrators within the existing challenges and complexities of their work.

This article offers examples of lived experiences of principal and vice-principal well-being that highlight what happens when school leaders attend to their work from a positive, appreciative, strength-based perspective. This research perspective is an additional source of knowledge about well-being in schools complementing the existing research on well-being from a stress management and reduction perspective.

In this introduction chapter, the authors first offer a brief overview of the theoretical underpinnings of the notion of wellbeing and flourishing from the positive organizational scholarship literature. The authors, then, provide an overview of the chapters in this handbook, guiding the readers through key aspects that each chapter contributes to the handbook’s collective perspective of efforts, initiatives, and programs that promote wellbeing in the higher education settings.

In this concluding chapter of the handbook, the authors first revisit the conceptual focus of this handbook with a brief overview of research literature on wellbeing, using a common conceptual approach that identifies the dimensions of wellbeing and then provide an overview of literature that both addresses and imagines the wellbeing with students, faculty, staff, leadership, and institutional levels in mind. Finally, the authors will proffer that there is a need for agentic moral imagination to sustain and progress the cause of wellbeing in higher education.

Research shows that most faculty do not receive training before being promoted into administrative and leadership roles. This lack of training and awareness of what their new role entails can lead to feelings of anxiety and reduced confidence, which can also negatively affect their wellbeing. The chapter details findings from a case study in one Canadian university setting regarding the factors and practices that contribute to success and flourishing of academic leaders in the higher education (HE) contexts. Data analysis demonstrated that having positive perceptions of the academic leadership role and experiencing mentorship and positive role modeling were crucial factors to the effectiveness of leadership development and a sense of academic leaders’ flourishing in their work. Upon describing the pertinent literature on academic leadership development, the authors detail the case study methodology, discuss the findings, and offer implications for further research.

This chapter explores perspectives on the role of leaders in higher education to promote wellbeing that strengthens capabilities and capacities and provides means for sustainable achievement and flourishing. The author discusses perspectives on health and wellness and approaches to wellbeing, flourishing, and thriving to find and create work–life balance and addresses training and development to enhance knowledge on the importance of wellbeing. The chapter is based on a qualitative interview study on practices of wellbeing, flourishing, and thriving in educational organizations with a purposive sample of six higher education leaders in the USA, Canada, and Jamaica. The findings revealed that promoting wellbeing in higher education demands qualities promoted by leaders such as capability, capacity, and sustainability for success. The chapter concludes with a theoretical framework on educational leaders’ wellbeing, flourishing, and sustainability that can create opportunities for leaders’ to understand health and wellness in their institutions effectively.

It is well known that trust is an essential, yet a fragile part of organizational life. Because trust sometimes has to be placed without guarantees, it will inevitably be broken, violated, and damaged when parties involved in trustworthy relationships let others down. When trust-destroying events occur, trust is shattered and its level plummets quickly into the domain of distrust. The speed with which trust can be destroyed depends on the magnitude of damage from the act of untrustworthiness and the perceived intentionality of the untrustworthiness. Moreover, if seen as intentional, the destruction of trust is particularly severe, as intentional untrustworthiness reveals malevolent intentions that are seen as highly predictive of future untrustworthiness. Often, leaders are the ones responsible for improper handling of, destroying, or violating trust in their organizations. In this chapter, we explore the consequences of leaders for violating trust and examine how trust changes over time as a function of different types of violations and attempts at restoration. We argue that because distrust may irrevocably harm organizations, leaders as moral agents need to consciously work to rebuild relationships, restore broken trust, and instill hope.

Studies have shown that doctoral students are at risk of mental health issues that result from the demands and workload in doctoral programs, poor work relationships with supervisors, and delays in graduation. Research also shows that savoring good moments can help individuals maintain and foster their wellbeing. Drawing on data from a larger phenomenological research study (Al Makhamreh, 2019), this chapter presents a discussion of the importance of savoring for wellbeing based on findings from 19 doctoral students in Canadian universities. Findings demonstrate that numerous students were able to face the challenges in their doctoral programs by savoring happy moments that benefited their wellbeing and fueled their energy to keep going to achieve their goals. Recommendations for universities include offering students courses, training, interventions, and workshops on savoring and positive psychology in general. Additionally, providing savoring outlets and opportunities (e.g., gardens and gardening activities) could help students maximize their program experiences and satisfaction.