Dr Imelda Caleon Speaks on Positive Psychology

Dr Imelda Caleon, Asst Dean (Partnerships) at the Office of Education Research (OER) and Senior Research Scientist at the Centre for Research in Pedagogy and Practice, shared on her research in positive psychology at four events between the dates of 27 February to 10 April 2021. Positive psychology, also referred to as the science of well-being and flourishing, has gained increasing attention from researchers, educators, and more in the past three decades. Interest in this movement has been growing exponentially, as evidenced by the large number of related research articles, resources, and activities that have been shared on various platforms.

On 27 February 2021, Dr Caleon was invited to be a plenary speaker at the 5^th National and 1^st International Conference on Education 2021 organised by Dhurakij Pundit University and the Association of Private Higher Education Institutions of Thailand, where she talked about the application of positive psychology principles in education to foster flourishing in the new normal.

Dr Caleon shared about current trends in positive psychology and positive education at the virtual Well-being Education Symposium 2021 organised by Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) on 31 March 2021. During her session, she covered the theoretical and empirical roots of positive psychology before focusing on current and emerging perspectives directed towards developing a more balanced and nuanced approach to understanding and appreciating human experiences. Dr Caleon also spoke on the same topic in a keynote presentation for the Singapore West 1 school cluster’s Positive Education Programme on 1 April 2021. Her presentation was attended by key personnel and Senior Teachers from the school cluster.

On 10 April 2021, Dr Caleon, Assoc Prof Mark Baildon, OER Assoc Dean (Partnerships and Analytics) and Assoc Prof in NIE’s Humanities and Social Studies Education Academic Group, and Dr Willy Renandya, Principal Lecturer in NIE’s English Language and Literature Academic Group, were invited to conduct a virtual panel session by the University of Santo Tomas (UST) on “Student-Centered Pedagogies in Blended Learning Environments”. Dr Renandya presented an overview of student-centered learning, while Assoc Prof Baildon shared about inquiry-based blended learning, and Dr Caleon drew on insights from positive psychology. The session was attended by 135 academic staff from UST’s Faculty of Arts and Letters.