Reimagine education using trauma-informed and wellbeing strategies

Shaped by 140 years of experience, decades of research and thousands of dedicated teachers, the Berry Street Education Model (BSEM) equips both mainstream and specialist schools with practical, classroom-based strategies to build safer, healthier and more engaging classrooms for all students, including those with complex, unmet learning needs.

In this video, hear from staff at Doveton College and the Berry Street School to learn of their first-hand experiences of how the Berry Street Education Model works in practice. Accompanied by Berry Street’s Dr Tom Brunzell, this video showcases the impacts that educators can make through our trauma-informed strengths-based approach to teaching and learning. We encourage you to share this video with your networks.

A whole-school approach to student engagement and wellbeing

Doveton College

Principal Debra Gibson shares her reflections on the years of Doveton’s BSEM journey and the way a common BSEM language and implementation approach has contributed to shifting school culture and lifting student expectations.

The Berry Street Education Model is the foundation of all our work at Doveton College – it has had a tremendous positive impact on all our students, our staff and our interactions with families and carers. Working in close partnership with Berry Street, we continue to deepen our understanding of trauma; the impacts and manifestations and build consistent practices for our students to be active and successful learners.

From our work with the Berry Street Education Model all our staff have a deep understanding of the impact of trauma on learning and behaviour. We have built strong positive relationships with all members of our community and we enjoy calm and orderly learning environments. This impact is clearly seen in our Attitudes to School data, which continues to improve each year, noting significant gains in areas such as teacher concern, student motivation, classroom behaviour, student agency, self-regulation and goal setting.

Implementing the Berry Street Education Model has been powerful professional learning for our staff. Through our partnership with Berry Street, we are continually energised with new and emerging research and practices, and are able to build the confidence and capacity of our staff to engage and include all learners.

A Berry Street Education Model lighthouse school

The Berry Street School

Our School demonstrates exceptional BSEM practice, and we provide students with a whole-school approach to support their growth and achievement through the Berry Street Education Model. Our dedicated staff members seamlessly integrate BSEM principles into their professional practice, fostering an environment that nurtures personal development, identifies individual strengths, and cultivates students' psychological well-being. Our work revolves around the key domains of: Body, Relationships, Stamina, Engagement, and Character. By prioritising these domains, we ensure that BSEM remains at the heart of everything we do.

Berry Street Education Model research and evaluation

The Berry Street Education Model is a suite of strategies which promote student engagement with learning and helps staff by developing their capacity to take strategies back to their classrooms.

Longitudinal and continuing research with the University of Melbourne Graduate School of Education suggests BSEM has contributed to improved student outcomes including on-task learning, emotional regulation, increased teaching time for teachers, and enhancements to schools’ orderly learning environments. Principals attribute BSEM for strengthening school culture which facilitates improvements in student wellbeing and learning.

We celebrate Doveton College, the Berry Street School and the many others across our country working towards educational equity each day through sustaining practice change and support for their children and young people.

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