Kendra Perera

Classrooms for Resilience

This research project explores the resilience in Ontario college and university students, and how the system of higher education may contribute to developing resilience. Resilience is the dynamic process of effectively managing and adapting to sources of stress, and can be developed at any point in life. Resilience can be a key factor for graduates to successfully navigate major changes in the world, especially in terms of working environments, economy, climate crises, and social polarity. While both colleges and universities aim their focus on enrolment targets and employability and skills-based outcomes, they are in some cases missing an opportunity to actively contribute to the resilience of students. Through primary research, this exploration will gather information with participants on how the higher education system can promote resilience in students using foresight tools such as causal layered analysis and 2x2 matrix. Following the Systemic Design Toolkit framework of problem framing, analyzing, synthesizing, and solving, this project will propose strategies to intervene in the system and promote resilience in graduates.