When adults choose to return to education, it’s rarely a simple academic decision. For many, it’s deeply emotional. It’s about revisiting a place that didn’t feel safe, stepping back into environments that once damaged confidence, or confronting old stories of “not being good enough.”
And these stories run deep. Adult learners often carry decades of self-beliefs shaped by early schooling—beliefs that can fuel anxiety, avoidance, or a quiet fear that history will repeat itself (Tett, 2010; Duckworth & Smith, 2018).
This is where FlourishEd education becomes transformative. Rather than seeing education as just skills or qualifications, this approach focuses on wellbeing, meaning, relationships, and identity. It blends ideas from positive psychology, trauma-informed practice, and adult learning theory to create learning spaces where people genuinely feel they can grow and thrive (Seligman, 2011; White & Kern, 2018).
Below, I explore why a FlourishEd mindset is essential for supporting adults who may be returning to study after difficult or harmful school experiences.
FlourishEd Education: A Different Way of Thinking About Learning
Traditional education tends to focus on outcomes—grades, tests, achievement. FlourishEd approaches widen the lens. They ask:
Is the learner engaged? Do they feel safe? Are they developing confidence and meaning? Are they flourishing across emotional, relational, and cognitive areas?
Grounded in Seligman’s PERMA model of wellbeing—Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning and Accomplishment (2011)—FlourishEd education sees learners as whole people, not just academic performers. This is crucial in adult learning, where identity, confidence, and lived experience matter just as much as course content (Illeris, 2018).
The Lingering Impact of Negative School Experiences
Many adults return to education carrying emotional residue from early schooling—sometimes mild, sometimes deeply painful. Experiences like being shamed in class, unsupported with learning needs, bullied by peers, or dismissed by teachers can leave psychological marks that last long into adulthood.
These memories shape what Bourdieu (1990) calls habitus: the beliefs and assumptions we internalise about who we are and what we’re capable of. For adults with negative schooling histories, this can look like:
“I’m not smart.” “Everyone else knows more than me.” “Classrooms just aren’t for people like me.”
These internalised messages can block participation and create real emotional barriers (MacKeracher, 2012; Perry, 2021). A FlourishEd environment acknowledges this reality and works to shift it—not through force, but through safety, empathy, and connection.
Psychological Safety: The Foundation for Adult Learning
If early school experiences were humiliating or fear-based, returning to education can activate the same stress responses. Adults may feel judged, exposed, or afraid of failure.
This makes psychological safety absolutely essential. Edmondson (2019) describes it as the feeling that you can ask questions, make mistakes, and be uncertain without the fear of shame. FlourishEd educators build this safety by:
Responding with empathy, not criticism Allowing learners to move at their own pace Giving choices and respecting autonomy Creating a culture of collaboration Showing genuine care and respect
These align strongly with trauma-informed principles—safety, trust, empowerment, and choice (SAMHSA, 2014). When adults feel safe, their nervous system relaxes enough for learning to happen (Perry, 2021).
Rebuilding Self-Efficacy and Personal Identity
For adults who feel they “failed school,” coming back into education can trigger old narratives. FlourishEd approaches actively help learners rewrite these stories.
Bandura (1997) called this self-efficacy—the belief that you can succeed. FlourishEd educators strengthen it by:
Highlighting strengths instead of deficits Offering small, achievable challenges Celebrating progress, not perfection Providing constructive, compassionate feedback Encouraging reflective practices that help reframe old beliefs
This mirrors Mezirow’s transformative learning framework (2000): adults can reinterpret past experiences and build new identities when conditions feel safe and supportive.
Belonging Matters—More Than We Often Realise
A sense of belonging isn’t a “nice extra”—it’s a predictor of persistence and success (Tinto, 2017). Adults who were excluded or misunderstood in school may enter adult education expecting to feel out of place.
FlourishEd approaches prioritise belonging by creating:
Welcoming, relationally warm classrooms Opportunities for peer connections Respect for diverse backgrounds and identities A strong ethic of care (Noddings, 2013)
When adults feel seen and valued, their confidence grows. They take risks. They speak. They try. Belonging makes learning emotionally sustainable.
A Strength-Based, Holistic View of Learners
Many adults return to learning with decades of life experience—caregiving, work, parenting, resilience—but unintentionally minimise these strengths because school taught them to focus on weaknesses.
FlourishEd education flips this narrative by embracing the whole person. It values multiple intelligences (Gardner, 2011), lived experience, creativity, emotional insight, and individual learning styles. A strength-based approach helps adult learners rebuild dignity, competence, and trust in their own abilities.
Supporting Emotional Regulation Within Learning
For some adults, education triggers stress responses rooted in earlier adversity (Siegel, 2012). FlourishEd approaches integrate wellbeing practices—mindfulness, grounding, reflective journalling, somatic awareness—to calm the nervous system and support focus.
Emotions and learning are inseparable (Immordino-Yang & Damasio, 2007). When adults feel regulated and supported, learning becomes not only possible but enjoyable.
Meaning and Purpose: The Heart of Adult Motivation
Adults rarely return to education without a reason. They come with hopes, goals, healing journeys, or personal missions—changing careers, rebuilding confidence, supporting family, or exploring new directions.
FlourishEd approaches embrace these motivations. They help learners connect coursework to personal meaning, which strengthens persistence, resilience, and engagement (Seligman, 2011; Illeris, 2018).
Flourishing as a Pathway to Healing and Growth
For adults who carry the emotional imprint of negative schooling, education can feel like a battleground. But with the right environment—one grounded in safety, respect, strength, meaning, and flourishing—education can become healing.
FlourishEd approaches don’t erase the past, but they create space for new stories to emerge: stories of bravery, capability, connection, and growth. They remind adult learners that it’s never too late to thrive, and never too late to flourish.
References
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W.H. Freeman.
Bourdieu, P. (1990). The logic of practice. Stanford University Press.
Duckworth, A., & Smith, L. (2018). Adult learning, resilience and education. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 37(1), 1–15.
Edmondson, A. (2019). The fearless organization. Wiley.
Gardner, H. (2011). Frames of mind. Basic Books.
Illeris, K. (2018). Contemporary theories of learning. Routledge.
Immordino-Yang, M., & Damasio, A. (2007). We feel, therefore we learn. Mind, Brain, and Education, 1(1), 3–10.
Kahu, E., & Nelson, K. (2018). Student engagement in the educational interface. Higher Education Research & Development, 37(1), 58–71.
MacKeracher, D. (2012). Making sense of adult learning. University of Toronto Press.
Mezirow, J. (2000). Learning as transformation. Jossey-Bass.
Noddings, N. (2013). Caring. University of California Press.
Perry, B. (2021). What happened to you? Bluebird.
SAMHSA. (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach.
Seligman, M. (2011). Flourish. Free Press.
Siegel, D. (2012). The developing mind. Guilford Press.
Tett, L. (2010). Community education, learning and development. Dunedin Academic Press.
Tinto, V. (2017). Through the eyes of students. Journal of College Student Retention.
White, M., & Kern, M. (2018). Positive education: The Geelong Grammar School approach. Oxford University Press.
Dr M’s thoughts 