Expert by experience

Learning for a healthy life now and in the future

AUTHORS

name here
Sharon Bessell
1 PhD, Professor and Director * ORCID logo

name here
Cadhla O’Sullivan
1 PhD, Research Fellow ORCID logo

name here
Ahmed

name here
Aaliyah

name here
Jonathan

name here
Lilyjana

name here
Tru

AFFILIATIONS

1 Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2600, Australia

ACCEPTED: 20 November 2025


Early abstract

This article is co-authored by children and adults, and discusses the things about education, learning and having a healthy life that are important to children. School matters now and is important for getting a job and living as an adult. Learning happens in school and also in the community. Children need to learn in ways that are respectful and inclusive. There is no one right way to learn, and children often learn in different ways. Learning is best when it is fun – but sometimes it is very rewarding to learn things that are hard. There are some important things that some children do not learn anywhere, like being able to cope with stress. A key message of this article is that it can be hard to do things alone but with care and support, it is a bit easier for kids. With support, children can reach their dreams.