Social work student Roc reflects on what he learned about wellbeing, facilitation, participation and co-design through both attending and facilitating mindful art activities during his BetterU placement.
Editor’s note…
Roc recently completed a Community Development Placement with the BetterU project as part of his social work studies. In this article, he reflects on his experiences participating in a Mindful Art Group and later facilitating a similar activity with other students.
I encourage you to read the full article (for obvious reasons), but here are a few ideas I hope you take away from it:
✅ Notice how facilitation, group culture, and expectations shape an experience.
✅ Give yourself permission to take a break from performance and evaluation.
✅ Learn something, then teach it to someone else.
✅ Expect different people to participate in different ways.
✅ Consider trying a creative or arts-based wellbeing activity, even if it sits outside your usual comfort zone.
✅ Help create the communities, activities, and resources you want to be part of (e.g. consider writing for BetterU).
✅ If you have a positive experience in a wellbeing program, let the facilitator know. Feedback helps good ideas grow and reach more students.
✅ Consider keeping a journal or using another form of reflection to make sense of your experiences and identify what you are learning from them.
For those of you doing degrees where there are placements, internships, or work-integrated learning, Roc’s article can also be read as an example of reflective practice. Roc reflected on what happened, but also how his assumptions were challenged, what he learned from others, and how he might approach similar situations in the future. It would be a good template for others who are studying in similar areas.
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Hi, I am Roc, and I recently completed my placement with the BetterU project as part of my Community Development Placement (CDP) for social work.
Through CDP, I had the opportunity to explore social work from a community development perspective, including how students can be involved in creating activities and resources that support wellbeing.
I have always been interested in wellbeing. As the relationship between creative activities and student wellbeing receives increasing attention, I have been interested in exploring how I might use my own strengths and experiences to contribute to the BetterU project.
During my placement, I had the opportunity to participate in a Mindful Art Group. The group used different forms of creative activities to provide participants with a space to slow down, focus on the creative process, and step away from everyday pressures for a while. This experience made me start thinking about the relationship between art-making, mindfulness, and wellbeing.
I also explored some of the research in this area. For example, I read Liu’s (2026) systematic review of 27 arts-based interventions. Overall, the review found positive associations between arts-based interventions and student wellbeing, although there is still relatively limited evidence specifically focused on students’ everyday wellbeing.
Rather than simply asking whether art can improve wellbeing, I became more interested in exploring this through my own experiences. Why might creative activities help participants feel more relaxed and settled? And what role does a non-judgmental, low-pressure environment play?
Because I had a positive experience in the Mindful Art Group, I later organised a similar creative activity with other CDP placement students. These two experiences allowed me to reflect on creative activities from both sides: first as a participant, and later as a facilitator.
They helped me think about how creative activities may support wellbeing, but also how the design of an activity and the way it is facilitated can shape participants’ experiences.
My experience as a participant: From feeling nervous to feeling relaxed
Before attending the Mindful Art Group for the first time, I felt both excited and a little nervous.
On one hand, I was excited because I have a background in graphic design, and I see creativity as one of my strengths. I hoped that by drawing on this background, I could explore ways of contributing to the BetterU project.
At the same time, I also had some concerns. I did not know exactly what the activity would involve or what the expectations would be. I also wondered whether, if people knew about my graphic design background, they might have higher expectations of my work or pay closer attention to whether I could actually draw well.
Looking back, I realised that I entered the activity with quite a strong focus on the outcome.
This started to change when the facilitator introduced the activity. She clearly told everyone that there was no right or wrong way to participate. We did not need to worry about whether our work looked beautiful or professional, and we were free to create whatever we wanted.
As the activity continued, I gradually became less concerned about what other people might think about my drawing. I also stopped constantly thinking about what the final artwork should look like. Instead, my attention shifted towards what was happening in the moment: choosing colours, thinking about what I could add next, and watching the image slowly develop.
This change gave me a noticeable sense of relaxation. I no longer felt that I needed to complete a task or prove my creative ability. Instead, the process itself became something I could focus on and enjoy.
Looking back, I think this experience had some connection with mindfulness. For me, mindfulness was not simply about calming myself down. It was more about shifting my attention away from worrying about the outcome and towards what I was doing in the present moment. Once I stopped worrying about whether my drawing was good enough, I found myself more engaged in and able to enjoy the creative process.
The work of Swindells et al. (2016) also helped me better understand this experience. They discuss how facilitators can support participants’ autonomy, competence and relatedness through the way they guide creative activities. In particular, autonomy involves allowing participants to express themselves and participate in their own way, without needing to meet a particular expected outcome.
This helped me realise that the impact of a creative activity may not come only from the activity itself. It may also come from the environment in which the activity takes place and the way the facilitator supports participants.
For me, what helped me let go of my concerns about the quality of my work was not simply the act of drawing. It was the facilitator’s repeated emphasis that there was no right or wrong way to participate and that there was no pressure or judgement. Once I realised that nobody was evaluating my drawing, my attention gradually shifted from the final outcome to the creative process itself.
The non-judgmental environment created by the facilitator allowed me to experiment more freely and eventually enjoy the activity.
A non-judgmental environment: Why does facilitation matter?
As I reflected further on this experience, I became increasingly aware that the role of the facilitator may be just as important as the creative activity itself.
If the facilitator had not repeatedly emphasised that there was no right or wrong way to participate, I am not sure I would have been able to let go of my concerns about the quality of my work so quickly. Knowing that there was no pressure and that I would not be judged changed the way I approached the activity.
Originally, I viewed drawing as a task that needed to produce a good result. In this environment, however, I was able to see it as a process instead.
This also made me think about students’ everyday learning environments. Students are often surrounded by evaluation, assessment and performance expectations. We have assignments, examinations, placement tasks and other responsibilities, and we are often thinking about whether our performance meets a particular standard.
In this context, an activity that clearly tells participants that they do not need to perform well may have particular value for wellbeing. It does not support wellbeing by asking students to do more. Instead, it may provide a temporary break from the pressure of feeling that we always need to perform.
For this reason, I do not think the most important aspect of a wellbeing-focused creative activity is whether participants produce something beautiful. Rather, it is the creation of an environment where people feel comfortable enough to take part.
This type of environment helped me move from feeling self-conscious at the beginning to becoming more engaged in the creative process. The activity itself provided a different kind of space from my usual academic environment, while the facilitator’s approach helped reduce the sense of performance pressure.
In this environment, I could experiment, change my ideas, or simply draw something random without worrying about whether my work met a particular standard.
From this perspective, the role of the facilitator is not to control what participants eventually create. Instead, it is to create the conditions that allow participants to participate in their own way.
From participant to facilitator: The same activity does not work in the same way for everyone
Because I had such a positive experience in the Mindful Art Group, I later had an idea. If this activity helped me feel relaxed, perhaps other CDP placement students might have a similar experience.
I therefore organised a simple drawing activity with other CDP placement students.
The activity was similar to one I had experienced in the Mindful Art Group. We worked in groups of six. Each person started by drawing something freely on a piece of paper, then passed the paper to the next person, who continued the drawing. After several rounds, we looked at how the artwork had changed and what it had become.
This activity allowed me to observe very different forms of participation.
Some students clearly enjoyed the process. They engaged actively in the drawing, took photos of the final artwork, and had enthusiastic discussions about what had been created. For them, the activity seemed to provide a break from their everyday placement tasks and an opportunity to enjoy both creativity and interaction with others.
At the same time, I noticed that some students made only a few simple marks before passing the paper to the next person. After completing their contribution, they returned to their placement tasks.
Seeing these different responses made me reflect on an important question: Why did I assume that an activity that was meaningful to me would also be meaningful to other people?
I realised that I had made a fairly natural assumption. Because I had a positive experience in the Mindful Art Group, I thought that if I brought a similar activity to other students, they might experience similar benefits.
However, this activity showed me that wellbeing is not something that can necessarily be supported through the same activity in the same way for everyone.
This does not mean that the activity was unsuccessful. I did see some students experience enjoyment, connection and active participation. However, the different levels and forms of participation reminded me that students may have very different ideas about what helps them relax and what feels meaningful to them.
This experience encouraged me to think more carefully about the relationship between activities and wellbeing. Rather than assuming that a positive experience can be easily transferred from one group to another, it may be more useful to recognise that people bring different interests, preferences and expectations.
What supports one person’s wellbeing may not have the same value for someone else.
Rethinking participation and co-design from a community development perspective
Looking back, I can now see a clear area where I could have improved the activity: I did not fully use co-design.
I mainly designed the activity based on my own experience in the Mindful Art Group. Because I had found it meaningful, I wanted to bring a similar experience to the other placement students. However, before running the activity, I did not fully explore whether they wanted to participate, what kind of activity they would prefer, or what they hoped to gain from it. Instead, I largely transferred an activity structure that had worked for me into a different group.
Looking back, this made me realise that having a positive intention is not the same as co-designing an activity.
From a community development perspective, if the purpose of an activity is to support student wellbeing, then students themselves should have opportunities to contribute to decisions about what might be meaningful to them.
Different students may have different understandings of relaxation, creativity and connection. Therefore, a wellbeing activity should not simply be determined by a facilitator based on their own experiences and assumptions.
This reflection also helped me rethink what participation means. Participation is not only about whether students attend or join an activity. Students can also participate in designing the activity, shaping the rules, and influencing the choices available to them.
For example, before the activity, I could have asked whether students were interested in doing something creative and what type of activity they would like to try. During the activity, I could also have provided different ways and levels of participation.
This reflection helped me better understand the value of co-design in wellbeing activities. Kernot et al. (2026), in a co-design study with rural young people in South Australia, found that meaningful participation was influenced not only by whether participants were invited to take part, but also by facilitation, group dynamics, different ways of participating, and concerns about being judged.
The study suggests that flexible facilitation, multiple ways of expressing ideas, and conscious attention to group dynamics can support meaningful participation.
Similarly, Juras et al. (2025), in a study involving young people aged 16-24, highlighted the importance of inclusion, accessible participation, and respect for lived experience. The study also suggests that co-design cannot follow one fixed approach and meet everyone’s needs in the same way.
These studies helped me reflect further on my own assumptions. Because I had such a positive experience in the Mindful Art Group, I naturally thought that a similar activity might create similar feelings for others. However, the different responses I observed showed me that the same activity does not necessarily create the same experience for everyone.
For this reason, I no longer see students who were less actively involved as simply “not participating”, nor do I see their responses as evidence that the activity was unsuccessful. Instead, the different ways people engaged reminded me that the value of a wellbeing activity should not be defined entirely in advance by the facilitator.
Whether participants want to take part, how they choose to participate, and what they hope to gain from the activity are all important considerations when designing it.
Reflections on Wellbeing, Participation and Design
Through both participating in and facilitating mindful art activities, my understanding of student wellbeing has become more nuanced.
I now see that these types of activities may offer more than just relaxation. They may provide students with an opportunity to temporarily step away from academic demands, focus on the present moment, engage in creative expression, experience less performance pressure, and connect with other people.
Liu’s (2026) systematic review also suggests that arts-based interventions can have positive effects on student wellbeing, while highlighting the need for more research across different wellbeing outcomes and student populations.
For this reason, I would not see mindful art as a fixed intervention that will work for every student, nor would I describe the group I attended as a form of formal art therapy.
Instead, I see mindful art as one possible wellbeing opportunity. By creating a low-pressure, non-judgmental and supportive environment, it may offer students another way to engage with their wellbeing.
At the same time, my experience as a facilitator reminded me that an activity itself cannot guarantee that everyone will have the same experience. Students bring different interests, preferences, expectations and needs, which means there is unlikely to be a single wellbeing activity that suits everyone.
If I had the opportunity to design similar activities in the future, I would like to involve students more in the early stages of planning, provide more choices, and allow for different levels of participation.
In this way, the activity would not simply be something provided for students. Instead, students could help shape what wellbeing means to them and the kinds of experiences they find meaningful.
Looking back, this may be one of the most important lessons I learned during my placement. Participation is not only about attending an activity. It is also about having a voice in how that activity is designed and delivered.
References
Juras, J., et al. (2025). “No co-design process can ever truly cater to every single person”: Perspectives of young people in Australia on co-design for the prevention of mental health challenges. Mental Health and Prevention, 38, 200414. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mhp.2025.200414
Kernot, J., Kiriam, S., Seekamp, S., Little, K., Hunt, K., Lister, E., Maher, C., & Brinsley, J. (2026). Co-designing wellbeing initiatives with rural adolescents: What works, what doesn’t, and why. Health Promotion Journal of Australia, 37(4), e70221. https://doi.org/10.1002/hpja.70221
Liu, S. (2026). The impacts of arts interventions on students’ well-being outcomes: A systematic review with pedagogical outcomes. Journal of Happiness Studies, 27, Article 40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-026-01021-7
Swindells, R., Lawthom, R., Parkinson, C., Clennon, O. D., Kagan, C., & de Bézenac, C. (2016). “I’m not a therapist you know… I’m an artist”: Facilitating well-being and basic psychological needs satisfaction through community arts participation. Journal of Applied Arts & Health, 7(3), 347–367. https://doi.org/10.1386/jaah.7.3.347_1