Foundations of Mental Health in the Classroom
The World Health Organization reports that globally, one in seven 10- to 19-year-olds experience a mental disorder, with the first onset of mental disorders usually occurring in childhood or adolescence.
As an educator, the rising volume of students seeking mental health services and a lack of adequate resources available to support them may leave you feeling overwhelmed, burnt out and concerned for your own mental health at times. This course offers an introduction to mental health in the classroom and provides practical ways to integrate evidence-based practices, such as social-emotional learning, mindfulness, meditation and active listening into classrooms to facilitate mental well-being for both students and educators.
By the end of this course, you will:
- Learn about the most common mental health challenges and disorders experienced by students
- Explore the multi-faceted roles of educators in a mentally healthy learning environment
- Learn how to support students with stress management and ways to seek help for mental health concerns
- Explore why problematic behaviours arise in the classroom and how to support a student through these behaviours
- Recognize the impact of educator stress and well-being on yourself, student well-being, academic achievement, and the teaching profession
This course provides a foundation for educators to better position themselves to understand their students mental health challenges, and to empower themselves to provide compassion and supports using practical resources and techniques in their classroom.