Mental health articles

Promoting school mental health promoting mental health in schools To promote mental health within a school, you should visit regularly, say once a month, on a particular day. The teachers can then refer those children they are concerned about to you for an assessment. Educate children about the need to get their vision and hearing checked if they have any problems. The commonest school problems in these years are to do with classroom behaviour and studies. You can ask the teachers if any children have difficulties and then follow the guidelines described in sections 8.2 and 8.5. Two issues are particularly relevant to the creation of an environment that will promote the mental health of all schoolchildren, bullying and building self-esteem.
promoting mental health in schools: Bullying 
Bullying is aggression by some students against others. It can
range from teasing to physical violence. Often, older students are the main culprits and younger students are the victims. Those who are shy and less likely to fight back are often targeted by bullies. Children who have some type of disability, for example stammering, are also picked on. Children who are bullied may become quiet, lack confidence and have few friends. Some may even try to end their life. A school where bullying is a problem often has other problems too. Tackling bullying will help both individual children and the entire school system. The key strategy in tackling bullying is to encourage the school to have a policy on the issue. Students should be encouraged to share experiences of being bullied and firm action
must be taken against those who continue to bully others despite warnings. Any child who is complaining of being bullied must be taken seriously; dismissing them as ‘weak’ is wrong. Those who bully may also be unhappy students; counsel them before threatening them with stern action.
promoting mental health in schools: Building self-esteem
All children can benefit from activities that help build self-esteem. Teachers should be encouraged to include activities for building self-esteem into their classroom. You can play an
important role by informing teachers of the potential benefits of such activities for child mental health. In turn, these will improve academic performance and reduce behaviour problems and
conflicts in the class. These activities can also be used with children who have been abused or who are out of school.

Tags: Health, mental, Mental health