Based upon your observations and experience in your classroom and school what are your ideas for improving mental wellness for your students? For your fellow educators? For yourself?
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Responses
Breaking the spell
Mental health is a big issue across all age groups. The earlier it is addressed the possibility of reducing its continual recurrence is possible.
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We are in trouble....
Create a save space for teachers - a common, adult only area for teachers and staff to relax and recharge.
Repercussion/consequences for bad behaviors for students. When did it become a choice to go to class or roam the hallways, causing trouble, looking for fights and swearing, threatening staff.
Include ALL members of the union - it is more than a teacher's union. I am unit D and feel invisible as far as this union goes.
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Funding.Funding.Funding
As a school nurse in an elementary school, I see firsthand how students and staff alike struggle with mental health issues. It was happening pre-pandemic but the issue has grown exponentially since. I look forward to this conversation and the resultant collective wisdom that will help us make change in our communities.
We are sorely mistaken if we believe that we can make a lasting impact without adequate funding for our districts. We definitely need more teachers, smaller class sizes, and more counselors and this requires more money. Districts have been doing more with less for decades.…
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Educators with PTSD
I was diagnosed with PTSD in May of 2021. My principal and fellow teachers have been supportive but having to deal with the ignorance of Human Resources and Unum insurance has made the last 2 years absolute hell for me. I teach in a trauma informed space and I think as teachers we are responding to the complex needs of our students. But, we are continuing to mask symptoms because of the stigma and when we do seek help we are treated like we are faking or crazy. Lawyers will tell you it is nearly impossible to prove a mental…
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Partnerships with community-based behavioral health professionals, mentoring programs, etc.
Even in a school where we have ample number of school counselors, we cannot adequately meet the mental health needs of students. We provide Tier 1 and some Tier 2 services, but we are most effective when we are able to connect our students with mentors and mental health clinicians. Wait lists are still long for youth so we have begun a partnership with a local clinic that received funding for school-based therapy. These services are ideal because families don't need to worry about scheduling appointments or transportation. Counselors can communicate with clinicians face-to-face. We also have a partnership with…
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