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
School libraries
Nancy is totally right here. 15 years ago there were so many more schools with functioning libraries that offered solace, respite and so much more. One student back then was what I'd call a 'frequent flyer'. Running into his mother recently, she told me that the MS library and then the HS library was the factor that let her son be successful. Over the years, the library has offered sanctuary to after school clubs, safe lunch spots, safe holding spaces ---calm, cool collected ones---while waiting for the guidance counselor, psychologist or administration. It used to be that it was a…
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Student/teacher Mental Wellness
It is clear that what is going on inside our schools when it comes to mental health needs is not sustainable or realistic in our schools today. They weren't before Covid and they certainly are even worse
now. The overall arching problem here - Students need more support than schools can provide and administrators are trying to minimize the problem. Resulting in teacher burnout and ongoing mental health issues in our schools.
Ive learned that most of the minimizing from district and state administration is because there is no funding for what we really need, so let's…
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Save school libraries
Many of us remember our school libraries fondly - the heart of the school, a place to have a quiet moment with a book, work a puzzle, play a board game, or have a conversation with friends.
Sadly, this experience is no longer available to many of our students. My library is only open to students for 9 hours a week now. I share this space with the tech and music teachers. When none of us are in the room, it must be locked to prevent the music and tech materials stored there.
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The Detrimental Effects of Standardized Testing on Student Mental Health and Classroom Dynamics: Insights from a Veteran Educator
As a veteran educator, I am deeply concerned about the destructive consequences of standardized testing, specifically the MCAS, on student mental health and the overall classroom environment. The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced additional stressors, such as coping with loss and economic uncertainty, making the impact of standardized testing even more significant. Regrettably, the prevailing educational landscape prioritizes test scores over the emotional and psychological well-being of our students.
Through my involvement with NBCSOS, a grassroots coalition comprising educators, students, families, elected officials, and community activists in Greater New Bedford, I have recognized that despite our differences, we…
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Perspectives of a Clinical Psychology Professor
As a psychotherapist and state college clinical psychology professor, I know that mental health problems are enormously overdetermined and complex. Many scholars make their careers trying to map these interacting issues that produce suffering and incapacitate people; many of these issues are beyond the scope of our union to directly address. However, there are many salient issues that are within our power to address. These include:
1. DEBT. My students at MCLA are made enormously anxious by their student debt. It is not at all clear to them that they will see a return on their investment…
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