Description
Mental health is part of our overall health, and its influences on our well-being should not be underestimated. In fact, all of us suffer from mental health-related problems from time to time.
Mental health-related issues have also been on a significant rise among our young students. However, very often, mental health-related problems are confronted with fear and stigma.
This doesn’t have to be the case! With knowledge and skills, mental health can be well-supported and nourished.
Teachers who possess relevant knowledge concerning mental health will strengthen their capacity to support students, as well as the teacher’s own well-being.
This course opens up the concept of mental health from a salutogenic perspective, meaning that mental health is approached from the perspective of health promotion.
Mental health is approached with curiosity and openness in a way that you will gain a thorough understanding of what mental health is (and what it is not).
You will also find practical ways to apply the knowledge and skills you learned in this course in your everyday life as a teacher.
Learning outcomes
The course will help participants to:
- Identify what mental health and mental health promotion means in the school context;
- Recognize more deeply how relationships and connectedness are so vital in the support of mental well-being;
- Strengthen their emotional skills and knowledge of feelings and emotions;
- Deepen their understanding of stress and its connectedness with mental health problems;
- Acquire hands-on methods and tools on how to support mental health in school surroundings;
- Discover the meaning of trauma, resilience, and how to connect with their own survival skills in difficult life situations;
- Create a project combining all the matters studied during the week to best support mental health in school surroundings.
Tentative schedule
Day 1 – Introduction to the course
- Introduction to the course, the school, and the external week activities;
- Getting to know each other;
- Presentations of the participants’ schools.
Day 2 – What is mental health?
- What does mental health mean to me;
- Difference between mental health and mental illness;
- Stress and its connection to mental health-related problems.
Day 3 – How emotional skills support teachers work
- Feelings and emotions as a part of mental health;
- Activities how to introduce emotional skills as an everyday part of teaching;
- Relationships and community are a great support for mental health.
Day 4 – Life struggles and survival skills
- Trauma – trauma information for teachers;
- Resilience;
- Planning the project around supporting mental health.
Day 5 – Forward progress
- Presenting the projects;
- Steps forward.
Day 6 – Course closure and cultural activities
- Course evaluation: round-up of acquired competencies, feedback, and discussion;
- Awarding of the course Certificate of Attendance;
- Excursion and other external cultural activities.