Pre-service Teacher Education for Mental Health and Inclusion in Schools

Abstract

Pre-service teacher education in mental health and mental health literacy is essential to creating the conditions necessary to support the mental health and wellness of children and youth in schools. Many teachers report never having received any education about mental health, but recognize the importance of this knowledge in meeting the needs of their students in regular classrooms. This article describes the development of a completely online mental health course organized around five learning objectives and delivered in a large pre-service teacher education program in Canada. Next, this article presents the results of research to evaluate impact on the pre-service teacher education students. Results are organized into expected and unexpected learning outcomes. Implications for further research and practice are shared.

The psychosocial needs of refugee children and youth and best practices for filling these needs: A systematic review

“…The mental-health literacy program has been adopted across several provinces in Canada and was successful in promoting mental-health literacy in teachers and students (Kutcher et al, 2013; McLuckie, Kutcher, Wei, & Weaver, 2014; Milin et al, 2016). The program meets the need for mental-health training for teachers, who often have minimal formal training in this area (Atkins & Rodger, 2016; Kutcher et al, 2013).…”

Initial teacher education and trauma and violence informed care in the classroom: Preliminary results from an online teacher education course

“…If mental health promotion and prevention efforts in schools are to be successful, teacher candidates must develop the attitudes, knowledge and skills necessary to participate in these promotion efforts through quality educational opportunities (Atkins & Rodger, 2016; Whitley et al, 2013). In other words, in initial teacher education we have the opportunity to integrate TVIC into their view of what a healthy classroom looks like and provide them with the knowledge and strategies necessary to achieve it.…”

Educator perspectives on mental health resources and practices in their school

“…Their findings and those of this study clearly support the need to research more specific training programs related to enhancing teachers' knowledge of student mental health. Furthermore, because resources in schools are limited, we call upon teacher education programs to incorporate mental health content into the curriculum of preservice educators to provide them with the foundation needed before entering the workforce (Atkins & Rodger, 2016).…”