Study reveals teachers feel ill-equipped to deal with students' mental health issues
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Teachers often do not feel prepared or equipped to support students with mental health difficulties, according to a new study.
While many feel generally positive about mental health engagement in schools, a lack of training and qualifications leads some school staff to find this kind of support difficult or overwhelming.
The findings are included in a comprehensive study of the experiences of secondary school staff when it comes to supporting and promoting adolescent mental health, carried out by researchers at University College Dublin (UCD) in conjunction with Jigsaw, the National Centre for Youth Mental Health.
To date, there has been little focus on the experiences of staff in Irish secondary schools when it comes to youth mental health.
The almost 360 school staff who took part in the study considered mental health to be a growing priority within schools, as well as within the education system and society as a whole.
Some told researchers they feel as if the world is “becoming an increasingly difficult place for young people to grow up in”, resulting in an increase in mental health difficulties.
They referred to a “myriad” of complex issues that students in their care deal with.
“These ranged from challenges online or on social media, issues directly related to the school environment, such as learning difficulties or bullying, and issues outside of school, such as family or home circumstances," the researchers found.
Despite increased awareness, many teachers felt that the increased mental health engagement has, in some cases, led to significantly increased demands on school staff.
“These demands result in many staff feeling under duress and in some cases experiencing mental health issues themselves.
"Staff experience increased pressure due to rising demands, the lack of appropriate external services to refer students to, as well as the difficulty of balancing mental health support with their other duties within the school," the study found.
"Teachers felt as though they have limited time to engage in mental health support outside of their teaching activities, and guidance counsellors reported not having enough hours available to meet the needs of the many students that need counselling."