Description:
A STEP TOWARDS PROMOTING THE MENTAL WELL-BEING OF THE FUTURE CITIZENS OF INDIA
‘All children should be taught to unconditionally accept, approve, admire, appreciate, forgive, trust and ultimately, love their own person.’
NEP 2020 focusses on the fact that there is a critical need for quick and easy access to counseling for students of all age groups to address stress, anxiety, substance use, betting, mental health and relationships. The management of St. Karen’s group of schools aims to create a brigade of teachers who are well equipped to handle the problems of adolescent students because they believe that every teacher should have the skills of an effective counselor. Thirty faculty members of St. Karen’s group of schools were trained under Mrs. Saloni Priya, Director Ummeed Counseling and Consulting services. She is a master trainer for all India, appointed as Consultant Training at centre for Cultural Research and Training CCRT, New Delhi under ministry of Culture. She has to her credit, empowering educational leaders from CBSE, ICSE and several State Board schools.
The training of ‘Basic Counseling Skills’ started on 21st January 2022 and concluded on 15th May 2022. The training aimed at the acquisition of social skills, cognitive change, empowerment, behavioural change, self-awareness, self-acceptance, decision making and problem-solving skills. The knowledge of counseling skills will help the teachers to promote student learning and their well-being. Teachers can play a key role in resolving student issues and concerns. The classroom teacher spends more time with students than any other professional in the school and is thus most likely to influence students. The training comprised several sessions of discussions, role play, activities, case study and assessments. The participant-teachers understood the important aspects of early and late warning signs of suicide, self-harm behaviors, causes of self-harm, myths and facts, risk and protective factors associated with the students. The participants learnt how to observe the behaviour of students and guide them effectively. The teachers were encouraged to teach life skills to the students so that they can deal with real life situations and have an improved intelligence, emotional and social quotient. The training session culminated with a two days’ workshop on 21st and 22nd June 2022 on basic counseling skills for all the teachers of St. Karen’s group of schools in which all the 30 trainees were felicitated and awarded certificates. The workshop dealt with teenage depression, coping mechanism and developing resilience.
In their efforts to further the cause of promoting and supporting counseling, the next batch of the training is about to commence in the month of July. Such trainings will enable progressive schools like St. Karen’s to provide holistic education to its students to ensure social and emotional wellness.