CHILDREN’S MENTAL HEALTH IN SCHOOLS

EVEN though the relevance and overall significance of schools and our education system in general were thrown into a massive pool of doubt over the last couple of years, the importance of keeping our schools as fully operational has never really been in question. With that having been said, schools remain an integral part of our social fabric and with substantial reason as well - to educate and teach our children, to validate intelligence and develop potential, while also grooming a well-adapted, socially competent member of society.

Downplayed

However, often downplayed, is the psychological role played by the school environment particularly in the socioemotional and personality development of our children. This is often shrouded in the assertion that a school is ‘only a place for learning’ and because of this, it is often forgotten that school is also a place that heavily weighs on a child or young persons’ mental health, and psychologically, there are exertions that may pose as challenges to a naive mind.

The very nature of a school environment could be defined as a ‘social melting pot’ where both learners and teachers from all four corners meet for a single objective. This not only refers to the differences in gender or complexion, it also puts into context the different personalities, backgrounds, mannerisms, behaviours that all come together and ‘feed off of’ each other for eight (or so) hours a day five times a week.

Guarantee

Understandably and somewhat obviously, there is almost certain guarantee that this increasingly becomes an environment that your child, for instance assimilates and becomes totally involved in, so much so it begins to have a say in creating your child’s worldview, their perceptions as well as their identity. Psychologically, school is a platform for young children to learn how to relate with peers and make friends, gain an ‘open-ended’ view of the world in general whilst discovering more about themselves as well.

It is, however, sometimes unfortunate that it is at school where many people experience life-long trauma, humiliation and mentally-scaring exchanges which they find hard to fully recover from. Unforeseen practices like bullying have marred school grounds for decades with each case leaving behind a young person with a fractured self-esteem and a lack of belief and confidence in themselves. Some struggle to deal with their classroom failures so much so, the humiliation dents their ambitions, makes them question their abilities and in fear of being labelled a ‘disappointment’; they opt for the most extreme resort ions.

Peer pressure in our schools is another ‘psychological silent killer’. Many times, our children are often coerced into whole gallery behaviours by their peers all in the name of ‘fitting in’ and fear of rejection. This places an extra unnecessary mental weight of that one child who does not necessarily possess similar means as others, for instance, as they now have to always find ways of keeping up with the set standards. As if we needed more, other dynamics have also grown into prominence in schools such as the love relationships among each other learners have. This adds a totally different dimension to the mental health challenges in our schools as this clouds the initial purpose of the environment and consequently, it is why some of the ‘break ups’ end in suicide.

It is common sense that a parent will only send their child to a school that they perceive as being morally correct and fit for purpose; however, it does not mean we should then turn a blind eye to the ‘psychological opportunistic inflictions’ that may come about as well. Therefore, it is as equally vital to check the academic progress of your child as it is to monitor the state of their mental health as they leave and come back every day. It may not be as easy for the child to share every single detail they experience (especially if it were a bad one) and it is up to you (the parent or guardian) to keep a warm enough relationship with them for them to want to share.

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