Schools in Qatar have recognised the need to promote and build a culture of well-being and have done well in increasing awareness of the importance of mental health. This has increased significantly over the last two years with programs like the #WellnessAmbassadorsqa and educational opportunities specifically targeting mental health awareness and it has helped during the COVID-19 crisis, according to Jody R Roberson, Licensed Specialist in School Psychology, The Learning Center, Qatar Foundation (QF).
“These programs need to continue to expand to increase understanding and reduce the stigma sometimes associated mental health services. Schools offer a great opportunity to provide the next generation with tools that support Wellness and mental health,” he said. According to Roberson, there has been a significant increase in request for information regarding wellness with the onset of COVID-19. “The Crisis and Wellness team was contacted very early after Distance Learning was implemented and provided a great deal of information, support and resources to the campuses and the greater Qatar Foundation.
I believe that this proactive approach, taken by QF, was beneficial to the students, parents, and staff in helping to understand the need to support emotional wellness as well as providing resources and individual support,” he said. Roberson emphasised on the crucial role of school counsellors and psychologists in providing support for students in need outside clinical services in a safe and confidential space to open-up.
“Psychologist and counsellors continue to provide similar services but in different ways. During this time, we have offered online chats and meetings with the students. I have paired with the counsellor at my campus and we set up weekly meeting for the different age groups. We continue to provide consultation to teachers regarding student concerns and offer insight and supports to the teachers,” he said.
“In some cases, we have contacted the students by SMS and email to offer encouragement or to check on a student. We have also supported the #wellnessambasadorsqa during this time with weekly meetings and weekly post on social media. In addition, we have contacted parents to help determine if additional supports or modifications are needed for a student’s programming during this time. We have been “learning as we go” in terms of how to best meet the specific individual student’s needs for support.
We are currently researching ways to provide counseling for students, but it is more of a process to provide services where confidentiality and safety are a priority. We hope to have the ability to meet with students in a structured manner on-line in the Fall semester,” he added. Roberson urged parents to carefully monitor the social, emotional learning and psychological wellbeing of their children.
He also emphasized on the need to focus on the mental well-being of teachers, especially during COVID-19. “A teacher that is emotionally stable promotes feelings of safety and security for the students. Students can recognize when something is wrong based on the mood set by the teachers. If the teacher appears anxious or upset, it affects the students as well. It can increase their overall anxiety as well as their motivation,” he said.
“An emotionally strong and supported teacher is much better able to recognize and meet the needs of their student. This is especially important when there is a significant change in the educational structure that we have experienced during the COVID crisis,” he added. Roberson also said that QF Campuses are offering support for teachers and staff during the distance learning programs. “At The Learning Center, there are individual “checkins” with each staff member.
This is a time to talk to the administration, to provide updates and discuss concerns and allow the for the administrator to generally provide information to the staff. Other campuses offer weekly team meetings with individual grades, daily messages to all staff and generally have tried to maintain some type of supportive contact with individual teachers,” he said.
