Jenna Foster
Stevens
English 101
12/19/2019
Mental health in Children
The problem of the mental health of the preschooler and its preservation in modern society is very acute. Adults need to solve this problem systemically and together from the early years of the preschool child's life. The issue of children's health is not a problem of one day and one person, but purposeful and systematically planned work of the entire staff of the educational institution for a long time. In the middle preschool age, a child has a desire to learn and discover as much as possible under the guidance of an adult, a preschooler masters new activities, abilities, and skills. One of the fundamental tasks of preschool education at the present stage of development of society is the organization of the educational process aimed at maximizing the realization of the child's opportunities and interests. Well aware and trained teachers are required to overcome the increasing mental health issues in children.
Increasing mental health issues are becoming a big problem among American children. According to CDC data, one out of five children suspect a mental disorder, or it is equal to 17 million children with mental health issues in 2016. In 2016, near 50,000 toddlers were postponed no less than once, and as a minimum, 17,000 were excluded, according to the National Survey of Children's Health. (Mader1). An essential link in protecting the health of the younger generation is the protection of the mental health of children and adolescents. Since mental health is an element of health in the broad sense of the word, the current understanding should be applied to it.
Mental health can be given three definitions: firstly, this is the absence of pronounced mental disorders; secondly, a certain reserve of human strength, due to which he can overcome unexpected stresses or difficulties arising in exceptional circumstances; and finally, a state of equilibrium between man and the world, of harmony between him and society. According to CDC data, ADHD, behavior problems, anxiety, and depression are the most commonly diagnosed mental disorders in children, 9.4% of children aged 2-17 years (approximately 6.1 million) have received an ADHD diagnosis. (CDC1)
For students, the primary social function is to fulfill all the requirements of school life, mastery of knowledge and skills provided for in the curriculum, compliance with standards of conduct concerning teachers and peers. Full compliance with these requirements is mostly evidence of mental health. The criteria for a favorable state of the psyche, that is, mental health, also include a positive emotional state. The emotional state is usually referred to as mood. Currently, the term "mood" has acquired the rights of citizenship in scientific medicine and is interpreted as a "prevailing emotional state", which renders effect on mental activity. Nearly 90 million children worldwide have psychological problems with health. And this figure is continuously growing. Therefore, mental health children are becoming the main problem of our time. The concept of "mental health" was proposed in 2015 by the World Health Organization (WHO).
In Mader Jackie's article, we found answers to do extreme punishment affect mental health in children and how we can prevent children from speaking up. How should teachers learn to teach mental health. The article "The New Focus on Children's Mental Health "talk about integrating mental health topic into existing curriculum. Among the situations directly related to the school that predispose students to mental disorders are the following: 1) inability to cope with the workload; 2) the hostile attitude of the teacher; 3) change of school staff; 4) rejection by the children's team (Mader1). These moments serve as the primary source of mental health problems for students. The nature of the relationship between teacher and student is really of paramount importance in shaping the mental state of students. The lack of respect for students from the teacher, the humiliation of their dignity is very painful for students, exceptionally high school students. It is the lack of respect on the part of the teacher that most often causes conflicts between him and the student. According to Goldberg, just 23 percent of prekindergarten programs have on-site or arranged appointments from therapists or psychiatrists, according to the Child Mind Institute's 2016.
Degrading the student's dignity in the form of (removal from the class, rude responses, insulting remarks, etc.), attacks on self-esteem are often found in schools, creating traumatic situations and urging that "hail, threat, irritability" is a frequent occurrence in schools. An outstanding teacher considered them a manifestation of injustice on the part of the teacher. But it's not only that? "What does the teacher mean ?" asking, also answered - this is, first of all, a person who loves children finds joy in communicating with him.
Meanwhile, not all teachers meet this indispensable quality, the most crucial criterion for their professional suitability. As a result, the behavior of some of them creates traumatic situations adversely affecting the mental health of children. (Preventing Expulsion from Preschool and Child Care)
The first group includes biological causes. These include genetics, the effects of organic brain damage, cerebral disorders. The second group is social reasons. First of all, this is the upbringing and significance of the value of education in the family. Free training, when the child is not prohibited, leads to impunity. The school and teachers are being discredited in the media and on the Internet. Over satisfaction with information when parents travel the world with children from birth. Today's children and adolescents "have too much." From this, they have a reassessment of their abilities. Plus, there are excessive demands from the family and society. The speaker spoke about the concept of neuroplasticity, about the stressors that affect the mental health of children.
A negative attitude towards a particular student arises in a teacher due to various reasons. Most often, this is poor performance in this subject, sometimes behavioral and character traits that are characteristic of adolescents. Kids can be expelled from preschool as an outcome of any number of aggressive activities that could risk the protection of other pupils, such as biting, kicking and pushing, or even for oral classroom disturbances such as screaming( Romney1).
The student most often acutely feels the hostility of the teacher, and that provokes the aggravation of those features that such an attitude caused: neglect of the subject, a further decrease in academic performance, rudeness in the answers. This, in turn, entails an increase in antipathy on the part of the teacher. Thus a vicious circle arises that creates an unbearable situation that causes fear among younger students, sharp reactions of protest, refusal to attend school, that is, manifold manifestations of nervousness.
In contrast, the teacher's goodwill on time said the word of approval and encouragement, a fair - albeit strict - assessment of success, respect for students of any age form what is called a favorable psychological climate in the classroom, creates a positive emotional background, which, by the way, contributes to better absorption student knowledge. Nationwide, studies show that early childhood mental health consultations can help curb suspension and expulsion rates in preschools. (NBC1)
Significant responsibility for the mental health of schoolchildren rests with the class teacher. After all, students have an increased desire for communication with peers, they, as a rule, are actively drawn to each other. The most characteristic sphere of communication in the class. And it is here that the system of personal relationships is most fully realized, and everyone's place in it is determined.
Education is an art, thanks to which all-natural abilities develop. The essential prerequisite for schooling is the faith of the pupil (pupil) in his senior mentor (class teacher). It should be understood that the class teacher is not a position, but a profession, and very intricate. Through his activities, a "zone of trust" is formed between children and adults, a path to their mutual understanding.
Due to the widespread prevalence of neuropsychiatric diseases, including among children, their mental health has attracted the attention of the medical community and WHO. The WHO Expert Committee emphasized that in childhood, mental health problems have a more social connection with the environment than in other periods of a person's life. In light of this, the role that the school plays such an essential place in their existence in the formation of children's mental health becomes apparent. (CDC1)
Scientific and technological progress and related changes in the content of schooling make very high demands on the nervous system of the child's body, which is in the process of growth and development, and this makes it exceptionally safe to protect the mental health of students. Promoting mental health is about strengthening positive mental health. Improving the mental health of young people also means supporting the development and ensuring the conditions for growth. The development of mental disorders is based on many reasons - both psychological and biological, with the latter often associated with heredity. A significant adverse effect on mental health is exerted by childhood mental injuries, primarily various types of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse.
Additionally, one can observe a typical scene of emotional abuse of children every day in any state: a mother or father yells at a child. It often happens that a mother herself is subjected to violence (at least emotional) by her husband or one or both parents in childhood was in an aggressive environment for which increased tone and systematic humiliation from others - parents, teachers, peers - is the norm. Severe trauma to the child is the observation of domestic violence: for example, when the child sees the beating of the mother by the father or even hears vicious battles between the parents. According to the severity of the adverse consequences, the neglect of children is equated to the violence experienced in childhood, which, in turn, is divided into physical and emotional(Preventing Expulsion from Preschool and Child Care). An example of physical neglect: a baby cries in wet diapers, it is cold and uncomfortable, but his mother is busy with her affairs (or drunk) and does not pay attention to him. An example of emotional neglect is the indifferent reaction of parents to crying and other manifestations of emotional distress of the child.
Modern studies show that severe childhood stresses can have irreversible consequences for the development of the brain and psyche. Changes in personality, such as a decrease in self-esteem and self-doubt, a tendency to anxiety and a bad mood, ease of occurrence of guilt, are associated with violence experienced in childhood or even merely a lack of parental love. The adverse consequences of adversities of the youth of the opposite nature - aggression and a tendency to criminal behavior.
Numerous studies indicate a stable and very strong relationship between adverse childhood events and many mental disorders, including depression, anxiety, personality disorders, and even psychosis, including in patients with schizophrenia. It has been shown that child abuse worsens mental health not only in childhood but also throughout the life of the individual. The adversities of childhood not only harm the psyche but also disrupt the processes of healthy development and maturation of the brain, interfering, in particular, with the healthy formation of the parts of the brain whose work is associated with memory, attention and other cognitive (cognitive) functions. Thus, mistreatment of children can cause poor academic performance, as well as insufficient learning ability throughout their entire subsequent lives. This mechanism (along with other reasons) explains the difficulties of climbing the social ladder for people from aggressive social backgrounds.
Promoting mental health in the community and preventing mental illness must be recognized as a public health priority. In order to achieve good results in the field of prevention of mental disorders and the promotion of public mental health, the legal regulation of general mental health care services should establish a set of measures that would create preconditions and conditions for reaching this goal. Achieving positive results in the upbringing of a healthy child is possible only if several work on physical education and rehabilitation is carried out in the kindergarten, which develops into a particular system. The joint work of preschool teachers and parents to strengthen the health of the child, the basics of hygienic and physical culture has not only pedagogical but also profound social significance. Children may find themselves in unexpected situations on the street, and at home, so the main task is to develop their independence and responsibility. Indeed, children's health is the country's future, the basis of its national security.
By summarizing, Mader and Goldberg studies, which together come down as follows. Firstly, there is not a single class teacher who would enjoy the full recognition of each student in the class, which is more fully explainable and logical. Secondly, most students can not only have, but also express gratitude, appreciation, and respect for the class teacher; some consider their class teacher a real friend. Thirdly, children see our shortcomings and know how to name them tactfully: she listened to the opinions of others; was cheerful and happy; smiled more often; to always be kind and beautiful; was patient; completely changed, changed her hairstyle, did not scream during lessons. Finally, there are three simple parameters of the attitude of our students to their class teachers shine: positive, indifferent, negative, then in general. If today we cannot maintain the mental health of our adolescents, then tomorrow, we will receive inferior adults.
Works cited
“Data and Statistics on Children's Mental Health.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 19 Apr. 2019, https://www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/data.html.
Goldberg, Emily. “The New Focus on Children's Mental Health.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media
Company, 19 Oct. 2016, https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/10/the-new-focus-on-childrens-mental-health/504227/.
Mader, Jackie, and The Hechinger Report. “50,000 Preschoolers Are Suspended Each Year. Can
Mental Health Training for Teachers Make a Difference?” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 26 Jan. 2019, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/50-000-preschoolers-are-suspended-each-year-can-mental-health-n962691.
“Preventing Expulsion from Preschool and Child Care.” ZERO TO THREE,
https://www.zerotothree.org/resources/series/preventing-expulsion-from-preschool-and-child-care.
Romney, Lee. “California Moves to Curtail Expelling Children from Preschool - Yes,
Preschool.” EdSource, EdSource, 9 Nov. 2017, https://edsource.org/2017/california-moves-to-curtail-expelling-children-from-preschool-yes-preschool/590035.
