industry & reform
‘ Raise your hand ’
New campaign promotes better mental health in Australia ’ s school communities .
By Emilie Lauer
National mental health organisation Beyond Blue has rolled out a new campaign to raise awareness on ways teachers and school leaders can foster a positive environment and reduce heavy workloads .
Be You , Beyond Blue ’ s national mental health in education initiative , offers teachers accredited online professional learning opportunities and online resources to support the mental health of children and young people .
According to head of Be You delivery Geri Sumpter while teachers ’ try their best to care for students ’ mental health , they can sometimes be overwhelmed and ill-equipped to help provide impactful solutions .
“ These are time-poor educators who already lack the bandwidth to find time for their own mental health and wellbeing and for the mental health and wellbeing of the children and young people in their care ,” Ms Sumpter told Education Review .
Ms Sumpter joined Education Review to tell us more about Be You and how it can support teachers and schools to raise their hands over mental health and wellbeing in their communities .
ER : In April , the Be You initiative launched its ‘ Raise Your Hand ’ campaign . Can you tell us a little bit more about it ? GS : We want to raise awareness of Be You , which is a national mental health , wellbeing and education initiative funded by the Commonwealth Department of Health . It develops educator ’ s mental health literacy by providing the knowledge , understanding , and skills they need to promote the mental health of children and young people . It ’ s delivered by Beyond Blue in collaboration with Early Childhood Australia and Headspace . So the raise your hand creative concept is based around reconnecting educators with the magical quality that children and young people have . That magical quality we all know is undeniable and it ’ s why educators do what they do . But we also know that it ’ s a tough time at the moment for young Australians and for educators , and we hear that the endless to-do list , the weight of responsibility and the lack of clear support for educators is dimming that magic . These are time poor educators who already lack the bandwidth to find time for their own mental health and wellbeing and for the mental health and wellbeing of the children and young people in their care .
And we risk adding to the pressures that educators are already feeling . So we know that educators already used to answering questions . So we want to be there for them to turn to when they don ’ t want to do next . And when it comes to thinking about their own learning communities , mental health and wellbeing . So Be You is here to help and not to add to the problem . So we can help educators reconnect with that magic . And Raise Your Hand is all about meeting educators where they ’ re at , whether they ’ re feeling helpless , whether they have a question or whether they can see something needs to change and they just want to take some action .
What is the role of schools in supporting children ’ s wellbeing and mental health ? For children and young people to achieve their best possible mental health , they need to feel safe , secure , supported , and have a sense of belonging amongst other physical , social and emotional factors . Educators play a vital role in creating learning environments that foster these protective factors for children and young people . We know that good mental health and wellbeing is a prerequisite for supporting good learning outcomes as well . So within schools , teachers are in a powerful position to notice and support children and young people who might be showing signs of mental health issues . And they need to have the skills to recognise when a child or young person needs their support , how to appropriately discuss their concerns and , and really that ’ s crucial to helping them to reach their full potential .
Our latest mental health and education survey results found educators continue to agree that mental health is one of the top three health concerns affecting children and young people . So concern is exceptionally high amongst school educators , but regardless of whether educators actively use Be You or not , there was nearly universal agreement
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