𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥 – 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟑
In the past decade, it has become increasingly challenging for a child to go through their schooling career without any kind of trauma, difficult experience or barrier to learning that will need additional input over and above what a teacher can reasonably provide. For people living in KZN, the past 4 years have been especially traumatic as our children have been exposed to the COVID lockdowns, riots and catastrophic floods. The nett result of this is a generation of learners who have all experienced some kind of dramatic event in their lives, which may well affect their ability to learn effectively in the classroom. The incidence of children presenting with anxiety in our schools is skyrocketing and unless schools are proactive in supporting children emotionally, as well as academically, we will face very bleak educational outcomes in the years to come.
Therefore, Part 3 of this series focuses on support staff in the school.
Even if you do not anticipate that your child will need any additional support, the question you need to be asking when visiting a school is:
𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝/𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐬𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐟𝐟?
In theory, all teachers are expected to have a low-level of counselling skills and should be able to act in a pastoral role should your child experience some emotional difficulty while in their class. However, the reality is that teachers rarely receive training on this, and they are certainly not equipped to counsel your child through more complex emotions. We have reached a point in which having a professional overseeing the mental well-being of the school community is vital. While the state does have some psycho-social services available to counsel learners should the school experience a tragedy, these services are very limited and these professionals are stretched as it is. A handful of professionals oversee this service for the entire province, so you can well imagine the workload of this group of people.
In a fee-paying school, be it public or independent, I would expect there to be at least one counsellor or psychologist working from the school premises throughout the school day, or at the very least on call to assist the school should there be an issue. I would go so far as to say, if the school is in the position to employ outside coaches to boost the sports programme, they should definitely have a counsellor on staff. Many parents are unable to afford formal mental health support for their children, and the onus for this is falling on the schools to provide this to a far greater degree than ever before. The link between academic achievement and mental well-being is well documented, hence it is in the school’s best interest to provide this support to maintain academic standards. This is not to say that the school should be providing long-term psychological care for every child; however, there is a reasonable expectation that the learners have a professional they can talk to if needs be. The most effective way for schools to implement this is to have a limit on the number of sessions available to a learner, before they are referred out to a private professional. However, due to the cost involved, it is imperative that schools build healthy networks with local NGOs and therapists who provide these services at a reduced or nominal fee, if needed.
There are quite a few legal considerations that schools, in particular primary schools, need to take into account with regards to counselling and consent; however, these are insurmountable and should certainly not hinder the school from employing counsellors if they are in the position to do so.
In summary, the red flag to look out for in schools when looking at support staff is as follows:
– A seemingly well-resourced school that does not have a dedicated counsellor or psychologist available on staff.
Should you have any concerns regarding a school you are interested in for your child, please do your research prior to enrolling your child. If you are battling with this decision, you are welcome to contact me on help@soseducation.co.za to book an appointment to chat about your child’s educational journey.
