Teachers’ experiences of handling students with mental health issues: Implications for school mental health programs

Abstract

With the rising prevalence of mental health problems among children and adolescents, it is likely that teachers would encounter students with such problems in their classes. To have an in-depth understanding of their experiences, we conducted a qualitative study and explored the experiences of 15 elementary and high school teachers from the Philippines in handling students with mental health issues. Findings from the reflexive thematic analysis of the interview data revealed that teachers play an important role in detecting students’ mental health issues. They gather and corroborate information from various sources and describe students’ symptoms and conditions and possible causes. In determining their course of action, teachers encounter issues, such as drawing the line between their role as teachers and that of a counselor, whether to provide mental health support or discipline the student, to prioritize their own mental health or that of the student, and various forms of stigma. Teachers respond to students’ mental health issues by talking with students and providing emotional support, consulting with or referring to the guidance counselor, connecting with other sources of support, and implementing teaching-related practices to support students’ mental health. These experiences have resulted in both positive and negative outcomes and insights. The teachers wish for better mental health literacy and better mental health support for themselves and their students. We discussed the implications of these findings and provided suggestions for school mental health programs to help teachers handle their students with mental health issues more effectively.