Educators from 23 school districts around British Columbia participated in a three-day institute to prepare them as mental health literacy trainers in their districts and schools. The Faculty of Education is leading this provincial initiative based on the pioneering work of Dr. Stan Kutcher (Dalhousie) to proactively address the growing concerns about youth mental health. This professional learning for BC educators parallels the integration of mental health literacy education for UBC teacher candidates and is guided by a provincial steering committee that comprises leaders from our Faculty, the BC Teachers’ Federation, School Superintendents, BC Counsellors, Principals & Vice Principals, Ministries of Education and Mental Health & Addictions, Foundry BC and BC Children’s Hospital.
This was the third of three institutes dedicated to preparing district-based mental health literacy trainers, bringing the total number of districts engaged to 58 out of the province’s 60. Research conducted in BC districts as well as at UBC show the impact of this professional development in increasing knowledge about mental health and mental illness, reducing stigma, and improving help-seeking.
A free online course, TeachMentalHealth, is available to teacher candidates or anyone else interested in developing their mental health literacy, and a MOOC, Bringing Mental Health to Schools, is available for practising educators. UBC’s Professional Development and Community Engagement are also offering two summer institutes in mental health literacy in July.