I have been concerned about mental health and its impact on families for a few years. A number of students in my recent Kindergarten classes have been affected by mental health issues in their families. Either a parent suffering from some type of mental health issue or concern that the student may have a mental health issue. Understanding the challenges that families are enduring is important and will impact how you form a relationship with them.
In Ghana, Africa one in five children suffers from a mental disorder (Kleintjes, S., Lund C., Flisher, AJ, 2010). Policy makers and researchers are seeking ways to remove the barriers for people resisting treatment such as the stigma attached to disorders, low priority for treatment, and poverty. Families receiving treatment and early intervention face some of the same challenges that are seen in the Western world.
An article in the Concord Monitor (Toumpas & Barry, 2009) points out that “research tells us that healthy emotional development is critical to a child’s health and well-being and greatly affects his or her ability to learn.” If children have experienced early trauma, abuse, or have an untreated mental health problem they may have trouble in the classroom socially and struggle academically. All children need the benefit of early intervention for mental health issues for the best chance of normal, healthy development during their early childhood years. These situations can greatly affect how you, as an educator, interact with the child and the family.
Kleintjes S, Lund C, Flisher AJ. Afr J Psychiatry (Johannesburg). 2010 May;13(2):132-9.
Toumpas, N. and Barry, V. Concord Monitor. Concord, N.H. June 17, 2009.
I have found your post to be very insightful. Children struggle in many areas of their development, with speech delays being the most prominent in children that I work with. It is important to be reminded of the mental health issues that children may be experiencing and bringing awareness to the issue. Many children are affected by trauma, abuse, and other mental issues and their development is greatly affected by these issues. Children who are experiencing mental health issues need to be identified as early as possible, as early intervention plays a major role in a child's success.
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