President Cyril Ramaphosa recently called for social solidaraty, accentuating the importance of support for mental health and the upscaling of programmes for the psychococial wellbeing of childern and safer schools. DBE’s Psychosocial Support Directorate, led by Ms Sibongile Monareng, is therefore intensifying support for both learners and teachers.
A virtual Psychosocial Support (PSS) Programme Inter-Provincial Meeting with stakeholders recently took place for partners who support the programme to present their coverage, workplans and achievements to date, and for identification of best practices for a joint reflection and agreement on PSS Programme strategies. The DBE also provided updates on current and planned projects to solicit input and feedback from provincial teams. Joint planning; consultation; and partnership will enhance performance monitoring of the education sector.
A holistic strategic approach is required for mental health promotion amongst learners and educators using socio-emotional learning of teachers and learners, facilitated access to social services; evidence-based substance abuse prevention, as well as capacity building for suicide prevention. It is envisaged that this will also lead to improved learner retention quality educational performance.
Approximately 20% of young people do not know where to go for mental health services according to the UNICEF U-report, with 65% stating that they had some form of a mental health issue, but did not seek help due to stigma. In addition, 66% of learners in South African high schools consume various alcoholic substances and sadly, 9% of all teen deaths are caused by suicide according to the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG). Mental health has been identified as the biggest reason for extended leave by educators. Teacher wellness has an impact not only on educators as individuals, but also on the overall well-being of the young minds they care for, and teaching effectiveness and student achievement.
A total of 857 social workers and professionals are part of District Based Support Teams (DBSTs) and provide outreach support to schools as per the Screening, Identification, Assessment and Support Policy (SIAS) Policy. In addition, 1,154 schools benefit from roving social worker services from the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and Global Fund support; 3,886 schools are supported by Learner Support Agents (LSAs) with 75% funded from the HIV and AIDS Conditional Grant whilst the rest receive a stipend from the Global Fund and PEPFAR partners.
The meeting was attended by, amongst others, the National Association of Child Care Workers (NACCW); Childline South Africa; LoveLife; the Regional Psychosocial Support Initiative (REPSSI); and the Vodacom Foundation who made a presentation on their Change the World Programme.
“The DBE plans to roll out teacher wellbeing training to 4,800 teachers using a Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) approach next year. The Department is also engaging with a partner to introduce mental health and psychosocial support training for pre- and post-service teachers. We are also planning to introduce an Application for mental health counselling and referral for teachers in early 2024. Wellbeing can be cultivated though intentional mental training to acquire social emotional skills such as self-regulation; self-awareness; empathy; mindfulness; and contemplative practices. This meeting that took place on 24 November, was the 3rd quarter meeting for 2023, and these engagements will continue to ensure the wellbeing and support for our teachers and learners,” Ms Monareng concluded.