Bringing Mental Health to Schools

This MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) fits well with the Physical and Health Education, English Language Arts, Physical and Health Education, and Family Studies courses. The content can be discussed in multiple areas across the curriculum. Topics include reducing stigma around mental health, understanding mental health and mental illnesses, seeing help and support, and the importance of positive mental health.

The content of the slides may be difficult for younger students. Activities and slides are downloadable as PDFs and videos which may be difficult to edit. The instructor discusses that the information presented is current as of the time of the making of the videos, and that as researchers learn more, information may change. There are a wide variety of activities with each module, so teachers can choose what works best with their learners. There is minimal prep needed for each of the activities so that teachers can easily implement them in their classes. Multiple activities for each topic allow teachers some choice in how to deliver the content.

Specific activities are not listed on the content slides within the course, but are noted at the top of the "activities" screen when users scroll over the book symbols. While there are controls to speed up the videos, they did not work when tested. Attachments downloaded easily on testers' computers. It is easy to navigate through the site with multiple ways to access prior content. Modules need to be completed sequentially as access is only provided to later modules once the prior one has been completed.

For teachers who choose to do the test as part of the certificate, incorrect answers are shown at the end (not shown for the pretest). Each module has a short quiz for instructors, with the answer showing up immediately. No specific assessment tools are given for learner activities. Activities are designed for in-class, family, and community interaction, as well as self-reflection. Multiple types of activities are suggested for a wide range of learning styles. These include group work, discussions, research topics, community involvement, individual writing activities, and self-regulation calming activities. Concepts clearly explained with resources including videos, slides, websites.

The course has a searchable discussion area/forum for teachers. There are a wide variety of resources made available to teachers as well guides and booklets intended for parents and families. Many of the activities include pre-made printables to guide the students' work such as handouts, coping cards, breathing cards, thinking cards, worksheets, and checklists. Throughout the course reference is made to additional sources of information and support, many of which are online making them accessible to all teachers and students regardless of physical location.

The instructor, Dr. Stan Kutcher, also has a related website and YouTube channel--teenmentalhealth.org--that includes links to the information presented in the course, as well as more information for learners, family members, teachers, and health professionals. There is a link to a teachers' guide "Talking about Mental Illness" as well as a Teacher Knowledge Update resource. The course provides access to student guides such as "Taking Charge of Your Health" and Teen Mental Health Speaks magazines. Parent guides are also included, for example "How to Parent my Teen".

Each module begins with a video of the instructor giving detailed background to, and explaining, a set of slides. Those slides are available for download for teachers to use with their class. There are lesson guides with a variety of activities for teachers and learners to use for the each module in the course. A wide variety of resources for further exploration are also given, allowing instructors to go more in-depth and learn more information about what is presented in each module. Parent resources are also available. Teachers could teach all of the modules with their classes, or could focus on certain areas, depending on learners' needs.