How Preparation and Induction Experiences Inform Teachers’ Competency of Wellness Work: A Mixed-Methods Analysis

• In Event: Beyond Stress, Coping, and Resilience: Exploring Organizational Support for Teachers' Wellness Practice and Well-Being

Abstract

As COVID-19 exacerbated ongoing mental health and wellness needs of children and youth (U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory, 2021), teachers are increasingly on the frontlines in identifying, responding, and addressing students’ mental health (Dimitropoulos et al., 2021). However, many teachers speak to being underprepared and overwhelmed by this practice of wellness work (Ormiston et al., 2021), amplifying concerns about teachers’ own stress and well-being (Diliberti et al., 2021) and magnifying a need to develop teachers’ competency to respond to the influx of students with mental health needs (Hamoda et al., 2021). Weston and colleagues (2008) introduce a framework of teacher mental health competencies (e.g., knowledge and skills) that facilitate teachers’ mental health work such as, an understanding of key mental health policies and laws, knowledge of school and community-based mental health systems, and skills that support communication and relationship-building with key stakeholders (e.g., school mental health professionals, families, students).
Despite this framework, teacher education programs rarely include coursework aimed at developing teachers’ competencies in student mental health (Brown et al., 2017) and in-service training certifications offer limited guidance to schools on how to prioritize and evaluate teachers’ mental health work (Ball et al., 2016). Beyond, research speaks to in-service teachers’ collaboration with school mental health professionals to implement classroom-based mental health interventions (e.g., SEL curriculums, PBIS), and identify school and community-based resources that offer specialized and targeted interventions (Franklin et al., 2012), however, few teachers know about these collaborations and how to access these resources prior to entering the field (Ekornes, 2015) and only if trained to learn this information (Mellin et al., 2017)
Examining existing pipelines between teacher education and school district induction programs on opportunities to strengthen teachers’ mental health competency becomes even more consequential as novice teachers increasingly comprise the teacher workforce (Ingersoll et al., 2021). This paper highlights research from a concurrent, mixed method study (Creswell, 2015) that examines how PK-12 teacher mental health competencies are developed across a continuum of pre-service and in-service professional learning experiences in one mid-Atlantic state. Specifically, this paper will share findings from sequential data analysis (Quant+Qual) of: (1) an online survey exploring novice (0-3 years of experience) teachers’ (N=233) perceptions of integral factors that contribute to mental health work including their mental health competency, school climate (Anderson-Butcher et al., 2016), interdisciplinary collaboration (Mellin et al., 2014), and self-efficacy in supporting student mental health (Brann et al., 2021), (2) semi-structured interviews focused on teachers’ pre-service and in-service professional learning experiences with a nested subsample (n=19) of the overall participant pool, and (3) a document review of (a) teacher education syllabi and program documents, (b) district program website and material reviews, and (c) semi-structured interviews with key university and district personnel (e.g., program chair, director of professional learning). Implications for ongoing research and practice in teacher education and school-based mental health services along with state policy considerations for local practice within participating districts and schools will be discussed.

Authors

• Naomi Brown, George Mason University

• Elizabeth F. Levine-Brown, George Mason University

• Megan C. Sharkey, George Mason University

• Duhita Mahatmya, University of Iowa

• Christy Suzanne Galletta Horner, Bowling Green State University

• Marion Zavolas Taousakis, George Mason University

• Heather Walter, George Mason University

• Audra Parker, George Mason University