TEACHERS SEEK PSYCHOLOGICAL AID FOR THEIR STUDENTS AND FOR PARENTS

Data from the Citizen Council reveal there is an active participation of teachers in favor their students’ mental health. Stress and pressure are among the most common ailments.

Teachers are resilient and solidary, as shown in data gathered by the Citizen Council for Safety and Justice in Mexico City, which has received phone calls from teachers all around the country asking for psychological aid for themselves, their students and parents who gave suffered from emotional problems during the pandemic or due to the long-distance classes.

Withing the framework of Teacher’s Day, the organism informed that teachers also seek training in terms of addiction prevention, tools against bullying or burn out (the syndrome caused by being overwhelmed at work) that parents suffer.

During these virtual workshops, teachers pointed out that they learned to be empathic and resilient and that there’s no specific age to learn to use technological tools.

They highlighted their greatest concerns including not knowing how to use digital aids for long distance teaching, inequality in connectiveness and resources among their students and lack of in-person teaching opportunities.

“Teachers faced hardships during the pandemic and they revealed the commitment they have with their students. They are an important link in the construction of a civic culture in the new generation; the Citizen Council thanks them with our permanent disposition to offer them attention and tell them that they’re not alone,” Salvador Guerrero Chipres, resident of the organism, mentioned.

Reports from the Safety Line and Trustworthy Chat point out that between 2020 and the first two months of this year over 41 thousand people required psychological aid. One out of every four of them did so about topics such as anxiety, depression or emotional problems.

According to data offered by the organism, 17% of teachers who asked for this service manifested suffering from emotional problems such as stress, anguish and fear caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Around 11% called to ask for support for their school community, either for students, parents or other teachers. The same percentage asked for counseling related to being out of work or having problems with co-workers.

The information given by the Citizen Council reveals that one out of every three teachers who asked for counseling are between 36 to 55 years. About 53% are from Mexico City, 20.5% from the State of Mexico, 3.4% from Hidalgo, and the same percentage called from Oaxaca, among others.

In the case of the Mexican capital city, over half of teachers are from Coyoacan, Iztapalapa, Benito Juarez, Tlalpan and Cuauhtémoc mayoralties.

Before the possibility of going back to in-person teaching, after teachers receive their vaccination and the epidemiological light changes to green, the organism is offering free aid through the Safety Line or Trustworthy Chat 55 5533 5533 24/7 to anyone in the country.