“Moreover, a supportive, collaborative environment leads to collective efficacy among teachers, which has been shown to lower the level of stress that teachers experience in response to students’ challenging behaviors…We argue that in a system where the caring feel cared for, exhibiting strength and positive attitudes in the face of stressful conditions becomes the norm.” (Weston et al., 2018, p.117)

It is no doubt that being a teacher means being there for our students. Our job is to help students succeed academically, but we also have a responsibility to ensure that they are thriving socially. Of course, although we may be considered an “expert” in math or ELA, we are definitely not an expert on what each individual student needs separate from an academic context. Our students all struggle with different things, and it is our job to pay attention to our students to notice if there is any “off” behavior.

But in order to feel comfortable with this and that we have the tools to take the next step, teachers need to feel supported, equipped with necessary knowledge, and that there are resources they can look at and turn to when in need of help. Thus, teachers need support from colleagues and professionals as well for them to fully be there for our students and feel that we are able to help them.

These articles struck me because of an experience I recently had at my student teaching. My cooperating teacher asked to speak with the guidance counselor about two students whom she had information about, but didn’t know what to do with. One student was being bullied by a group of girls, and my cooperating teacher learned from her mother that the student was trying to shake it off by lying that everything was fine and she was doing well in school. The other student, which I noticed as well, talked a lot about death in class, and would ask my cooperating teacher and me about ways to die, etc. Unsure of how to proceed with this observation, my cooperating teacher reached out to the guidance counselor to see if they were meeting and if there were any other steps she should take. What this encounter showed me was how important it is to be aware of our students and pay attention to how they interact, what they say, and how they behave. Mental health is an important topic and something that affects how our students perform, thus it is imperative that teachers feel that they have a system behind them that can support them should they need help with such topics. Only then will they feel prepared and ready to face any challenges that may arise, and only then can we give our students the support that they need.