Few Mental Health Services in Austria's Schools

According to a survey conducted at 91 schools in eight federal states, teachers are primarily stressed by grading, time pressure, and parents. Among students, issues such as mobile phone addiction, performance pressure, bullying, anxiety, and depression are predominant. Teachers currently rarely receive support in stressful situations.

Guidelines on Mental Health Scarce in Austria's Schools

Less than a third of respondents stated that there is a guideline for dealing with mental crises at their school. Seventy percent never had supervision, i.e., the exchange on professional problems with a professional, in the past school year. Intervision, to exchange ideas among colleagues, also did not take place for 80 percent.

Although almost three-quarters of respondents feel supported by the teaching team or school management in matters of mental well-being, 94 percent would still like regular professional support from psychologists or psychotherapists. More than half of the respondents also already have therapy experience.

The education directorates receive poor marks: Two-thirds of respondents believe that too little is being done by them on the topic of mental health. Michel Fleck, director of WMS Anton-Krieger-Gasse, spoke of a "devastating" result: "For the teachers, the education directorate is an office, not a service center." There need to be people there who can take the time for such questions "and they simply do not exist."

More Exchange on Mental Health Helps in Austria's Schools

To improve the situation, it is not necessarily required to spend a lot of money, emphasized Andrea Birbaumer, chairwoman of the Society of Critical Psychologists (GkPP). Prevention guidelines would be important so that action can be taken before a crisis occurs. These should include not only contact persons but also information on how to recognize the first signs of burnout or how to deal with a panic attack.

Other levers include good onboarding for new teachers, team teaching, and a buddy system of young and experienced colleagues. Regular team meetings for "venting" can also help to see that other colleagues have the same problems.

This is also practiced at Fleck's school. He simply does not have the time for individual conversations with his 160 teachers, he criticized the lack of middle management. There is still too little support staff despite expansion. He would even be willing to give up a teaching position for this, said Fleck.

Mental Health in Austria's Schools: Teachers and Students as a Unit

Nevertheless, Birbaumer considers mandatory systematic external support for educators, as in other social professions, to be absolutely necessary. After all, educators are not only under pressure in their profession, but they also often lack the tools for a healthy way of dealing with stress.

In dealing with students, GkPP vice-chairman Simon Brandstätter advocates for well-prepared teachers: They should know, for example, which contact points they can connect children and adolescents to, such as school psychology or school social work. This makes one feel more capable of taking action, which is important to avoid burnout. Overall, the goal must be a school culture in which teachers and students see themselves as a unit, where everyone feels responsible when someone is not doing well.

(APA/Red)

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