Mental health training for teachers approved

[HereSince1628]

5. I believe the intent is to have teachers refer students who show signs of needing help

Not make diagnoses (whatever the hell a psych dx means in 2013).

That was the intent of Obama authorizing HHS to spend ~60 million nation-wide on a similar effort.

It's unclear exactly what sort of training they will get, many states already require some sort of ed psych/developmental psych courses for pre-service teachers. Politicians seem to be most concerned about issues of 'abnormal psych' that "lead to violence", but it isn't clear what the curriculum would include.

I wonder and can't be certain that either the federal or Texas programs training will be adequate to the task, or that all teachers will perform well, or that there isn't a potential for misuse of a referral process. "Mentally-illing" difficult students by teachers has a long history of problems and contributes to the controversial use of psych meds in children.

But, there isn't any doubt that America is afraid of the mentally ill and politicians motivated by fear are concerned enough to have a desire to do "something".

The logic behind the effort seems to be that teachers spend as much or more time in direct contact with school-age children than their parents/guardians--so they are in a position to observe the semiotics of mental problems if they know what to look for... hence training of teachers.

American politicians at both state and federal seem to believe that teachers trained to recognize potential signs are in a position to do a better job of what teachers in most districts already do: flag students with potential problems and set the machinery of 'the system' in motion for referral.

They 'get' making requirements for teacher certification...they don't seem as able to 'get' that caboose...clinical treatment...costs real money.