About Back to School
In the last few months, as the Covid-19 pandemic has precipitated unprecedented crises across the globe, this period has been particularly turbulent for vulnerable groups, particularly children and adolescents. While young people may not be at direct risk for the Covid-19 infection, the stress of the pandemic has increased their psychological vulnerabilities.There have been reports of increasing emotional distress, substance use, and violence in families.
As families go through these crises, young people become extremely vulnerable to neglect, violence, abuse and trauma. For most children and adolescents, schools have been a safe space not only for learning but also for play, social interaction and peer support. As India went into a nationwide lockdown, most schools closed abruptly and young people lost access to existing learning routines, physical spaces for play and supportive relationships beyond their homes, further impacting their well-being and safety.
The SIMHA Back-to-School programme is designed to support schools in understanding the impact of the pandemic on students’ mental health and to design whole-school activities and initiatives to promote mental health and well-being of all students and stakeholders, during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. As part of this three-month programme, schools will deliberate upon the specific challenges that they are experiencing and the needs that are emerging with respect to the mental health and well-being of children, teachers, staff and communities. Schools will map their needs and identify areas of improvement which will become the starting point for designing and delivering a school-mental health programme.
Through the 10 part webinar series designed for school leaders, teachers and counsellors, schools will be supported in strengthening their understanding of mental health and well-being during a pandemic, its impact on teaching and learning, the relevance of integrating mental health within education during a crisis and ways to support and strengthen well-being of all stakeholders from a trauma-informed lens. SIMHA will also support schools in drawing out an action plan whereby schools will identify specific activities or systemic changes that they will undertake during this period in response to the needs identified.
Course Staff
Dr Chetna Duggal
Dr. Chetna Duggal is an Associate Professor in the School of Human Ecology, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. She is the Project Director for the School Initiative for Mental Health Advocacy (SIMHA). She has completed her M.Phil in Clinical Psychology from NIMHANS, Bangalore and her Ph.D from TISS, Mumbai. She is a practicing psychotherapist and through her initiative RAHBAR she works for training, supervision and professional development of mental health practitioners and supervisors. She is a trustee of Apnishala, an organisation working towards making social-emotional learning accessible to children from underprivileged contexts, and is on the advisory board of Project Mumbai for the mental health initiative.
Ms. Lamia Bagasrawala
Ms. Lamia Bagasrawala is a practicing psychotherapist and queer affirmative counsellor. She is the Project Coordinator for SIMHA. She is a visiting faculty member at the Department of Psychology at SNDT University, Mumbai and Jyoti Dalal School of Liberal Arts at NMIMS University, Mumbai. She is also on the Board of Studies (Psychology) at Jai Hind College, Mumbai and NMIMS University, Mumbai. She has completed her M.A. in Clinical Psychology from TISS, Mumbai.
