Category
Oral - Theoretical Proposal
Description
A review of the literature confirms an increase in mental health needs among students in American classrooms and around the world (Duong et al., 2020; Firestone & Cruz, 2022). The COVID-19 pandemic and 2020 school closures exacerbated this trend and students need emotional support at school (Bhogal et al., 2021; Firestone & Cruz, 2022; Ma et al., 2021). Although educators are in positions to notice signs of depression and anxiety, reading specialists and classroom teachers typically have not been trained to screen for mental health issues or deliver mental health interventions (Brunelle et al., 2020; Firestone & Cruz, 2022; Sanchez et al., 2018; Weist et al., 2018). Teacher self-efficacy is considered one of the critical factors that determine how educators will instruct, manage their classrooms, make instructional decisions, and interact with a diverse student population (Clark & Andreasen, 2021; Cooper et al., 2020; Firestone & Cruz, 2022; Kuronja et al., 2019). Bandura’s (1997) construct of self-efficacy, the capability of people to make choices, act, and endure challenges for their own success, is closely linked to emotional resilience and perseverance in the face of great challenges (Donahue-Keegan et al., 2019; Olson Stewart et al., 2021). Researchers have identified resilience as a key characteristic of educators who remain in the field and avoid burnout due to compassion fatigue or secondary trauma (Vicente de Vera Garcia & Gabari Gambarte, 2019; Olson Stewart et al., 2021; Stephens, 2020). Teacher self-efficacy for addressing mental health needs has been studied at the secondary level and among special educators, but few studies have explored this topic at the elementary level from the perspective of reading specialists. Future research should explore the self-efficacy of elementary reading specialists to meet the mental health needs of struggling readers and serve as mentors to classroom teachers.
Are Elementary Reading Specialists Prepared to Address the Mental Health Needs of Struggling Readers?
Oral - Theoretical Proposal
A review of the literature confirms an increase in mental health needs among students in American classrooms and around the world (Duong et al., 2020; Firestone & Cruz, 2022). The COVID-19 pandemic and 2020 school closures exacerbated this trend and students need emotional support at school (Bhogal et al., 2021; Firestone & Cruz, 2022; Ma et al., 2021). Although educators are in positions to notice signs of depression and anxiety, reading specialists and classroom teachers typically have not been trained to screen for mental health issues or deliver mental health interventions (Brunelle et al., 2020; Firestone & Cruz, 2022; Sanchez et al., 2018; Weist et al., 2018). Teacher self-efficacy is considered one of the critical factors that determine how educators will instruct, manage their classrooms, make instructional decisions, and interact with a diverse student population (Clark & Andreasen, 2021; Cooper et al., 2020; Firestone & Cruz, 2022; Kuronja et al., 2019). Bandura’s (1997) construct of self-efficacy, the capability of people to make choices, act, and endure challenges for their own success, is closely linked to emotional resilience and perseverance in the face of great challenges (Donahue-Keegan et al., 2019; Olson Stewart et al., 2021). Researchers have identified resilience as a key characteristic of educators who remain in the field and avoid burnout due to compassion fatigue or secondary trauma (Vicente de Vera Garcia & Gabari Gambarte, 2019; Olson Stewart et al., 2021; Stephens, 2020). Teacher self-efficacy for addressing mental health needs has been studied at the secondary level and among special educators, but few studies have explored this topic at the elementary level from the perspective of reading specialists. Future research should explore the self-efficacy of elementary reading specialists to meet the mental health needs of struggling readers and serve as mentors to classroom teachers.
Comments
Doctorate - 2nd Place Award Winner