Jammu School Edu constitutes Counselling Task Force for ensuring well-being of students

Jammu, April 17 (UNI) The Directorate of School Education Jammu has nominated teaching staff having relevant qualification of Psychology and experience as District and Zonal Counselling Coordinators to undertake sustainable quality interventions and initiatives for ensuring mental health, child protection and career development of students.
An official said that 20 members of teaching staff having relevant qualification have been nominated as District Counselling Coordinators and District Counselors, whereas 98 staff members have been nominated as Zonal Counselling coordinators for coordinating counseling activities in the field, besides attending to their routine school duties.
“They will implement the guidelines of ‘Manodarpan,’ an initiative of the Ministry of Education, Government of India for ensuring good mental health of the students,” he said further.
They will also oversee the implementation of counseling activity calendar issued by the Directorate of School Education, Jammu covering diverse topics like psychological first aid, mental health, drug abuse, child protection, career counselling and psychosocial issues, added the official.
“The Covid-19 pandemic enormously increased the psychosocial and mental health needs of individuals, particularly the school students,” he said, adding that the New Education Policy, 2020 also lays emphasis on guidance and counselling of school students.
Sensing the need, the Ministry of Education has come up with a noble initiative of Manodarpan, which provides psychosocial support and counseling to students, teachers and families for mental health and emotional well-being.
Director, School Education Jammu, Ravi Shankar Sharma hoped for better handling of stakeholders’ mental health issues by these counsellors and said that further training will also be imparted to them, so as to polish their counseling skills.
The Directorate of School Education Jammu, through its counseling cell, has undertaken a lot of initiatives for the mental health and well-being of the students.