Experts have called for the inclusion of subjects that are related to mental health in the secondary school curriculum.
At a three-day mental health awareness program for teachers, counsellors and administrators in public secondary schools in Abuja, speakers said teaching mental health in schools will help to address social issues in the society.
According to reports, there is a severe shortage of child and adolescent mental health professionals worldwide, particularly in most developing countries.
Schools have been identified as ideal settings to reach needy children in the community and train teachers in child and adolescent mental health issues.
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As part of a needs assessment for developing a training programme, some teachers, counsellors and administrators across four public secondary schools in the FCT were picked to be trained in the area of mental health.
The training will address social issues prevalent in secondary schools such as cultism, drug abuse, bullying, and negative peer pressure.
In order to get ready for the influx of new students the following academic year, the teachers will go through a mental health curriculum and a number of challenging exercises.
The four schools to benefit from the programme are government secondary schools Airport Road, Gwagwa, Jabi and Dutse.
