Jammu, Feb 15: To provide psychological support to students during the Covid pandemic, happiness zones have been established in more than 1,000 government schools in Jammu, officials said on Tuesday. These zones have been created according to the directions of the education ministry endorsed by the directorate of school education. More such zones will be created in as the schools reopen after vacations, they said.
“Acknowledging the importance of mental health, especially in the post Covid pandemic scenario, more than 1,000 government schools of Jammu division have created happiness zones to provide safe and psychologically comfortable spaces within the school premises where students can talk about their feelings and emotions unhesitatingly and in a confidential manner,” a senior officer said. In a first of its kind initiative, the directorate of school education, Jammu has directed all schools from middle to higher secondary to create such zones to provide psychosocial support to students as per ‘Manodarpan’ guidelines, they said.
Trained faculty counsellors working in counselling cells of these schools are rendering their services in these zones, they said. Mandorpan is an initiative of the Ministry of Education that aims to provide psycho-social support and counselling to students for their mental health and well-being during the Covid outbreak and beyond. The pandemic is not only a serious medical concern but also brings mixed emotions and psycho-social stress for all, the official said.
The counselling cell is organising regular capacity development programmes and webinars for teachers in collaboration with reliable institutions to develop counselling skills in teachers, they said. Ravi Shankar Sharma, Director of School Education, Jammu said students coming to schools after such a long gap may experience a heightened level of stress, anxiety, and fearfulness along with a wide range of other emotional and behavioural issues due to the Covid situation.
“We need to be prepared to offer students a healthy and psychologically safe environment to safeguard them. Happiness of the child is directly linked with academic outcomes and to improve attention, retention of students we have to ensure mental health, safety and security of students,” he said. Romesh Kumar Sharma, in-charge of the counselling cell said constitution of happiness zones in schools will create a culture of individualised guidance and counselling. It will go a long way in ensuring the overall well-being of students besides providing psychosocial support to them, he said.
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