Adolescent Well- Being & Self-Esteem Mental Health Literacy for Teachers: Module Seven

Guiding Principles for this Module Positive coping strategies can help everyone maintain and enhance their mental health People can have positive mental health even if they have a mental illness There are many activities that youth can engage in to develop and maintain good mental health

Remember Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Physiological Safety Social Esteem Needs Cognitive Aesthetic Self Actualization

Maslow suggested that Esteem Needs Generally…. 1. Included the need for self respect 2. The need for the approval of others 3. And the need for success ….and it all had to happen during adolescence

Do You Remember when you would draw on the wisdom of others? “I would rather be blind than have sight and no vision” Helen Keller “Some men see things as they are and say why, I dream things that never were and say why not?” Robert Kennedy

Do You Remember when you would draw on the wisdom of others? “In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists” Eric Hoffer

Do You Remember when you would draw on the wisdom of others? “Life is what happens to you when you are busy doing something else” John Lennon “It ain’t so much the things we know that get us in trouble, it’s the things we know that ain’t so…” Epictitus

So what does this have to do with developing self esteem? Marcel Proust reminded us that “The voyage of discovery is not in seeking new landscapes… but in creating new eyes” So what are your metaphors in describing the evolution of self esteem

So we are preoccupied with our ‘self’ Self esteem - is the appraisal we make of our own character and abilities Self concept - is the basis on which we make that judgement Self efficacy - is the identification of the parts of our character that have control over different aspects of our world

Aspects of our Self 1. It reflects how we organize aspects of who we are 2. It is developmental in nature 3. Comprised of ‘stages’ that are like frames in a movie

One way of Identifying Our Self List five of your strengths List five things you admire about yourself List five of your greatest achievements thus far List five things you can do to make your self laugh List five things you can do to help someone else List five things you can do that make you feel good about yourself

Remember when I said self esteem is developmental in nature… so what is a sense of self based on for year olds Pull up roots from family of origin 2. Develop an individual sense of autonomy 3. Establish self as independent from family of origin 4. Shift attention away from family to new commitments (school, work, hobbies) 5. Relate to parents as adult to adult

Now I realize that this may all just be in the abstract… so what about the on-going sense of self for year olds Establish intimate relations with significant others 7. Establish social networks (school, work, community) 8. Get involved with community life, politics 9. Enhance the ability to communicate interpersonally 10. Maintain healthy, stable, and appropriate friendships and caring

So how do we enhance our self esteem? 1. We can identify and accept our strengths and weaknesses - no one’s perfect 2. Change the self statements we make in response to the world around us 3. Set realistic goals and then take pride in our achievements 4. Pay attention to our thoughts and feelings, and act on what we think is right for us 5. Don’t try to be someone other than you are not - be proud of who you are

What is an adolescents’ development of positive self esteem dependant upon? 1. Degree of parental expectations, encouragement and influence 2. Degree of peer expectations, encouragement and influence 3. Development of talents, hobbies or interests 4. Influence and importance of role models

What is an adolescents’ development of positive self esteem dependant upon? 5. Extent of emphasis on body image 6. Experiences and interactions during education 7. Participation in physical activity and sports

School - Based Initiatives to Promote Self Esteem 1. Promote positive peer interactions 2. Provide extracurricular activities that promote self-efficacy 3. Encourage student development of long term goals and plans 4. Provide mentors for students who are facing high-risk situations to reduce risk exposure

School - Based Initiatives to Promote Self Esteem 5. Use multi-age groups to foster sense of competence 6. Engage students in career explorations and post secondary options

Strategies to enhance Self-Esteem 1.Use students’ names 2.Greet students 3.Have conversations w/students 4.Provide multiple paths to success in class 5.Display student work 6.Give students responsibility 7.Provide opportunities for work to be judged externally

Strategies to enhance Self-Esteem 8. Take time to point out the positives in student work 9. Never criticize the questions 10. Take time to help struggling students understand 11. Try to get to know a little about students’ lives out of class 12. Encourage students to take risks

Strategies to enhance Self-Esteem 13.Help turn failures into positives 14.Provide opportunities to make decisions 15.Provide opportunities to work together for students 16.Don’t make assumptions about behaviour 17.Allow students to suffer the consequences of their behaviour

Strategies to enhance Self-Esteem 18.Allow students to explore options in different situations 19.Celebrate students’ achievements, no matter how small

Adolescent Girl’s Self Esteem NLSCY suggests that low self esteem in adolescent girls is a chronic problem of unprecedented proportions What do we know: young men consistently score higher on self esteem standardized scores young women lose self esteem (eg score lower on standardized tests) during the high school years young women’s self esteem is more dependant on relationships than young men’s

How can we influence adolescent girl’s self esteem? I 1. Model mutual respect 2. Provide sincere positive encouragement and recognize effort 3. Avoid sex-stereo-typed activities and comments 4. Avoid comments about body size and shape

How can we influence adolescent girl’s self esteem? II 5. Ensure early success based on realistic, gradual progression - guard against building in failure 6. Decrease emphasis on competitive situations during learning 7. Give young women equal attention as young men Provide young women with leadership opportunities

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