If a teacher thinks a student is depressed...??

Question

if a teacher suspects that a student is depressed

but the student denies it

what does the teacher do?

Answer 1

Leave him/her be. It'd be awkward if you kept talking to him/her and started asking him/her personal questions, especially if there's nothing wrong. I would assume the student would know whether or not he/she is fine. Maybe you just saw your student during an "off day" or week. There really may be nothing wrong. Maybe your student is just tired.

Answer 2

The teacher can talk to the school counselor, principal, nurse, other teachers, and the students parents to keep others involved aware of the possible situation as well as get feedback and other opinions.

Answer 3

Nothing. The teacher will keep watch of the student and if s/he sees any further signs the teacher will ask again and wait for one last sign then finally demand for the student to see the local counsler.

If you have been accused and aren't depressed then just go along with the counsler's meeting and don't worry about it.  

Answer 4

Report it to the school counselor.  You're legally required to report concerns about a student's welfare, and the counselor is the person who is best trained to work with the emotional issues of students.

Answer 5

You must voice your concern to your administration.  That way if (God forbid, knock on wood etc) something bad did happen from it all, you cannot be held liable for with holding information etc. Plus, if you didnt say anything to anyone and something bad happened, you would feel extremely awful and guilty.   I realize that any law suit against you would be weak, but its always smarter to err on the side of caution. Hope this helps

Answer 6

Unless there is clear evidence of self harm, teachers should BACK OFF.  Unless staff has sufficient pscyh. training, they could easily do more harm than good.  If there are valid concerns, such as a dramatic change in personality or behavior, check in with the parents (which is the first step in any further referrals) to see if something has changed at home.  Checking in with the school pysychologist would be a good next step, but I would not start suggesting that the child needs to "go and talk to someone".  

Just as an aside, many kids are simply different and keep to themselves.  There is nothing wrong with a shy, quiet, booking child who really doesn't get into the "normal" rowdiness of his/her peers.

Answer 7

Talk to the school nurse and if you don't find some answers, talk to the principal (look in the cumulative folder), and talk to the parents.. siblings?

Answer 8

A teacher's responsibility goes beyond the books and classroom lesson.  The teacher serves in loco parentis, and he/she has to look out not only for the students' intellectual needs but their physical, social, and developmental needs as well.  When the teacher sees signs that indicate some type of problem, action must be taken on bahalf of the teacher.  You are there to help them grow and protect their emotional well being.