Glasgow Clyde College introduces bespoke wellbeing course for students

A course focusing on mental health resilience and wellbeing has been curated for students at Glasgow Clyde College after lecturers became concerned about the effects of coronavirus on young people.

The course, “Wellbeing for Students” consists of nine modules covering sleep, mindfulness, positive self-talk, reframing thoughts, connecting with others, what is wellbeing, exercise and diet,anxiety and depression, and a special ‘coping with covid’ element.

Students already studying at the College can access the course through the virtual learning environment (VLE) and undertake each unit at their own pace,and will receive a college certificate in wellbeing at the end. If they choose to continue studying for a wellbeing qualification, their certificate and work can be used as evidence to obtain credits toward the level 4 and 5 SQA group award.

Joanne Kerr, senior lecturer in employability, has created the course as a step towards embedding mental health and wellbeing education into the curriculum.

She said: “According to the Youth Link Scotland ‘Lockdown Lowdown’ survey for young people, 39% were ‘moderately or extremely’ concerned for their own mental wellbeing, and a further 46% were as concerned for the wellbeing of others. It is vital that as an FE college we offer appropriate intervention measures to help students develop coping mechanisms when their mental health is suffering.

“The current Covid-19 context has heightened this, and mental wellbeing is becoming an even greater concern. Anxiety about individuals or family members contracting the virus, the fact that we don’t know when the crisis will end, isolation, adapting to remote working or studying are contributing factors.

“If we combine our diverse learner needs with the idea that learning situations are also fundamentally shaped and driven by emotions, then we create an environment where acknowledging mental health needs and building resilience is crucial.”

The course is self-directed and will be available to students at any point of their studies. The resources also signpost to a formal support section, which has a list of important organisations that can be contacted in times of crisis.