Iraqi children, having lived through years of sanctions and war, face high levels of stress. Some have been witnesses to violence, while many children have lost one or both parents, or other relatives, due to the conflict. Families face the loss of financial reserves and other resources, employment, and many families are either displaced or unable to conduct normal activities due to the security situation in some parts of the country. Even in families that remain untouched by the violence, parental stress over economic or political insecurity directly affects children and exacerbates family violence. The children that will enroll in school in 2009 will not have known anything other than war and violence in Iraq. The typical effects of conflict-related stress on the wellbeing of children are symptoms or behaviors such as sadness, aggressive behavior, withdrawal, clinging to the primary caregivers, fearfulness, lack of concentration, feeling guilty, agitation, bed-wetting, headaches and other physical complaints, problems with sleep and reduced performance in school.

Creating a normal, consistent and accessible school environment is key in fostering emotional stability among children and in promoting learning. Other than parents, teachers are often the most important adults in children's lives. Teachers are in a unique position to observe the behavior and emotional state of the children in the classroom, often being the first to notice signs of distress in children. Teachers have a significant protective influence on the wellbeing, mental health and psychosocial functioning of children, and with the appropriate knowledge, skills and attitudes, they can adapt the classroom interactions to the emotional, cognitive and spiritual needs of the children.

Summary

Psychosocial Teacher Training is a pilot project offering training on psychosocial services to primary school teachers in six Iraqi governorates (Baghdad, Basra, Wasit, Erbil, Thi Qar and Missan). The trainings are designed to provide Iraqi teachers with the tools to address the needs of vulnerable children, including those affected by war and violence. Teachers receive trainings in teaching methods appropriate for children suffering from the effects of trauma or war, creating a safe and supportive learning environment, creating individualized education plans for children experiencing difficulties, improving coordination with parents, and identifying and responding to children and families in need of special services or support. The program is training 1,800 teachers in six governorates throughout Iraq and will benefit an estimated 45,000 children.  Heartland Alliance, UNICEF and government stakeholders will develop a model based on the pilot program to apply throughout Iraq.

Activities

Given this context, this project aims to increase teacher awareness and response to stresses related to war and violence, build capacity to address psychosocial needs, and increase the use of active, expressive learning approaches, through the following project activities:

• Providing training to teacher trainers on the topic of psychosocial care and protection of children in emergencies, such as by training teachers to identify, screen, and refer children demonstrating significant impairment due to moderate to severe  stresses associated with exposure to violence;
•  Providing teachers with activity kits to help introduce psychosocial programming into the classroom so they can provide a psychologically and emotionally safe environment for all children in their schools, and providing teachers with references to government and NGO health programs;
• Assisting school administrators, teachers and parents in setting up working referral networks with the Ministry of Health and NGOs to assist families in cases in which parents or care-givers are themselves facing mental health problems, such as severe reaction to violent events, substance abuse, depression or mental illness;
• Strengthening the protective environment of the children through better parent-teacher interaction, including setting up PTAs and establishing guidelines for teacher education of family members of children negatively affected by violence;
• Establishing support networks for teachers to prevent secondary traumatization, and helping them with their own coping strategies.