Eleventh International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society

Abstract

Mental health awareness in many of the South Pacific countries is limited due to language barriers and social reasons. The younger population in these countries tends to suffer from depression and suicidal tendencies. The purpose of this study is to examine the use of language classrooms as a platform to talk about mental health issues. Language teachers often look for materials to develop critical thinking skills, listening and speaking skills, readings skills, and writing skills. Mental health, as a topic, can be included in discussions and assignments. This paper explains about two small case studies, one in an English for Academic Purposes (EAP) class with students from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds, and another in a monolingual Hindi class. How the teacher introduces the concept of mental health and the participation of students in the discussion are observed and a discourse analysis shows that students from EAP and Hindi classes present similar ideas about mental health and their recommendations for youths. The research discusses further insights on the relationship between mental health and language barriers and concludes that language teachers can play a vital role in mental health and wellbeing advocacy.