Educate students on suicide prevention

Best practices for suicide prevention

Overview

In health education, students are introduced to mental illness and depression. Students will learn about different emotions and how to respond to them, identify their school’s mental health providers, and learn about when to seek support.

Key takeaways

  • Suicide prevention programs should build on what students are learning about mental health and depression.
  • Suicide prevention is best discussed in a collaborative classroom setting—not in a school-wide assembly.
  • Effective programs should help students identify risk factors and know when to seek help, for themselves or others.

What should students learn?

Effective suicide prevention education programs will build on these foundational concepts. Students should learn about:

Suicide is best discussed in a classroom setting with a discussion led by a mental health professional, with the teacher present and attentive. Consider how to encourage student engagement, including time for questions and monitoring student reactions.

Suicide prevention education for students should be selected very carefully and use evidence-based programs.

Your school’s suicide risk assessment team should be involved in the selection and delivery of any suicide prevention programs provided to students. School teams should regularly assess such programs as part of ongoing efforts to ensure effectiveness and relevance.

School assemblies on suicide alone are not considered best practice.

Student suicide prevention programs

An effective program should help students:

  • Identify risk factors and warning signs of suicide in self and others
  • Develop coping strategies
  • Identify trusted adults in the school and community who can help
  • Reduce stigma associated with mental illness
  • Identify and address common myths about suicide
  • Incorporate social and emotional learning
  • Build protective factors

In accordance with Code of Virginia § 22.1-207.2:1., “school division policies must ensure that parents have the right to review materials that contain graphic sexual or violent content used in any suicide prevention program and that the parent of the child participating shall be provided written notice of his right to review the material and his right to excuse his child from participating in the part of such program utilizing such material.”