Mental Illness Curriculum for Adolescents

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The purpose of this Small Business Innovation Research proposal is to continue the development and evaluation of the Mental Illness Curriculum for Adolescents, an innovative, multimedia curriculum designed for teachers of students in grades 7 through 9 to educate adolescents about mental illness. The curriculum consists of an interactive CD-ROM, Teacher's Guide, Counselor's Guide, and posters; the four main content modules feature the most common types of mental illness in adolescence: Mood Disorders, Anxiety Disorders, Eating Disorders, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. The goals of the curriculum are to: 1) Present comprehensive, research-based information to increase the knowledge of students about the causes, effects, and treatments of mental illnesses; 2) Reduce stigmatizing attitudes and behaviors; 3) Empower educators to successfully introduce these topics to their students; and 4) Promote collaboration among educators and school counselors to create a supportive school environment related to child mental health. During Phase I, Danya developed the Teacher's guide content and lessons, created a design template for the Teacher's Guide, developed content for the CD-ROM activities, programmed the CD-ROM activities for the Mood Disorders module, drafted content for the Counselor's Guide, designed prototypes of the posters, and evaluated the feasibility of the Mood Disorders module. During Phase II, Danya proposes to finalize the Phase I products, including producing the Teacher's Guide, Counselor's Guide, posters, and CD-ROM, amplify the CD-ROM to include an interactive educational game, and conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the curriculum.