Students need more mental health help
A student upset outside of school Credit: iStock
Students need more mental health help
Two stories on June 5 [“In shooting’s wake, advice on kids’ mental health” and “A little help from his (big) friends,” News] highlight different aspects of addressing challenges facing troubled and disaffected students in the post-pandemic era.
The first notes how parents and teachers can identify and engage students in counseling interventions. But the availability of treatment professionals is outpaced by the number of students in need. Prevention and community-based interventions are needed to mobilize more helpers. This was nicely implemented by the school in the second story where high schoolers came to sign the yearbook of a middle school student shunned by his classmates.
These naturalistic, preventive interventions pay dividends to both receivers of support and helpers who enhance their sense of connection and pride in their schools and communities. Research with high school students at risk of dropout showed improved graduation rates when they were asked to mentor younger students to keep them in school.
During my career as a school psychologist, I saw many examples of how engaging a student with problems as a helper turned around their attitudes, self-esteem, and participation in class.
— Gloria S. Rothenberg, Merrick
I am an elementary public school music teacher of over 29 years. Teaching several thousand children, I have seen an enormous spectrum of behaviors. I have seen many wonderful, loving families. Unfortunately, I have also seen troubled families, with parents suffering from their own addictions and mental illness. This leads to child suffering. If we want this to change, it’s everyone’s responsibility to insist public schools have enough mental health staff. Every elementary, middle and high school building must have a full-time social worker and child psychologist. We often bring in the mental health workers when something tragic happens. For many children, every day is tragic.
— Tiffanie Kempf, Remsenburg
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