A recent CDC study says that 25% of 18-24 year olds contemplated suicide in June. Even more reported anxiety and stress-related disorders.
That’s got to be our top priority as teachers. Before we get to talking about robust learning, scaffolded growth and learning communities, before we get to talking about ensemble, tone, and repertoire, before we get to talking about differential equations, Ralph Ellison, or the rise of Nazism in the 1930s…before any of this, we’ll need to reach our students as individuals.
It won’t be easy. We’ll be unable to hug them or put a hand on their shoulder. We can’t hand them a box of tissues as they cry in our offices before or after school. We can’t catch them in the hall for a check-in.
It’s still where we need to start. We are all suffering, and young people might be the most fragile.
Getting back to learning isn’t going to solve it. Certain advocates for reopening schools in person will say that closing school buildings in March instigated a mental health crisis, but the truth is more complicated. And since in-person school isn’t going to look anything like in-person school for awhile, it’s pie in the sky to think that simply reopening school buildings will cure our students’ mental health.
But I’m hopeful. Getting back to learning isn’t going to solve it, but getting attention from some of the world’s best caregivers, aka teachers, will be a good start. That’s true on Zoom, from across the room, in cohorts, outside on a field, or in an email.