Grimsley High School teacher, Sierra Hannipole, checks in with a student at the Greensboro, NC, learning center. According to new federal data, six out of 10 schools across the country, including Grimsley, have added teacher training to support students socially and emotionally this school year.
Cornell Watson for NPR
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Cornell Watson for NPR
Grimsley High School teacher, Sierra Hannipole, checks in with a student at the Greensboro, NC, learning center. According to new federal data, six out of 10 schools across the country, including Grimsley, have added teacher training to support students socially and emotionally this school year.
Cornell Watson for NPR
United States Surgeon General Vivek Murthy give an advice This month said that the youth mental health crisis is getting worse.
“The unpredictable death toll in a time of pandemic, pervasive feelings of fear, economic uncertainty and forced physical distancing from loved ones, friends and communities have exacerbated the tensions that have not yet been reached. ever faced by young people”. Murthy wrote. But he also stressed that mental health conditions are treatable and preventable.
And New data released from the US Department of Education suggests that schools across the country are trying to play their part. A federal survey of 170 schools in September found that 97% were taking some steps to support student well-being once they returned to face-to-face instruction. This includes one or more of the following:
- 59% are providing special professional development to current staff so they can support students in turn.
- 42% have hired new employees, such as counselors and social workers.
- 26% added student classes to address topics related to social, emotional, or mental health.
- 20% have created community events and partnerships.
Educators at Grimsley High School in Greensboro, NC, have seen the damage the coronavirus pandemic has taken on students, socially and emotionally.
“A lot of our kids are still struggling with … adapting to the fact that a few years ago they were in middle school, and then they dropped here. [in high school]. So there was some struggle there, [as well as] kids can go through emotional things at home,” said Assistant Principal Christopher Burnette.
Guilford County schools, including Grimsley High School, have partnered with outside donors, including the Walton Family Foundation and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, to provide “learning centers.” activities after school and at some schools on weekends. (Dell Technologies is a financial backer of NPR.) Centers are places to catch up on schoolwork, but they are also places to check the state of mind of students, Burnette said.
“Most of the time it’s not always about homework or schoolwork – it’s about how you’re doing, how you’re feeling. And if they start to open up, you know, we pull them in. aside, and we’ll also be able to identify certain things that support them in that particular way.”
The centers have a school counselor and the school has trained other staff to handle these supportive conversations.
