Schools and the Emotional Lives of Teenagers

05/07/24 • 46 min

Episode 59: Schools and the Emotional Lives of Teenagers

Now more than ever, schools are focused on supporting student mental health. With rates of anxiety and depression on the rise among teens, we know we need to design environments that help foster adolescent wellbeing. But are wellbeing programs working as intended? What are we getting right – and getting wrong – about the emotional lives of teenagers? Dr. Lisa Damour has the answers.

Guest: Dr. Lisa Damour

Resources, Transcript, and Expanded Show Notes

In This Episode:

“Schools are working against this broad cultural discourse that holds at the center the idea that discomfort is bad. And so as long as we're not challenging that idea, we're gonna be dealing with a lot of one-on-one conversations trying to convince people that this is really all okay. So I would both have schools get out on their front foot about reframing this appropriately. Mental health is not about feeling good and school is supposed to be stressful, and we are built to help your kid handle that.” (13:39)
“There are a lot of people who age without actually working themselves through the maturity that is required for a healthy adulthood, right? Who aren't thinking about risk in very smart ways. They're thinking about whether they're going to get caught, not whether they're going to get hurt or hurt somebody else. They are not taking responsibility for their actions. They don't actually have a particularly good work ethic, right? So you can age into adulthood, but not really be as mature as you should be.” (31:09)
“When I have seen adults really harm their relationship with a kid, and usually this is parent-child, but it can happen in a school, it's when the teenager says, you know what, you assigned this to us last week, or you said you were gonna pick me up and you forgot, and the adult denies or defends, right? When the adult flexes, we have all the authority, we will flex our authority if we want to. If the teenager is right and the adult is wrong and the adult doesn't own it, that relationship has hit a really rough patch.” (37:02)

Related Episodes: 54, 51, 48, 35, 32,15, 8, 3

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 59: Schools and the Emotional Lives of Teenagers

Guest: Dr. Lisa Damour

Resources, Transcript, and Expanded Show Notes

In This Episode:

“Schools are working against this broad cultural discourse that holds at the center the idea that discomfort is bad. And so as long as we're not challenging that idea, we're gonna be dealing with a lot of one-on-one conversations trying to convince people that this is really all okay. So I would both have schools get out on their front foot about reframing this appropriately. Mental health is not about feeling good and school is supposed to be stressful, and we are built to help your kid handle that.” (13:39)
“There are a lot of people who age without actually working themselves through the maturity that is required for a healthy adulthood, right? Who aren't thinking about risk in very smart ways. They're thinking about whether they're going to get caught, not whether they're going to get hurt or hurt somebody else. They are not taking responsibility for their actions. They don't actually have a particularly good work ethic, right? So you can age into adulthood, but not really be as mature as you should be.” (31:09)
“When I have seen adults really harm their relationship with a kid, and usually this is parent-child, but it can happen in a school, it's when the teenager says, you know what, you assigned this to us last week, or you said you were gonna pick me up and you forgot, and the adult denies or defends, right? When the adult flexes, we have all the authority, we will flex our authority if we want to. If the teenager is right and the adult is wrong and the adult doesn't own it, that relationship has hit a really rough patch.” (37:02)

Related Episodes: 54, 51, 48, 35, 32,15, 8, 3

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Previous Episode

Transforming Teaching and Learning

Episode 58: Transforming Teaching and Learning

What would it look like if a school went “all in” on training teachers to become experts in the neuroscience behind learning? Saint Andrews Episcopal School did just that, and in the process, created the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning, dedicated to helping educators everywhere unlock the power of Mind Brain Education.

Guest: Glenn Whitman

Resources, Transcript, and Expanded Show Notes

In This Episode:

“Look, we have vocabulary quizzes for kids in every discipline. Why can't we sort of have that for the adult learners in our school? And the fact is, we went after this research around collective teacher efficacy. The idea is that if we have some common language, common frameworks, common North stars, or mountaintops, or drivers that we're all moving towards, then that might make us collectively more effective for all our student population.” (16:45)
“I'll get on my horse for one second about homework. You know, we have our kids, we are privileged to have our kids for eight or more hours a day in all our schools, especially when they get to high school, right? I once had an AP history student ask if we were violating child labor laws because then they still had to go home and do two more hours of homework. I thought that was interesting.” (26:43)
“I can ask the AI for an early draft. I can edit it around. And look, every kid can get immediate feedback too, using these tools, right? Now, you're right though. Learning happens when you think hard. And generationally, I think our kids don't want to think as hard as we, maybe we were willing, and maybe we were foolish, but we know learning doesn't stick unless you think hard about things you're either intaking or doing or building or pondering. And again, I think that's going to be a little, a healthy tension point to figure out.” (34:21)
“The teacher of the future has to do a better job working the room and working among the students. I still see too many times, when I'm in schools, students working independently, and teachers retreating to their laptop and missing– This is the best time to ask deeper questions, to see what kid, is it sticking or working. So I think more and more, you know, working the room and moving amongst kids, as opposed to being in the front of the room. So I think teachers, I'm just going to say heads of school, a new line item budget should be better shoes for teachers.” (39:01)

Related Episodes: 53, 49, 47, 45, 35, 31, 18

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Next Episode

Student Voices on Learning Self-Reliance

Episode 60: Student Voices on Learning Self-Reliance

Most schools envision helping students grow in their agency, independence, and self-reliance. How to do that is a hotly contested topic with no easy answers. But while the majority of students are trying to build those skills within settings that are also grappling with issues like technology use and the difficulties of providing meaningful opportunities outside the classroom, there are some schools where learning self-reliance happens in a wholly different way. Two students from Midland School in California join New View EDU to share their experiences with a no-tech, nature-based campus where growing your own food and heating your own living quarters are just part of a normal school day.

Guests: Ayanna Hopkins-Zelada and River Peace

Resources, Transcript, and Expanded Show Notes

In This Episode:

“I think that everyone is taking care of each other and you get to decide what the environment you live in looks like. And you really get to know what a person, who that person truly is when you see how they take care of the people around them. And there's that deeper level of connection...with someone when you see who they truly are when they're taking care of, not only themselves, but the people around them.” (8:41)
“And my ability to navigate conflict with my peers and also with faculty, or with other peers and faculty in whatever situation, has been really solidified because Midland, from your freshman year, is very intentional about making sure that you develop the skills to maintain relationships with people and how to navigate all aspects of having a relationship with someone or a group of people, and maintaining the responsibilities that you have as an individual in a community. Which also extends to, you know, your ability to know when to ask for help and know when you are overworked or need a minute and to be able to advocate for yourself.” (18:06)
“Something that I notice the most at Midland is historical passion. Since Midland was founded, everyone that's gone to Midland and worked at Midland has had passion for it and cared about the place that they are stepping foot on. So having that passion from the very first construction of the place, of the school, I think that's key to having somewhere as magical as Midland.” (23:23)
“I think it's one of the most special things about how students and faculty interact at Midland, is that you have a relationship in and out of the classroom. Our faculty know you very well outside of the classroom, and that translates really well into them becoming a teacher for you academically and not, outside of the classroom. And I think it's an advantage that Midland students have that a lot of other students don't have, where our teachers are able to see us as whole people outside of the classroom rather than just students in a classroom.” (34:58)

Related Episodes: 53, 51, 50, 40,15, 11, 8

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.