Teachers Get Mental Health Training, Help Students
2022-04-12
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1From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.
2Since the pandemic started, experts have warned of a mental health crisis facing American children.
3That is now happening in the form of increased depression, anxiety, eating disorders, fights, and thoughts of suicide.
4Last December, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy spoke about "the urgent need to address the nation's youth mental health crisis."
5He said that in early 2021, emergency room visits in the U.S. for suspected suicide attempts were 51 percent higher for teenage girls and 4 percent higher for teenage boys compared to the same period in 2019.
6Sharon Hoover is a professor and co-director of the National Center for School Mental Health at the University of Maryland.
7She said child abuse and neglect increased during the pandemic.
8Students who lacked technology or good internet connections were isolated more than others.
9They fell behind in their studies and socially.
10And returning to school increased the anxiety of some children.
11"We cannot (can't) assume that 'OK we're back in school, it's been a few months and now everyone should be back to normal.' That is not the case," said Hoover.
12The silver lining -- which means a good thing to come from a bad situation -- is special mental health training for teachers.
13This training helps teachers learn warning signs of mental health risks and substance abuse in children, and how to prevent a tragedy.
14The program is run by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing and is available in every state in the U.S.
15One teacher taking the training is Benito Luna-Herrera.
16He teaches seventh-grade social studies in a high-poverty area of the Mojave Desert, a two-hour drive from Los Angeles, California.
17Just two weeks after the training, he saw a student arguing online with her then-boyfriend.
18"I asked her if she was OK," he said. Little by little, the girl told Luna-Herrera about problems with friends, her boyfriend, and at home.
19She said she felt alone. The 12-year-old told Luna-Herrera she had considered hurting herself.
20The training taught him how to handle such a crisis: Raise the alarm. Get expert help.
21Do not leave a person thinking about suicide alone.
22As Luna-Herrera continued talking to the girl, he texted school officials.
23They called an emergency number sending police to the girl's home.
24The police spoke with her mother, who was surprised about her daughter's suicidal thoughts.
25Katherine Aguirre who leads the Mojave Unified school system said, "He absolutely saved that child's life."
26The training helps teachers recognize the difference between normal ways of dealing with pressure and warning signs of serious mental suffering.
27Those warning signs can be clear, or they can be hidden.
28For example, warning signs include talking about death or suicide.
29But saying, "I can't do this anymore," or "I'm tired of this," could be warnings, too.
30Changes in behavior could be cause for concern.
31For example, a teacher might be concerned if a child:
32stops an activity they loved without replacing it with another
33is usually tidy but starts looking untidy
34has falling grades or stops completing assignments
35eats lunch alone every day
36stops spending time with friends
37After seeing that something might be wrong, the training teaches the next steps: Ask the student about their situation without pressure or judgment; let them know you care; let them know you want to help.
38The training tells adults to ask open-ended questions.
39These questions need more than simple yes or no answers.
40The goal is to keep the child talking.
41The adults are advised to see the importance of the problem and avoid saying, "You'll be fine," or "It's not that bad."
42They are also advised to not put themselves into a child's problems with comments such as, "I went through that, too."
43And that's the Health & Lifestyle report.
44I'm Anna Matteo.
1From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. 2Since the pandemic started, experts have warned of a mental health crisis facing American children. That is now happening in the form of increased depression, anxiety, eating disorders, fights, and thoughts of suicide. 3Last December, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy spoke about "the urgent need to address the nation's youth mental health crisis." 4He said that in early 2021, emergency room visits in the U.S. for suspected suicide attempts were 51 percent higher for teenage girls and 4 percent higher for teenage boys compared to the same period in 2019. 5Sharon Hoover is a professor and co-director of the National Center for School Mental Health at the University of Maryland. She said child abuse and neglect increased during the pandemic. 6Students who lacked technology or good internet connections were isolated more than others. They fell behind in their studies and socially. And returning to school increased the anxiety of some children. 7"We cannot (can't) assume that 'OK we're back in school, it's been a few months and now everyone should be back to normal.' That is not the case," said Hoover. 8The silver lining -- which means a good thing to come from a bad situation -- is special mental health training for teachers. 9This training helps teachers learn warning signs of mental health risks and substance abuse in children, and how to prevent a tragedy. The program is run by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing and is available in every state in the U.S. 10One California teacher 11One teacher taking the training is Benito Luna-Herrera. He teaches seventh-grade social studies in a high-poverty area of the Mojave Desert, a two-hour drive from Los Angeles, California. 12Just two weeks after the training, he saw a student arguing online with her then-boyfriend. 13"I asked her if she was OK," he said. Little by little, the girl told Luna-Herrera about problems with friends, her boyfriend, and at home. She said she felt alone. The 12-year-old told Luna-Herrera she had considered hurting herself. 14The training taught him how to handle such a crisis: Raise the alarm. Get expert help. Do not leave a person thinking about suicide alone. 15As Luna-Herrera continued talking to the girl, he texted school officials. They called an emergency number sending police to the girl's home. The police spoke with her mother, who was surprised about her daughter's suicidal thoughts. 16Katherine Aguirre who leads the Mojave Unified school system said, "He absolutely saved that child's life." 17Steps in the training 18The training helps teachers recognize the difference between normal ways of dealing with pressure and warning signs of serious mental suffering. Those warning signs can be clear, or they can be hidden. 19For example, warning signs include talking about death or suicide. But saying, "I can't do this anymore," or "I'm tired of this," could be warnings, too. 20Changes in behavior could be cause for concern. For example, a teacher might be concerned if a child: 21stops an activity they loved without replacing it with another 22is usually tidy but starts looking untidy 23has falling grades or stops completing assignments 24eats lunch alone every day 25stops spending time with friends 26After seeing that something might be wrong, the training teaches the next steps: Ask the student about their situation without pressure or judgment; let them know you care; let them know you want to help. 27The training tells adults to ask open-ended questions. These questions need more than simple yes or no answers. The goal is to keep the child talking. 28The adults are advised to see the importance of the problem and avoid saying, "You'll be fine," or "It's not that bad." They are also advised to not put themselves into a child's problems with comments such as, "I went through that, too." 29And that's the Health & Lifestyle report. 30I'm Anna Matteo. 31Jocelyn Gecker reported this story from San Francisco, California for the Associated Press. Anna Matteo adapted it for VOA Learning English. 32____________________________________________________________________ 33Words in This Story 34anxiety - n. a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome. 35address - v. to deal with : give attention to 36teenage (teenaged) - adj. a young person aged 12 - 19 37isolated - adj. occurring alone or once 38assume - v. to accept as true 39grade - n. a division of a school course representing a year's work 40alarm - v. to give warning to : - n. a warning notice 41tidy - adj. neat and orderly in appearance or habits; well ordered and cared for