As we head into summer, it finally feels like routines might be going back to normal. Families are making summer travel plans, sleepover camps are reviving full programming, and universities are open for in-person tours again.
And yet, it’s no understatement to say that the last two and a half years have brought more changes to the face of secondary and post-secondary education than ever before as students moved back and forth across linear, quarterly, semester, online, and classroom learning while most in-person activities and opportunities that help them thrive socially, physically, and emotionally were canceled.
Emerging research now reveals the toll this has taken on our young people: after one year of the pandemic, one in four youth globally were experiencing clinically elevated depression symptoms and one in five youth were experiencing clinically elevated anxiety symptoms, compared to one in ten pre-pandemic. Moreover, because there is often a potential delay of two to four years between a traumatic event and the development of a mental health disorder, we can expect these trends to continue or increase even when things “seem” to be going back to normal (Racine et al, 2021).
How can we all– as educational consultants, parents, and caregivers– support young people moving forward?
Recently, during one of our quarterly professional development days, we hosted Dr. Emily Piper, R. Psych., and Clinical Training Lead at BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. Together, we took a closer look at these emerging mental health trends and professional recommendations and adaptations for high school and post-secondary.
Recommendations and key take-aways include:
- Listen to what youth are saying and validate what they feel. There is a real sense of loss of major milestones, and we are not going back.
- Encourage access to in-person learning.
- Encourage access to in-person social and extracurricular opportunities (to reignite a low social battery).
- Reduce screen time: less than 2 hours a day (recreationally).
- Support parents by touching base, helping them pace, and setting realistic expectations for their youth.
- Support exposure versus avoidance of assignments, homework or tasks by creating deadlines, pacing, and organizational systems.
- Support college prep with manageable stress
- Reach out to the school team if necessary- build a supportive team.
- Familiarize yourself with a student’s learning profile, academic accommodations, and individual education plan (IEP).
- Recognize diversity: culture, sexuality, ask about pronouns
- Encourage routine and consistency in sleep, exercise, and school activities.
As Educational Consultants, we consistently track how all of these phenomena impact our students and families, so we may continue to support their academic, social-emotional/executive function and extra-curricular/interest area development no matter the circumstances. We are grateful to Dr. Piper for her insights and professional recommendations.
A quote from one our our consultants on the presentation:
“At the end of the session, I asked Dr. Piper a few questions, one of which centered on how to encourage students with a learning exceptionality and/or IEP who, for a variety of reasons, are either reluctant or do not wish to use additional tools or services. I love how Dr. Piper’s response framed self-advocacy as a sometimes challenging process that requires ongoing motivation from a student’s parents, teachers, peers, doctors, consultants, etc”
