“Character education and social emotional skills teach children that the rush they get from bullying, for example, can be replaced by the positive rush they get from being kind and making friends. However, this flip of the switch is not automatic. These are taught skills that need to be practiced.”

-Pam McNall, CEO, Respectful Ways PreK-12 curriculum

Established in 1949, May is designated as National Mental Health Month, increasing awareness of the importance of mental wellness and celebrating recovery from mental illness. This event comes on the heels of National Youth Violence Prevention Week in April.

Nearly 6 million of our American children ages 3-17 have diagnosed anxiety (https://www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/data.html). An incredible 3 million adolescents have seriously thought of suicide. That’s 19% of our teens aged 12-17. And almost half of them (9%) have already attempted suicide. In the state of Georgia alone, 100,000 students have reported depression (https:// www.freeyourfeels.org/). And statistics show that the problem is getting worse, not better.

Bullying has increased and changed dramatically in the last decade due to the advent of electronic communications. School after school has been raising a red flag regarding cyberbullying issues and the deteriorating mental health of our students. These trends are leading to more violence in our schools.

The Answer: Trauma-informed strategies for both educator and student.

But fortunately, emotional intelligence and empathy can be learned.

“We build our neural pathways by exercising our brain like a muscle. If children practice kindness and feel empathy, they won’t grow into angry, frustrated adults,” McNall adds.

By using trauma-informed, social emotional learning (SEL) skills, students employ learned strategies to calm anxiety, lift depression, see the good in people, and give back to others. Lessons are phrased in a way to make everyone feel comfortable. The subject matter will not trigger shame, anger, flight, fight or freeze responses.

Being kind is easy and often comes naturally — but the benefits are not always recognized by young people. Between COVID-19 restrictions and overuse of electronics, students are not exercising these skills enough.

For example, forgiveness is another SEL skill that may not come easy for some. Think about that in terms of the next school shooter. Imagine if that child had the tools to release the past, had the ability to drop a grudge, and forgive.
SEL and the positive effects of trauma-informed workshops

The benefits of SEL are both qualitative and quantitative. SEL has been shown to improve academic achievement by 11% on standardized tests. Students are 54% more likely to attain a high school diploma, and twice as likely to attain a college degree (https://casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/what-does-the-research-say/).

Coming from a family of public-school teachers and knowing many others, I can attest to the fact that being an educator is stressful. Recent national headlines have indicated that students are bringing guns to school, teachers are stabbed and beaten, student fights are increasing, and more (https://districtadministration.com/guns-in-school-students-show-up-armed-frightening-safety-trend/?oly_enc_id= ).

The exhaustion and pressure educators are feeling is at an all-time high. Adult SEL — particularly trauma-informed SEL workshops — helps remove classroom tension by teaching ways to self-manage and self-regulate — for both the student and educator. School faculty need tools to turn to when they’re triggered by a student so the continuous cycle of referrals and detention can be reversed.

Addressing mental health needs of students directly impacts the increasing levels of violence in our schools
SEL gives kids tools to turn to as well. For example, how to control their anger and emotions, how to control their brain’s negative self-talk, and how to empathize with others instead of judging, ridiculing and bullying.

Anxiety and anger too often lead to violence, including shootings. There is consensus in America that our mental health issues must be better identified and dealt with more efficaciously. Both conservatives and progressives agree that this societal issue must be addressed in a bipartisan way — with politics removed from the equation.

SEL should be taught in every publicly funded US educational institution. As a fiscal conservative, I can state that there is no better use for our tax dollars.

Jack Bernard is the former Director of Health Planning for Georgia. He has served 4 terms on two Georgia Boards of Health.