A new study in the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management has found that providing councilors to grade school and middle school aged kids may significantly improve grades and behavior. Randall Reback, an assistant professor of economics at Barnard College/Columbia University, told ParentDish that he got the idea while he was teaching elementary school in East Palo Alto, California.
“I was teaching in a lower-income school and having significant problems with two students,” Reback tells ParentDish. “At the time, the police department provided counseling at the school and within one week I was amazed at the transformation in these students and how less disruptive they were in class. We’re (teachers and parents) so focused on grades, but we under-emphasize the powerful role mental health help can bring to our classrooms. What kids need most is one-on-ones with caring adults.”
According to Reback, one in five elementary age kids suffers from some kind of mental health disorders but less than half of states require mental health professionals on campus at the elementary school level. In schools that do provide counselling, teachers have considerably fewer concerns about disruptive behavior in class, from cutting to stealing and fighting.
“In ‘Waiting for Superman,‘ obviously charter schools can be a great answer because students can be expelled if they don’t meet behavioral standards,” Reback tells ParentDish. “But, in public schools, we need to address behavioral issues in other ways. Teachers that can refer students for counseling report significant improvements in their classrooms.”
