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Retrieved from White House.
Education Dive
Pitting mental health against safety, national leaders point to SEL in school reopening debate
Schools' ability to provide mental health support is taking center
stage as some say it's not immediately feasible, while others say there
is a middle ground.
Naaz Modan
July 8, 2020
The national debate over reopening schools for in-person instruction is
taking a new turn: The uptick in students' mental health needs during
closures and whether schools are equipped to support this influx.
"We want to reopen the schools," President Donald Trump said during a
White House school reopening roundtable Tuesday. "It's time to do it."
Shortly prior to that event, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos,
along with a handful of health officials and politicians, also pushed
for schools nationwide to open their doors in the fall so students can
access school-based social-emotional supports.
"We know that for so many students, the school environment is the best
place for them to be," DeVos said during the event. "And they have got
to continue to develop themselves and not go through another several
months to a year of biding time.”
She added reopening decisions should take into account students'
social-emotional and mental well-being in addition to their physical
safety.
White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx and Alex
Azar, secretary of Health and Human Services, pointed to growing
awareness around the "whole child," saying school settings are often
where students' social, emotional and physical health needs are cared
for.
"Schools are important and critical not just for educating," Azar said.
"They are actually the center of so many children’s entire healthcare,
mental health, [and] social life."
The comments echo those made last week by Dr. Anthony Fauci, director
of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who said
in a Senate committee hearing schools should prioritize safely
reopening for students, considering "unintended negative consequences
that occur when we keep them out of school.”
States prioritize SEL in reopening
Educators and other health experts overwhelmingly agree with these
sentiments, with many noting the significant dip in reports of child
abuse and neglect, as well as increased anxiety, trauma, and depression
in students.
"I think you’d be hard pressed to find any superintendent or district
leader who doesn’t want to reopen," said Noelle Ellerson Ng, associate
executive director for advocacy and governance for AASA, The School
Superintendents' Association.
A joint report released in late June by the Committee for Children and
the Collaborative for Academic, Social, And Emotional Learning suggests
state education agencies are also recognizing the need for increased
SEL support. According to its survey, which included responses from 37
states, the majority of states said SEL has been an increased priority
since the pandemic began, and that SEL increased in importance at the
state agency level for the same reason.
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