A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
In conversations with many teachers and parents, the opinion is divided about whether to focus on the positive behavior or negative choices youth make surrounding drugs. There are those who believe most young people will try drugs at some stage, so we should shock students by telling true stories of disaster parties & those who [...]
I’m really exploring the concept of Student Voice at the moment. Both in my writing and in my work with schools. Last week I was invited back to the school where I last taught in 2012. I was part of a panel for an evening that the Year 12s had put on to discuss some [...]
The decision could undermine the federal government's recent decision to allocate $245.3 million to continue running the chaplaincy program for another five years. That funding was intended specifically for schools to hire faith-based chaplains rather than social workers. Under the program, 3700 schools are eligible for up to $72,000 funding to employ chaplains. In a [...]
The symptoms include uncontrollable screaming, swooning and spending hours on Twitter and Facebook. It primarily affects preteen and teen girls, yet it is highly contagious and can infect mothers, too. In severe cases, sufferers camp out on sidewalks for days. "The appeal for me is, of course, that he's beautiful," said 15-year-old Emma Reeves of [...]
The very earliest childhood memories might begin even earlier than anyone realized – including the rememberer, his or her parents and memory researchers. Four- to 13-year-olds in upstate New York and Newfoundland, Canada, probed their memories when researchers asked: "You know, some kids can remember things that happened to them when they were very little. [...]
Over the past few weeks I’ve been speaking at the Generation Next seminars lamenting the fact that in today’s society, it seems every kid needs to get a prize! Indeed I’ve heard of teachers being berated by over-zealous parents because their child didn’t receive a fifth place ribbon. Why do we feel the need to [...]
More than 7 percent of American schoolchildren are taking at least one medication for emotional or behavioral difficulties, a new government report shows. Apparently, the medications are working: More than half of the parents said the drugs are helping their children, according to the report. - Serena Gordon via One in 13 US schoolkids takes [...]
I was bullied as a kid. That might be hard for you to imagine if you’ve met me in person. As a former representative footy player who stands around 191cm and over 110kg, I don’t come across as your typical ‘victim.’ But I used to dread going to school on a daily basis. Each day [...]
You know that NAPLAN is just around the corner each year when the media start trotting out the same old stories about kids being stressed by the tests, teachers teaching to the tests or worse – teachers and students colluding to cheat the tests! This year it will be different ACARA says. Schools [...]
You could be warmed by the revelation that family togetherness is still a strong force in Australian society, so instead of retreating to their rooms and playing video games, kids join their parents in watching such celebrations of talent and hard work as My Kitchen Rules and The Block. While at other times of the [...]
