SB256 will award more money ($1 MILLION) dollars, to continue the national Multi Tiered System of Support Behavior (MTSS-B) in our local schools. But how is this money, spent on the students’ mental health, working?
At a recent hearing before the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, a few lobbyists agreed that they needed to continue the MTSS-B program because they were able to reach children who needed it. Children are in crisis and their mental health needs are greater than ever before. That may be true, but how a school district responds maybe backfiring.
Not all bad behavior stems from a mental health problem. What about all of those kids who are pushing boundaries? As parents we all know that from time to time, kids are going to push to see what they can get away with.
Several years ago, New Hampshire was awarded grant money from the federal government to institute solutions to this mental health crisis among our youth. Some of this may have been helpful, but much of it seems like it’s not working.
A few years ago teachers from Nashua spoke before the board of education about the escalating behavior problems. In Keene parents have been invited to special meetings to discuss the escalating behavior problems in the school. One of the Keen student’s, posts their videos on YouTube showing all of the fights that are occurring in the restrooms. I have written extensively about the teachers leaving the profession based on these problems.
At the public hearing on SB265, no one mentioned any of this but me. One former teacher did offer testimony opposing SB265 based her personal reasons. So why continue to spend more money on this program?
Plymouth State, Antioch and now Keene State, have all been tasked with developing a report on how well MTSS-B is working in our public schools. I flipped through this report from Keene State BHII, but it looked more like a marketing report for a product they want to sell. This wasn’t an in-depth peer reviewed and independent study.
Where are these stories that have been reported in Manchester Union Leader? The UL reported that Winnisquam planned a vacation week training amidst behavior problems.
TILTON — The Winnisquam Regional School District will offer a two-day training workshop during vacation week to help address disruptive student behavior.
Superintendent Shannon Bartlett said grant money will allow the district to bring in representatives from Connecting Our Resources Educationally, or CORE, Methods and William J. White Educational and Behavioral Consulting Services, Inc. to work with parents, teachers, special educators and administrators across the district. Bartlett plans to offer a similar professional training workshop during April vacation.
“We have [special trainers] embedded in our schools throughout the week, but we really just feel like the more training we can get for our staff, the better,” she told the Winnisquam Regional School Board.
During the public comment period on Feb. 20, Bette Hammond placed blame for the disciplinary problems on the school board.
“To me, the school board is the foundation of our school district,” Hammond said, “and right now, it’s crumbling. You’ve hired behavioral specialists to help with students that are struggling, and it doesn’t seem to be working at this point. … I see classrooms being evacuated, profanity, staff being punched, kicked, things being thrown.
“What concerns me with all of this interruption,” she continued, “is that test scores are down. Are you going to blame the teachers? And how do you think it affects the staff, as well as the students?”
How is MTSS-B working so well when we know there have been serious incidents in our local schools? What is going on?
Bravo to the parent willing to speak the truth to the school board. If they don’t want to deal with these problems, they shouldn’t run for these positions. They need to start asking questions of the administration. The Superintendents are failing, and you are the ones who hire them. Parents are going to hold you accountable until you decide to hold your school administrators accountable.
This parent explained exactly what is going on in the classroom…it’s a CHAOTIC MESS.
What will it take to realize that a disciplined environment, where children are safe and can learn, should be the goal. Expecting schools to become mental health centers will cause even more problems. Will it take a teacher who is brutally assaulted to wake everyone up? Look at the violence this teacher had to endure at the hands of a violent student:
This district was implementing the PBIS system of positive behavior support. How did that work for the teacher who took his Nintendo switch away from the student? PBIS is part of the Multi-Tiered System of Support.
Remember when disruptive children were removed from class, and sent to the Principal’s office? They faced consequences~ No wonder behavior problems are escalating. When classrooms become a group therapy session for children, it doesn’t work well for those involved.
In an article from the Fordham Institute, they point out the problems with turning circle time into group therapy.
Restorative circles are unethical and have no place in schools
In the past decade, the role of the teacher in schools has slowly shifted from pedagogue to therapist. Perhaps the most glaring example of this shift is the practice called “circle conversations.” These circles are cousins of the non-punitive approach to discipline called restorative justice, and are intended to be community-building prophylactics.
We should all want mental health care and structured, emotional support for students who need it. But deputizing teachers into a role far beyond their expertise runs into several problems that violate the American Psychological Association’s “Code of Ethics.” And it could lead to disastrous outcomes.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, psychologists must acquire “informed consent” from any patient before administering services. Be it medicine or therapy, a patient must understand what services they are to receive and to what end. Yet the guidance from San Francisco encourages teachers to allow students “little or no passing” in response to prompts. In other words, participation is mandatory.
Much of these practices amount to psychological dabbling, to which neither parents nor students consent.
From the poor pedagogy fads that have teachers working as facilitators instead of instructors, to the complete breakdown in disciplinary practices–your children will suffer. This is what happens when you turn a school district into a mental health facility run by people who are not educated or trained in this specialized field. Even when all of this is administered by school counselors, we know ethical codes on informed consent by parents are not followed.
Schools are there to educate children in academics. That means you remove the disruption from the classroom and/or school when necessary. You stop placing this burden on teachers, and let them teach.
There are children who are struggling with mental health issues that may need additional attention. But you cannot expect a teacher to manage a classroom when their expertise is in teaching math, not in administering mental health services.
As we continue to flush money down the toilet, fooling ourselves that the schools can assess and treat a child’s mental health, remember that this contributes to the low proficiency rates. You cannot administer mental health services to the children, and expect that the school will be focused on elevating a child’s academic performance.
If you are tired of another social experiment in our public schools, then cut the funding. There are children throughout New Hampshire who need mental health assistance right now. This is not the job or the duty of the local public school. The Governor and our legislators need to prioritize spending. Find out where this money is most needed and redirect funding so that it can have a real impact on children who need it.
Contact the State Senate Committee and tell them NO on SB265 Tell them that this experiment (MTSS-B) is not working in our schools.
Regina.Birdsell@leg.state.nh.us, Kevin.Avard@leg.state.nh.us, Jeb.Bradley@leg.state.nh.us, Becky.Whitley@leg.state.nh.us, Suzanne.Prentiss@leg.state.nh.us, cameron.lapine@leg.state.nh.us
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