"There were times a student would be out sick, and when they returned, I'd say, 'I hope you feel better,' only to hear, 'Oh, I'm fine. I just didn't feel like coming, and my mom said I could stay home,' Payne recalls."
"'I feel like people are avoiding hard things,' Payne says, adding that not every stressful moment should be treated as a mental health crisis."
"'School is their job,' Payne tells TODAY, 'so you don't have days where you just don't get to come because you're a little tired.'"
Schools shifted from dismissing emotions to integrating social-emotional learning and openly addressing student mental health. Mental-health days have become more common as students are encouraged to name feelings and seek help. Some educators and parents worry that frequent use of mental-health days fosters avoidance, harms attendance, and weakens resilience. Reports include students missing multiple days each week and experiencing academic decline. Examples include students skipping school to avoid social drama or because caregivers permit staying home. Online responses are divided between concerns about enabling avoidance and support for flexible mental-health accommodations. The debate balances support for well-being with expectations of consistent school attendance.
Read at TODAY.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]