SOCIAL CLASS AND PROBLEMS OF SCHOOL ADAPTATION

   

     In our first session we have talked about sociological factors affecting the adaptation of our students. Apart from the importance of a good teacher, the influence of peers is an element to take seriously into consideration. If a student is surrounded by hard-working students, she will turn into a good student too; if a student is beeing constantly bullied because of her physical aspect, she will be depressed and her performance will decrease dramatically. Therefore, it will be crucial to create a good class environment.

      Another factor to take into account is the neigbourhood where a child lives. The possibility of access to libraries, museums and other cultural activities will increase the possibility of a better adaptation at school. But this is not all; if you live in a good neigbourhood, a calm place where middle and upper families live, without drug problems, you will certainly have access to a better education. Why is that possible? One example will be enough to understand it: imagine a good teacher in a school full of problems; this teacher will leave the school as soon as possible and she will look for a better place  to work; imagine now that all the teachers do the same thing and you will find  a concentration of good teachers in schools without conflicts. 

      Therefore, a child living in a good neibourghood is more likely to assist a good school, and as a result to receive a better education. It is the so-called "post-coded lottery" in reference to the post codes in which a city is divided to distribute the letters. (here you can find an interesting article about thi stopic)

       If we broaden the scoop to a country, we will easily see that an African country with poor facilities, where teachers are underpaid and where there is no transport to go to school, the likelihood  of "winning the lottery" has completely disappeared.

        The other factor is the type of family the child belongs to. Middle and upper classes are concerned about good education and can afford better studies. In addition, parents are usually better educated which means that they will be able to help their children with their homework and with their difficulties at school, preventing some problems of adaptation.

           What can the school do to lessen these differences?????

and the significance of the family, there are sociological factors which cannot be negliged.

IMPORTANCE OF SELF-ESTEEM AND THE SELF-FULLFILLING PROPHECY

         Another topic we have worked with our sociologist espert on the 16th of January is self-esteem. One of the factors which alters self-esteem is the so-called "self-fullfilling prophecy". Perhaps with an exemple we will understand better this phenomenon.

         Let's imagine a child whose last year marks are excellent; we, as teachers, will think that this child is intelligent and hard-worker and we will expect great things of him; at the same time, the child will perceive that we are expecting a lot of good things of him and in a way he will be boosted to improve himself, and the consequence will be that the prophecy is accomplished. The other side of the coin is that if we think that the child is lazy or unable to learn, he will perceive it and in the end the hypothesis will become true. In conclusion, teachers must believe that all their students are capable of getting good performances and let the students know it.

         In order to prove that to our students, we must try to highlight their achievements and not to insist on their mistakes. In this way, students will feel happier and more satisfied with themselves and at the same time their performances will increase because they will not be afraid of the mistakes.

                                                     

          A good advice is to correct only one mistake at a time, and always insisting on the importance of trying once and again. Moreover, our students  must not be afraid of commiting errors since it's the mistake which will help us  to learn.

          Regarding student diversity, we cannot treat all our students in the same way.They are different, they need different stimuli and support and they will develop differently but the most important thing  is that they will achieve their maximum level with our  help.

DIFFERENT EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS; DIFFERENT PROBLEMS OF ADAPTATION

     

      The 16th of  January, we have been with our expert in sociology and we have talked about a great number of topics, all of them more or less related to the problems of adaptation at school.

    First of all, we have analysed some differences between English and Spanish educational systems. In England there is a strict plan to follow in every session of class, which in a simplified way consists on:

• First of all, teachers have to prepare three different levels to work in the class with the students, for the content to be available and understandable for everybody
• At the beginning of the class, the  teacher spends 5 minutes to introduce the topic to work with.
• Then the teacher sets the goals to achieve during this lesson; in this way students are certain to know what they are expected to learn.
• Afterwards, the teacher hands out the task to accomplish in their three different levels. The students work on it for about 20 or 25 minutes.
• Finally, there is a plenary activity to solve doubts and to sum up the learned contents for about  15 minutes.
• Specialised teachers enter the class to help students with SEN (special education needs) and foreign students whose level of English is still too poor to follow autonomously the lesson.

        The teachers are constantly required to follow this scheme and inspections of their work are frequent. Furthermore, teachers risk having their salary reduced if goodperformances are not achieved. For this, a league table has been created and every teacher is assessed according his students' performances. This generates a strong discontentment among the teaching staff  which in the end it is no good for the students.

        On the other hand, Spanish educational system is more flexible and allows teachers to follow the method they consider the most suitable. For instance, a typical secquence of steps are:

• The teacher starts with the homework of the previous day; if the students had any difficulties in doing them and if necessary  to correct them to solve any doubts.
• Then, the teacher explains new contents
• Afterwards, she asks some questions to check the comprehension ofthe new topic.
• Finally the students are required to do the homework for the next session in order to practice the contents studied in class.
• Specialised teachers usually fetch students with SEN and work with them for some hours outside the class.

     Some teachers follow a published textbook; others have produced their own material. 

     Diagnosted disabled students are usually given different work to do in class since they are not able to undersand the contents explained in class. 

    Some teachers work with small groups but most of them follow a traditional frontal method or in other words a teacher centred-instruction.

    Inspections of  the teacher's work seldom happen, and obviously there is no salary reduction if  the students don't reach the espected level.

      As we can see both methods have pros and cons. 

• To prepare a task with three levels of difficulty is a good idea; this will decrease the anxiety of some students and the instruction will be more adapted to them  and therefore they will learn more, they will be less disappointed and there will be less disruptive behaviour. However, this means time and therefore, it should not be compulsory but only highly recomended.
• Some research studies have shown that teacher centred-instruction is not as good as other methods where students adopt an active role in class. However more exhaustive scientific research needs to be done.
• If a educational system is too controlled, there is no option to creativity and this results in monotony. Creativity methods should be promoted and more freedom is needed in class in order to offer changes and different activities and to avoid  students' tediousness, 
• Frequent inspections are good as long as the goal is to improve the teacher's skills. In Spain, inspectors are usually more concerned about paperwork than about what really happens in class.
• League tables are an unfair idea. First of all, we have to take into account that not all schools and classes are similar; ther are sociological factors that the teacher can't control and which are the reason of different levels of performance, independently of the teacher's skills.

       In conclusion, we need to find better methods of teaching, more adapted to the diversity of students and more flexible to promote creativity and supervision is a good tool only if it aims to counsel and improve teacher's skills. 

VOCABULARY OF EMOTIONS

You can  click here and here to learn some words and expression about emotions.

And about depression

• to be under the weather
• to be down in the dumps
• Depressed
• To be really down
• to be low-spirited
• Discouraged = daunted = dishearted 
• To be out of sorts
• And  if  you  try  to  encourage someones
• just grin and bear it
• It is not the end of the world

DEPRESSION OR THE MEANING OF LIFE

        

       Lately, I have been thinking about depression and adolescence and my main concern is if, as a teacher, I am not taking this issue seriously enough. Therefore I will try to do my job.

        First of all I will differentiate between two main types of depression and from there to develop my position.

       There is a primary depression in which there is no objective reason to be depressed; this means that there is a physiological reason for that. Sometimes, depression is a secondary symptom of other diseases such as Parkinson, but in most cases there is nothing else and it is explained as a malfonction of some neurotransmitters such as dopamine or serotonine. In these cases, the best solution is usually a drug therapy. Nowdays, science has taken great steps forward and new drugs have been produced to relieve the suffering that depression brings about.

       There is, however another kind of depression, usually triggered by a great tragedy such as the death of a beloved person, a traumatic experience or other more ordinary troubles in everyday life.

The educational system cannot provide too much help in case of mourning or other problems whose origin lays outside the school, but if a student is depressed because of reasons directly related to the school, we, as teachers, are reponsible for their well-being.

       In the first place, some students feel oppressed by their studies, by the homework, by difficult contents such as mathematics or English. Regarding responsible students, if there are quite a few in the ESO who suffered from anxiety, the impact is greater in the bachillerato. The need of good marks to study what they want at university generates a great amount of stress. If  students are not  able to deal with  this stress  in asuitable way this can end in depression.

       How can we prevent that? In my humble opinion, some students should be well orientated about  their real possibilities and the costs of their efforts to get what they want. I am now thinking about  the great number of students which main wich is to become doctors, how they study hours and  hours,  they memorise the contents to be more  precise in their exams, but obviously not all of them will get what they crave for. This will bring about frustration, a significant sense of failure and in the end a  great sadness wich can lead to depression. I know Spanish Educational system and I know  that nobody discourages the students in their dreams, just the contrary, counselors  and  teachers insist on the importance of  studying more, and encourage themn to do their best, but asthe expressión"it was good while it lasted", when  it lasts,  the student feels a deep feeling of failure and it paves the way to depression. 

      Therefore, it is important to teach our students to be realistic, to assume their week areas and to  find healthful solutions; for instance, in the case of these students who need good marks to undertake medecin studies, it would be advisable to work with he students in order to find other compelling options, such as nursery, physiotherapy, to help others but not in the health sector, etc.  and above all,  to feel that life doesn't end after a failure, that it is only another step towards adulthood.

      In the second place, there are another group of students who don't get a successful adaption in secondary school because of their timidity, introversion or their odd personality. They are often worried because they do not want to be asked in class, or they feel bad because they have no friends to go with during break-time. They are usually victims of bulling and in a few cases, this ends up in a depression. That's what it is very important to work in the tutoring lesson with the rest of the class, to accept people who are different. Sometimes students don't understand why a classmate responds in a  positive way to a joke and another blows up in rage. Sometimes the help of the psychlogical conselor can be a precious ressource at school.

      In the third place, there are students who do not want to study; they find school difficult or boring and far from their own interests. The frustration that implies going to school everyday, sitting on a chair all morning, without learning anything at all, can lead to bad behaviour and in the end a feeling of rage against  the scholar system. This kind of behaviours can lead to an early school leaving and  in other cases to take illegal drugs and to start disrpting behaviours, all of them a reflect  of inadaptation.

      

     The question is how to help all this variety of students and their problems of adaptation in a system full of contradictions. For instance, it is said that students must be equal and following this principle, to take the same exams, to do the same tasks and to be treated equally. However it is also said that education must be personalised, adapted to each of the students, and to give each one what they need. An example can be useful here: an hyperactive student who is restless all the time, who speaks loudly and usually shows an agressive behaviour should be treated  in a more tolerant way than others whose necessity of moving is not so urgent. 

     

     Another example: it is expected that everybody must learn the same things and in the same time and conditions. Nevertheless, there are students who are better at writting, others are better at speaking, others are better at expressing with drawings or pictures; for some mathematics are an inexpugnable mystery, for others English is an incomprehensible jargon; some are slow and  methodical, others are quick and inaccurated. Society needs all of them, that is why  it is urgent to find a  satisfactory solution  for the students to be integrated in the system with all their "shapes and sizes".

     One last thing we have to take into account is the low level of frutration that the students appear to have nowadays. This means that when we do not get what we want immediately, we get frustrated, we protest, we insist, we hit others and in the end we go depressed because we think we can not get  our goals. An important number of students do not understand that to learn something they need to make efforts and this means to insist, to accept the mistakes, to try again and again, not to expect a reward immediately after a task. It's thanks to the effort that Rafa Nadal has reached the top of the tennis ranking. Our students do not need to become Rafa Nadal to be happy but they need to learn a culture of effort, to control their desires and to delay the reward because a later one will be a bigger and more important achievement. Life is a strive against the elements, aginst ourselves, sometimes  against others and we should be prepared to cope with difficulties, frustration and failure in orther to become healthy people ennabled to be happy and to help others to build a  better society.

S. Gilabert

Depression in children and teenagers

Depression doesn't just affect adults. Children and teenagers can get depressed too. Some studies show that almost one in four young people will experience depression before they are 19 years old.It's important to get help early if you think your child may be depressed. The longer it goes on, the more likely it is to disrupt your child's life and turn into a long-term problem

Symptoms of depression in children often include:

• sadness, or a low mood that doesn't go away
• being irritable or grumpy all the time
• not being interested in things they used to enjoy
• feeling tired and exhausted a lot of the time

Your child may also:

• have trouble sleeping or sleep more than usual
• not be able to concentrate
• interact less with friends and family
• be indecisive
• not have much confidence
• eat less than usual or overeat
• have big changes in weight
• seem unable to relax or be more lethargic than usual
• talk about feeling guilty or worthless
• feel empty or unable to feel emotions (numb)
• have thoughts about suicide or self-harming
• actually self-harm, for example, cutting their skin or taking on overdose

Some children have problems with anxiety as well as depression. Some also have physical symptoms, such as headaches and stomach aches. Problems at school can be a sign of depression in children and teenagers and so can problem behaviour, especially in boys.
Older children who are depressed may misuse drugs or alcohol.

Our mission as teachers is to detect the first symptoms, to help children to talk about their problems, to support them and if we can, to change a sad face into a smiling one.

  

Depression from a teen aged girl's perspective

 Let's watch this video about a teens' depression

The conclusion is that it is not always easy to recognise depression. 

What Are Symptoms of Eating Disorders in Teens?

Symptoms of eating disorders may include the following:

• A distorted body image
• Skipping most meals
• Unusual eating habits (such as eating thousands of calories at one meal or skipping meals)
• Frequent weighing
• Extreme weight change
• Insomnia
• Constipation
• Skin rash or dry skin
• Dental cavities
• Erosion of tooth enamel
• Loss of hair or nail quality
• Hyperactivity and high interest in exercise

Teens with eating disorders are often in denial that anything is wrong. They may be moody, anxious, depressed. They may withdraw from friends, and become overly sensitive to criticism. The problem arises when parents are not aware of these symptoms because the teen keeps them hidden -- just like the trauma, insecurities, depression, or low self-esteem that may help trigger the disorder.

What Are Eating Disorders?

    Eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder, are psychological disorders that involve extreme disturbances in eating behavior. A teen with anorexia refuses to stay at a normal body weight. Someone with bulimia has repeated episodes of binge eating followed by compulsive behaviors such as vomiting or the use of laxatives to rid the body of food. Binge eating is characterized by uncontrolled overeating.

      Anorexia nervosa affects as many as one in every 100 females. Teens with anorexia fear gaining weight and are at least 15% below their ideal body weights. They believe the main gauge of self-worth is their body image.

     Experts believe many American girls are bulimic and have kept the problem a secret. Bulimia often starts in the late teens and early adulthood. People with bulimia go through cycles of eating enormous amounts of foods followed by purging by vomiting, using laxatives, or diuretics or hours of aerobic exercise.

Look at this circle

Warning signs of bulimia include:

• Extreme preoccupation about being overweight
• Strict dieting followed by high-calorie eating binges
• Overeating when distressed
• Feeling out of control
• Disappearing after a meal
• Depressed moods
• Alcohol or drug abuse
• Frequent use of laxatives or diuretics
• Excessive exercising
• Irregular menstrual cycles
• Because of vomiting and the use of laxatives, there are serious consequences in the body

The most important thing we can do as teachers is to help our students to love themselves, to accept their own bodies and be proud of them because everyone is priceless

SONGS FOR DEPRESSION

 Clic here to find a good link about lots of songs about depression

Rilo Kiley sings an optimistic song for these days when depressions semms  to invade us

Sometimes in the morning

I am petrified and can't move

Awake but cannot open my eyes

And the weight is crushing down on my lungs

I know I can't breathe

And hope someone will save me this time

And your mother's still calling you insane and high

Swearing it's different this time

And you tell her to give in

To the demons that possess her

That God never blessed her insides

Then you hang up the phone

And feel badly for upsetting things

And crawl back into bed to dream of a time

When your heart was open wide

And you loved things just because

Like the sick and the dying

And sometimes when you're on

You're really fucking on

And your friends, they sing along

And they love you

But the lows are so extreme

That the good seems fucking cheap

And it teases you for weeks in its absence

But you'll fight and you'll make it through

You'll fake it if you have to

And you'll show up for work with a smile

And you'll be better and you'll be smarter

And more grown up and a better daughter

Or son, and a real good friend

And you'll be awake, you'll be alert

You'll be positive, though it hurts

And you'll laugh and embrace all your friends

You'll be a real good listener

You'll be honest, you'll be brave

You'll be handsome and you'll be beautiful

You'll be happy

Your ship may be coming in

You're weak but not giving in

To the cries and the wails of the valley below

And your ship may be coming in

You're weak but not giving in

And you'll fight it, you'll go out fighting all of them

SOME SONGS ABOUT SUICIDE

One of the worst consequences of depression  is suicide. Let's watch blink.182 and their song Adam's song, 

I never thought I'd die alone

I laughed the loudest who'd have known?

I trace the cord back to the wall

No wonder it was never plugged in at all

I took my time, I hurried up

The choice was mine I didn't think enough

I'm too depressed to go on

You'll be sorry when I'm gone

I never conquered, rarely came

Sixteen just held such better days

Days when I still felt alive

We couldn't wait to get outside

The world was wide, too late to try

The tour was over, we'd survived

I couldn't wait till I got home

To pass the time in my room alone

I never thought I'd die alone

Another six months I'll be unknown

Give all my things to all my friends

You'll never step foot in my room again

You'll close it off, board it up

Remember the time that I spilled the cup

Of apple juice in the hall

Please tell mom this is not her fault

I never conquered, when you came

Sixteen just held such better days

Days when I still felt alive

We couldn't wait to get outside

The world was wide, too late to try

The tour was over, we'd survived

I couldn't wait till I got home

To pass the time in my room alone

And with R.E.M an easy song giving us aneasy piece of advice to prevent suicide

When the day is long and the night, the night is yours alone, 

when you're sure you've had enough of this life, well hang on. 

Don't let yourself go, everybody cries and everybody hurts sometimes. 

Sometimes everything is wrong. Now it's time to sing along. 

When your day is night alone, (hold on, hold on) 

if you feel like letting go, (hold on) 

when you think you've had too much of this life, well hang on. 

Everybody hurts. Take comfort in your friends. 

Everybody hurts. Don't throw your hand. Oh, no. Don't throw your hand. 

If you feel like you're alone, no, no, no, you are not alone 

If you're on your own in this life, the days and nights are long, 

when you think you've had too much of this life to hang on. 

Well, everybody hurts sometimes, 

everybody cries. And everybody hurts sometimes. 

And everybody hurts sometimes. So, hold on, hold on. 

Hold on, hold on. Hold on, hold on. Hold on, hold on. 

(Everybody hurts. You are not alone.)

SOME JOKES ABOUT DEPRESSION

If you believe that it's better to laugh than to cry, you can read some of these jokes about depression and stress

1- When life is going wrong, 

when stress engulfs you, 

when tears flow down your eyes, 

just give me a call: 

because I sell tissue papers!

2- Q: What’s an advantage to stress?

A: You never have to make your bed, since you’re always in it.

3- When you feel stressed out, 

when everyone seem to be leaving you,

when the world seems to be fading away into the mist,

please let me know:

 I will take you to the eye specialist for a checkup!

Symptoms of Depression

Some ideas we can extract from the video are:

• Depression is more frequent that most of us could think.
• Sadness is one typical symptom of depression but sometimes, the signs are more related to tiredness or to a lack of interest.
• If we want to detect depression in our students, we should take notice of these symptoms and signs: 
• If they have lost joy in different activities they enjoyed before.
• If they feel more sad than before.

This is a video about a girl who has suffered from depression.

     She says that thousands of teenagers are suffering form this disease. She differentiates sadness, which comes and goes, from depression which remains and can lead to suicide.

     Some teenagers hurt themselves as a consequence.

     She insists on promoting bridge programs in schools which put mental health before academic performance, with psychological specialists.

     She claims that 10 or 15 %  of the population is suffering from this disease and  we should demand more help for the schools to take care of this problem.

Some information about depression

In this link we can find some easy information about depression in teenagers and some causes and symtoms.