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Three States Will Now Require Mental Health Education For Sixth Graders

Updated September 7, 2021

As the world changes, there becomes a growing need to plan out how to best equip children growing up in it to deal with these changes.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to recognize that need when culture moves so quickly that even we're having a hard time understanding what direction it's going in.

Yet, the longer we let emerging problems lie, the more likely we are to see extreme consequences unfold during the time we spend playing catch up.

And it seems that some state boards of education are recognizing how early certain aspects of life can impact students' mental health. And this is what they're doing about it.

Last month, the Florida State Board of Education voted to require mental health curriculum in public schools.

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As CNN reported, this move makes the Sunshine State the third to enact such a program, as similar requirements already exist in Virginia and New York.

This announcement comes in the wake of studies detailing how social media and screen time at large can impact the risk of depression in teenagers.

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And so, the board will now require Florida public schools to provide students in grade six and above with at least five hours per year of mental health education.

This program will be funded by a $75 million allocation earmarked by Governor Ron DeSantis as the Mental Health Assistance Allocation for Florida schools.

As for what these classes will involve, they will apparently be geared towards preventing mental health issues and dealing with them directly as they occur.

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Specifically, this will include units on recognizing the signs and symptoms of developing mental illnesses, steps and resources students can take advantage of to seek help for both themselves and others, and how to talk to and otherwise help peers facing mental health issues.

However, there is still some information about this program that hasn't been made publicly available.

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As CNN reported, it remains unclear when this requirement will actually take effect and who will be responsible for teaching it.

Still, the state's education commissioner, Richard Cocoran, has stated that this is only the first step the board will take to address the issue.

As he said, "It's no secret that mental illness robs students of the ability to reach their full potential, and we are joining forces to combat this disease and give our students the tools they need to thrive."

h/t: CNN

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