Mental Health

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the psychological and emotional well-being of staff and students

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Close up of a psychologist with a clipboard and taking notes and a student's knees in the background - stock photo
Data: Does Your State Have Enough School Psychologists and Counselors?
Education Week examined ratios of school psychologists and counselors to students across the country. 
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Mansfield Senior High School teacher Tony Davis talks to his health class about the topic of sleep as freshman Zariyah Gregg, 14, snoozes, Friday, Dec. 6, 2024, in Mansfield, Ohio.
Mansfield Senior High School teacher Tony Davis talks to his health class about the topic of sleep as freshman Zariyah Gregg, 14, snoozes, on Dec. 6, 2024, in Mansfield, Ohio. CDC 2025 Youth Risk Behavior Survey report focuses on five areas — diet, physical activity, sleep, digital behavior, and mental health and suicide risk — while largely leaving out national findings on substance use, sexual behavior, violence and disparities among student groups that were prominent in previous reports.<br/>
Phil Long/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement CDC's Latest Youth Behavior Report Offers a Narrower Look at Teen Health
The new report leaves out national findings on substance use, sexual behavior, violence, and disparities.
Amanda Watford, Stateline, September 30, 2026
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6 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
School Climate & Safety Opinion It's 3 p.m. Do You Know What Teens Are Doing?
A veteran school reformer is focused on how teens are spending their time after the school day ends.
Rick Hess, September 29, 2026
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5 min read
Student sitting criss cross pondering.
Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week + Getty
Student Well-Being & Movement Teen Mental Health Is Improving, CDC Finds. Then Why Are Experts Still Concerned?
Student mental health remains a big challenge for schools to address.
Lauraine Langreo, September 21, 2026
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5 min read
The U.S. flag hangs on One World Trade Center during the 10th Anniversary Commemoration Ceremony attended by President Barack Obama and former President George W. Bush, at Ground Zero in New York, Sunday, Sept., 11, 2011 in New York.
The U.S. flag hangs on One World Trade Center during the a ceremony to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on Sept. 11, 2011, in New York. Now 25 years on, the event has shaped school safety, debates over patriotism, and even federal education policy in ways that continue to reverberate.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
School & District Management How 9/11 Still Shapes Schools
Schools feel the ripple effects of 9/11 in how they handle safety, student trauma, and promoting patriotism.
Evie Blad, September 4, 2026
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11 min read
A crossing guard stops traffic as a parents accompany their children back to school on the first day of New York City Public Schools 2025-2026 scholastic year, in the New York City borough of Queens, NY, September 4, 2025.
A crossing guard stops traffic as a parents accompany their children back to school on the first day of the 2025-26 school year in New York City, in the borough of Queens, N.Y., on Sept. 4, 2025. The New York City district is appointing school avoidance liaisons to tackle the problem of students with social or emotional disabilities refusing to go to school.
Anthony Behar/Sipa via AP
Student Absenteeism How to Get Past the Blame Game when Kids Refuse to Come to School
Tackling school avoidance won’t be a one-person job, experts say.
Olina Banerji, September 3, 2026
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5 min read
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, shakes hands with the organizers of the event at the Hubert Humphrey Building in Washington on Sept. 1, 2026.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, shakes hands with the organizers of an event focused on the harms of student screen time at the Hubert Humphrey Building in Washington on Sept. 1, 2026. The symposium is part of HHS’s Live Real Life campaign, a national effort aimed at helping families, schools, and communities reduce harmful screen use and create more opportunities for children to engage in real-world experiences.
Sarah L. Voisin For Education Week
Ed-Tech Policy RFK Jr. Calls for Children to Have 'Less Screen Time and More Real Life'
Speakers at an event hosted by the Department of Health and Human Services discuss the harms of student screen time, and possible solutions.
Jennifer Vilcarino, September 1, 2026
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4 min read
Attorney's representing multiple states pose for a photograph outside court after after tech giant Meta reached a settlement to end a landmark trial over teen social media addiction in Oakland, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026.
Attorneys representing multiple states pose for a photograph outside a federal court in Oakland, Calif., after after tech giant Meta reached a settlement to end a landmark trial over teen social media addiction on Aug. 26, 2026. The settlement terms and payments could have major effects on students and schools, according to legal and technology experts.
Noah Berger/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement Billions Will Flow to States Through Meta Settlement. Will Schools Benefit?
Schools could share in the payout. Meta's design feature changes could also help, experts say.
Arianna Prothero, August 28, 2026
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7 min read
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Liz Yap/Education Week and Canva
Student Well-Being & Movement Opinion Why ‘Just Ask for Help’ Isn't Enough for Teens—and What Schools Can Do Instead
Mental health messaging is out of step with what students actually need, explains one high schooler.
Aanya Remi, August 21, 2026
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4 min read
A student checks their cellphone after classes end for the day at Oak-Land Middle School in Lake Elmo, Minnesota on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025 . Oak-Land is part of the Stillwater Area Public Schools District , where officials decided in March to adopt a phone-free school day policy starting this school year. All schools in the district, which started their school year this week, are phone- and device-free for all students pre-K to 12 from the first bell of the day until the last. The new policy, which covers phones, earbuds, smartwatches and other personal devices, applies to instructional time, lunch periods, recess, school-sponsored programs, events or activities, or any other time during the designated school day.
A student checks a cellphone after classes end at Oak-Land Middle School in Lake Elmo, Minn., on Aug. 20, 2025. Psychologists see lots of downsides to the overuse of technology among adolescents.
John Autey / Pioneer Press via TNS
Student Well-Being & Movement How Growing Up in a Digital World Affects Kids' Academic and Social Skills
Psychologists weigh the benefits and drawbacks of adolescents' tech use.
Lauraine Langreo, August 19, 2026
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4 min read
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Google had a big presence in late June at the ISTELive 26 + ASCD Annual Conference in Orlando, Fla., which attracted thousands of educators. But a new report says the company's AI search tools have problems that educators should not ignore.
Marvin Joseph/Education Week
Artificial Intelligence Scathing Analysis Concludes Google Search's AI Tools Are Bad for Kids
Google’s "AI overview" and "AI mode" were each rated "Unacceptable" by a media watchdog.
Alyson Klein, July 15, 2026
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5 min read
Morocco's Achraf Hakimi (2) and France's Kylian Mbappe (10) hug after the World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between France and Morocco in Foxborough, Mass., near Boston, on July 9, 2026.
Morocco's Achraf Hakimi, in the red jersey, embraces France's Kylian Mbappe after the World Cup quarterfinal between France and Morocco on July 9, 2026. Mental health experts see creative options for engaging students through the competition.
Steven Senne/AP
Teaching Q&A How the World Cup Can Build Students' Sense of Belonging
A pair of healthcare researchers say simple activities tied to the mega-competition can support mental health.
Jennifer Vilcarino, July 14, 2026
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8 min read
Students embrace Sage, a therapy dog, at Valley View Elementary on April 29, 2026, in Columbia Heights, Minn.
Students embrace a therapy dog at an elementary school in Columbia Heights, Minn., on April 29, 2026. Efforts to help kids improve their social and emotional well-being need to be combined with schools taking a hard look at how they are contributing to high levels of student stress, experts say.
Ellen Schmidt/MinnPost via AP
Student Well-Being & Movement Q&A Is SEL a Band-Aid Patching Over Schools' Systemic Problems?
Why schools need to take a hard look at how their decisions heighten student stress.
Arianna Prothero, June 24, 2026
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3 min read
Wed., June 17, 2026, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. ET
Classroom Technology Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: The Rewiring of Childhood With Jonathan Haidt
Jonathan Haidt, Catherine Price, and Adam Swinyard join Peter DeWitt on how to get students off devices and back to the basics of childhood.
Register
June 17, 2026
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Emily Torres speaks with her creative writing students at Joel E. Ferris High School in Spokane, Wash., on Dec. 4, 2025. Students in the class have experienced significant trauma, mental health challenges, or both.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement Q&A 'The Most Authentic English Class I've Ever Taught'
Emily Torres said the class has been the most meaningful teaching experience of her career.
Alyson Klein, June 15, 2026
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3 min read