美国国家公共电台 NPR Parents Are Leery Of Schools Requiring 'Mental Health' Disclosures By Students

 

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Children registering for school in Florida this year were asked to reveal some history about their mental health. The new requirement is part of a law that was pushed through the state legislature after the high school shooting in Parkland, Fla., earlier this year. Julio Ochoa from member station WUSF reports.

JULIO OCHOA, BYLINE¹: It was one sentence in a 105-page school safety bill. Has your child ever been referred for mental health services? The question troubles Palm Beach County parent Laura Goodhue.

LAURA GOODHUE: If you do say, yes, my child has seen a counselor² or therapist or psychologist, what does the school then do with that, I think, was my biggest flag. And I actually shared the story with a couple of friends, mom friends of mine and said, can you believe this is a thing?

OCHOA: Goodhue has a 9-year-old on the autism spectrum³, and her 10-year-old has seen a psychologist. If her children's mental health history is part of their school records, Goodhue worries that it could be held against them.

GOODHUE: You know, if my child was on the playground and, you know, something happened, they might think, oh, well, this child has seen mental health services, this must mean something more than what it really means.

OCHOA: The question was largely overlooked until parents started filling out school registration⁴ forms this summer. Other parts of the law got more attention. One part raises the minimum age to buy a gun, and another allows more school employees to carry firearms. Alisa LaPolt is the Florida director for the National Alliance on Mental Illness. She says parents worry that the information could fall into the wrong hands and may follow children throughout their education.

ALISA LAPOLT: In a perfect world, getting treatment for mental health challenges would be no different than getting medical treatment for a skin rash or a bad cold or a broken leg. But that's not the world we live in right now. There is stigma⁵ around mental illness and getting treatment for it.

OCHOA: School districts say counselors⁶ will use the information to help Florida students get the services they need. Some districts will only share the information with psychologists and administrators⁷. Others say they will provide access to teachers and front office staff as well. School counselors, like Michael Cowley of Pinellas County, say they understand the stigma and how the law was written doesn't help. The mental health question was grouped with requirements to report arrests or expulsions.

MICHAEL COWLEY: I can certainly understand parents having a reaction when they see those questions sort of asked back to back.

OCHOA: But in order to help students, Cowley says school officials must first determine who needs mental health services.

COWLEY: The process we're trying to develop and everything we're trying to do is just with an eye towards reducing stigma, increasing awareness⁸ and getting students and families access to more care.

OCHOA: And the law provides nearly $70 million to increase access to mental health services and schools. National experts say the money is long overdue⁹. Ron Honberg oversees¹⁰ policy for the National Alliance on Mental Illness. He says Florida has historically been among the worst at providing money for mental health care.

RON HONBERG: We know that the symptoms of mental health conditions and serious mental illnesses, in particular, they tend to surface during the teen years and early 20s. And that's a time when we should be putting the most resources into interventions¹¹.

OCHOA: In Broward County, where Parkland is located, the district is using part of the $6 million it received to hire 50 staff members, many of them counselors, psychologists and social workers. Their ability to reach students in need could depend on whether parents feel comfortable checking yes on a registration form. For NPR, I'm Julio Ochoa in Tampa.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 counselor   

n.顾问，法律顾问

参考例句：

• The counselor gave us some disinterested advice.顾问给了我们一些无私的忠告。
• Chinese commercial counselor's office in foreign countries.中国驻国外商务参赞处。

3 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

4 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

5 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。

6 counselors   

n.顾问( counselor的名词复数 )；律师；（使馆等的）参赞；（协助学生解决问题的）指导老师

参考例句：

• Counselors began an inquiry into industrial needs. 顾问们开始调查工业方面的需要。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• We have experienced counselors available day and night. ) 这里有经验的法律顾问全天候值班。） 来自超越目标英语 第4册

7 administrators   

n.管理者( administrator的名词复数 )；有管理（或行政）才能的人；（由遗嘱检验法庭指定的）遗产管理人；奉派暂管主教教区的牧师

参考例句：

• He had administrators under him but took the crucial decisions himself. 他手下有管理人员，但重要的决策仍由他自己来做。 来自辞典例句
• Administrators have their own methods of social intercourse. 办行政的人有他们的社交方式。 来自汉英文学 - 围城

8 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

9 overdue   

adj.过期的，到期未付的；早该有的，迟到的

参考例句：

• The plane is overdue and has been delayed by the bad weather.飞机晚点了，被坏天气耽搁了。
• The landlady is angry because the rent is overdue.女房东生气了，因为房租过期未付。

10 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

11 interventions   

n.介入，干涉，干预( intervention的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Economic analysis of government interventions deserves detailed discussion. 政府对经济的干预应该给予充分的论述。 来自辞典例句
• The judge's frequent interventions made a mockery of justice. 法官的屡屡干预是对正义的践踏。 来自互联网