The Disengaged Teen: Helping Kids Learn Better, Feel Better, and Live Better by Jenny Anderson and Rebecca Winthrop provides a framework to consider why students approach school as they do. Mainly targeted toward parents, this newly published book (January 2025) can be helpful for educators and providers to help teens navigate their education and next steps. The writers walk through four types of engagement and what they could mean about how a student, or anyone, is approaching a particular aspect of their lives.

The passenger is quietly quitting, the achiever faces the perils of perfection, the resister is driving in reverse, and the explorer is productive and happy. How can we help students stuck in a nonproductive and unhappy mode while assisting them to develop skills and expectations for what makes sense for them and others around them? The writers have been there and have insights to share.

The Disengaged Teen

Tags

Zone of proximal development

Engagement

Disengagment

Adolescence

Parenting

High School

“Stop Panicking Over Teens and Social Media,” an essay from the Wall Street Journal by Lucy Foulkes provides a different point of view that Jo-Ann and Candida discuss. Foulkes points out that some of the generalizations about social media use and teen mental health may not be backed up by the data. While we have some differences, we agree that parents need tools and guidance to help their teens learn to safely navigate the digital world that is different than what they grew up with.

Stop Panicking Over Teens and Social Media

Candida and Jo-Ann talk about a recent guest essay in the New York Times,

Giving Kids Some Autonomy Has Surprising Results (Jan 2, 2025) by Jenny Anderson and Rebecca Winthrop, authors of “The Disengaged Teen: Helping Kids Learn Better, Feel Better, and Live Better.” Students are more likely to be engaged in their education with some autonomy, particularly in choosing how to approach their learning. With flexible thinking from students, teachers, and parents there can be some leeway with demonstrating mastery and prioritizing school work, extra-curricular activities, and sleep. We also noted how students feel pressure to build the “best” resume for college applications so that they can go to the “best” college and then repeat the process to gain entry to the “best” graduate education or “best” employment opportunities while not attending to personal priorities. While acknowledging that there are things at every level students need to learn that they may not be interested in, this pathway can leave students bored, tired, and not truly engaged in what they want to know to meet external standards.

Erin Tate, a licensed clinical social worker from Montana joins Jo-Ann and Candida for a compelling conversation. Erin shares insights from her private practice, Dragonfly Counseling, which is dedicated to serving communities in need, regardless of their ability to pay. The discussion highlights the increasing levels of anxiety among adolescents, exacerbated by the pandemic and its impact on social development. They explore how anxiety often manifests in School environments, sometimes being mistaken for behavioral issues or lack of motivation.

The conversation also touches on the complexities of gender identity exploration in youth, particularly in rural areas like Montana, where resources and support may be limited. Erin emphasizes the importance of community and connection, both in navigating personal identity and coping with broader societal challenges.

Dragonfly Counseling

The Trevor Project

Human Rights Campaign

National Suicide Hotline

NAMI

988 Text Line

Show notes and links drafted by https://headliner.app and edited by a human.

Ellen Hallsworth, Director of Bradley REACH, joins Jo-Ann and Candida to discuss innovative approaches in Mental Health care for adolescents. Ellen shares insights into Bradley REACH's virtual partial hospitalization program, which has been remarkably successful in engaging adolescents in remote mental health treatment. Ellen delves into the unexpected success of virtual care during the pandemic and how it has evolved, including increased family involvement and the ability for clinicians to gain valuable insights by observing patients in their home environments.

The conversation explores the challenges and benefits of integrating Mental Health treatment with traditional schooling and the importance of collaboration between clinicians and schools to ensure students receive the support they need to transition back to school successfully.

Show notes drafted by https://headliner.app and were edited by a human.

REFERENCES

Bradley Hospital

Bradley REACH

Hasbro Children's Hospital

Harvard University

Northwestern University

Stanford University

Translational Issues in Psychological Science

Cartwheel Care

Hazel Health

Florida Virtual School

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💬 Show Notes

Dr. Willough Jenkins, child psychiatrist joins Jo-Ann Berry and Dr. Candida Fink to discuss the multifaceted challenges of Mental Health in School settings. Recorded live from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry conference in Seattle, this episode of Mental Health Goes to School dives deep into the intersection of digital technology and student well-being as well as cyberbullying and digital citizenship. The episode highlights the necessity of collaboration between schools and families to create safe digital environments.

Show notes created by https://headliner.app and edited by a human

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✍️ Episode References

Dr. Willough Jenkins

Website: https://www.willoughjenkins.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drwilloughjenkins/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drwilloughjenkins?lang=en

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT4qze4Q6YYZfffAxodRULw

American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

[AACAP]

University of California, San Diego

[UCSD]

World Health Organization

[WHO]

Wait Until 8th Movement

[Wait Until 8th]

Bark Phone

[Bark Technologies]

American Academy of Pediatrics Family Media Plan

[AAP Family Media Plan]

Inspired by the film Inside Out 2 Jo-Ann and Candida discuss how anxiety manifests in adolescents and how it can be managed. They explore how anxiety, a natural part of adolescence, can become overwhelming, especially when linked to academic pressures like writing assignments. The hosts emphasize the importance of recognizing anxiety triggers and employing strategies such as movement breaks, sensory changes, and cognitive behavioral therapy techniques to manage these feelings.

Jo-Ann and Candida also highlight the value of context in managing anxiety, encouraging students to assess the real stakes of their worries and not let anxiety take over their joy. They discuss practical strategies such as creating an emotional first aid kit and recognizing early signs of anxiety to intervene effectively.

Join the conversation on our social media platforms: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. We look forward to hearing from you!

Show notes drafted by https://headliner.app and edited by a human.

REFERENCES

Episode References

Inside Out 2

[Inside Out 2 on Disney+](https://www.disneyplus.com/movies/inside-out-2)

New York Times article on turning around a bad day

[New York Times](https://www.nytimes.com)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)

Mental Health Goes to School

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Steve Locke is a New York-based artist and professor of art whom Candida and Jo-Ann have known since college. His work focuses on identity and asks the viewer to contemplate our shared history from another perspective. Our wide-ranging conversation covers the transition to college, how the pandemic has affected teaching and learning, art, life, and so much more. Steve is the recipient of many grants and awards. His show the fire next time is at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MassMOCA) through November 2025.

Mass MOCA

https://www.stevelocke.com/

https://www.instagram.com/svlocke/

https://linktr.ee/stevelocke