In November 2017, 1,016 Hingham High School students (80.8% of the whole student body) completed the Hingham Tiered System of Support (HTSS) survey. The final report was submitted in February 2018 and just recently published publicly.

The survey’s goal was to help administrators better understand the social and emotional challenges faced by students by gaining the perspectives of parents, teachers, and students themselves (although the teachers’ results were not published in the public report). The district then uses all of the results to improve its support services accordingly. The survey can also provide community members with insight to the struggles of local students.

In total, 22.4% of students, or about 228 students, reported having social and emotional problems within the past 6 months. The most significant problems were emotional, with 35.9% of students, or about 365 students, reporting such problems. These results were relatively consistent across all four grade levels.

“[The numbers] sound about right because I know so many people who are struggling,” sophomore Tatiana Garvin acknowledges. “But it’s sad that so many feel this way.”

The high rate of emotional trouble coincides with an alarmingly high rate of self-harm and suicidal thoughts. 15.5% of students reported having self-harmed in the past year. This equates to about 4 students per class. 12.8% of students said that in the past year, they seriously considered attempting suicide. That equates to about 3 students per class. And, of these students suffering from suicidal thoughts, 4.2% of students actually did attempt to take their lives. That equates to about one person per class.

The numbers horrify sophomore Shanah Goddard. “I know people talk about suicide a lot, like when they fail a test or forget their homework,” she explained. “But I didn’t know that many people actually considered it.”

She brings up an important point. Suicide is generally taken lightly in social situations and cynically quipped about by many teenagers, leading to a unique stigma against suicide and self-harm among the youngest generation that is marked by a fear of being the subject of a joke.

Fellow sophomore Olivia Barbuto points out that “people can’t openly say how they feel [because of the stigma], so people keep it in and it causes more negative feelings, which can lead to self-harm and suicide attempts.”

Besides suicide and self-harm, emotional problems also cause students a myriad of issues with functioning academically. The abilities to read, write, do math, pay attention, make friends, maintain relationships with students and teachers, finish work on time, take tests and quizzes, speak up in class, and sit still in class are reportedly all significantly impaired by emotional problems. Based on the survey, students with emotional problems are also more likely to be late for school, miss classes, and even miss whole days of school.

School also causes much of these students’ emotional distress. An average of 44.2% of students indicated that having too much homework each night contributes most to their stress level. Many students also reported preparing for tests (24.4%) and writing papers (16.1%) to be the biggest contributors towards their stress.

Additionally, outside of school, students’ education continues to weigh heavily on their minds. Out of all the factors that contribute to students’ stress levels in general, the largest amount of students (50.5%) reported that the pressure of getting good grades and getting into college is the greatest.

Many students advocate for improvements to the school environment, including sophomore Romee Premasiri. “Something needs to change in school,” she argues. “We are trying to get an education. Our school should see that people’s suffering is connected to school and take some kind of action.”

Aside from school, body image seems to notably contribute to many students’ stress levels as well. 42.4% of students said they are trying to lose weight. Although this can be achieved healthily for good reasons in some situations, other recent studies conducted by the US National Library of Medicine
National Institutes of Health have found that 22% to 46% of non-overweight adolescents are fasting, skipping meals, and using crash diets to lose weight. According to these studies, 5% to 12% of non-overweight adolescent girls try to lose weight through self-induced vomiting.

This is concerning because these behaviors can lead to eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. Not only are eating disorders indicative of multiple other problems such as low self-esteem, but these disorders can cause issues such as decreased cognitive function and are also potentially deadly. Anorexia has a fatality rate of 4% and bulimia is close behind at 3.9%.

Sophomore Riley Potter comments, “The statistic is upsetting but not surprising.”

“Not only because there is a lot of pressure to look good and be skinny in the media, but also because we live in Hingham [where] there is a big emphasis on sports and staying in shape and being skinny,” she elaborates.

Another significant factor in students’ stress levels is the amount of sleep they get. The majority of students reported getting 7 hours of sleep in a typical school night, 3 hours less than the recommended amount for teens. This often ties back into the overwhelming workload students reported in other areas of the survey.

Thankfully, most students have someone to talk to when they are upset or having a hard time. Students reported talking to friends and parents the most, but also other family members, significant others, guidance counselors, teachers, or other adults in the community.

A majority of students feel that they or their peers can talk to an adult when sad, scared, or stressed in order to feel better. 28.4% of students who reported significant social and emotional problems also reported that they have talked to a counselor, doctor, or therapist. 16.1% reported that they are doing so currently.

However, it is curious to note the differences between the students’ and parents’ reports. Although 35.9% of students reported having emotional problems, only about 25% of parents reported that they believe their children have emotional problems. This disparity suggests that the parents of about 100 struggling students are unaware of their children’s problems.

Romee Premasiri expresses her concern about this discrepancy, remarking, “Parents should definitely be more in touch with their kids, because otherwise it feels like it’s students against parents when parents and students should be working together. Parents knowing the emotional state of their kids should more normal. Parents should be checking in on their kids more and be open to helping them with any emotional problems they are having.”

A recurring theme appears to be students feeling saddened by the survey’s findings, but not surprised. Although students have long been aware of the struggles they face, administration seems to just now be catching on. This survey is a major step forward in promoting good mental and emotional health for students in Hingham. Implementation of new mental health services is highly awaited by many students and other community members.