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Post by Admin on May 2, 2016 16:58:44 GMT -4
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Post by Tanu Thakur on May 4, 2016 10:43:46 GMT -4
The author has given an extremely detailed article regarding the suicide rates in a Gunn school, mostly happening in clusters. One of the reason the author attributed this to was being highly pressured by parents to overachieve. This is understandable because children would want to please their parents and it is the only way they know their parents get happy. This problem can be solved at homes where good parenting must be practiced. Parents should be more encouraging, loving, forgiving and open to the opinions of their children. Also, it should be taught early to children how to cope with stress and that killing oneself is not the way out, which can be done by the school counselors and even at home.
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Post by krissylove on May 4, 2016 12:18:22 GMT -4
Suicide is never easy to discuss and we as a society tend to think that it always happens to someone else never anyone we know, until it happens to a son, daughter or friend, suicide is not far away the author tries to express, suicide has no usual suspects, it can happen to anyone. Pressure, high expectations and living up to certain societal standards are contributing factors to suicide especially among teenagers. It can leave a devastating effect on friends and family alike. If we are to combat it, we have to encourage children at a young age to be accepting,loving and encouraging to their peers and any signs of depression or unusual changes should be taken seriously to prevent and decrease the rate of suicides.
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Post by Kelsey G. on May 4, 2016 15:56:26 GMT -4
I enjoyed reading this article because I feel like I have seen this in the community that I grew up in. The high school I attended was between two very well-off high schools that often struggled with rampant drugs and suicides. I often saw many affluent students getting away with anything they wanted, but there were deeper issues that were rarely brought up or presented to their parents. I feel that a lot of people are afraid of being labeled with a psychiatric diagnosis. In a close-knit, affluent community, many think it will bring their family down. This is unfortunate because those that don't seek help may not make it through to the next day, just like many of the students in the Palo Alto area that did not speak up about the increased pressure on them to succeed. I feel that psychiatric issues are now being better handled across the nation due to social media and I hope that this helps people to reach out and get the help they need.
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Post by Rita J on May 4, 2016 16:12:29 GMT -4
Suicide is a tough topic that is often not discussed and no one truly understand the real reason. The article revolves around clusters of suicide in Gunn high school. Luthar research is very interesting showing that people who are high stressed academically have higher rates of suicide and students from lower economic status are more involved in violence and carry weapons for safety. The main interest of the article was talking about the high academic pressure that is imposed on students at a young age causing suicide. I agree with the article that parents are often too fast to wanting children to become doctors or next Steve Job but often forgetting that they are just children. Children are engrossed in multiple school activities and pressure to get into Ivy league school that they feel depressed and hopeless. Luthar pointed out that children who are from highly influenced family are often neglected and left alone at home and these children suffer because they lack the attention. I agree, that the children that are neglected often feel as if they are unneeded and the parents are only impressed by the grades. The Chiu story touched my heart because it showed the impact how much talking to your parents can change your life. She would have died if she did not tell her parents she had swallowed a bottle of aspirin. After the suicide attempt she stood up and talking to her parents about the stress level. She was still able to get into Harvard doing what she loved and taking time to learn and grow instead of being pressured into activities. I am glad the suicide rate has died down since the 1990 due to anti depressant and therapy. But I think the biggest regret a parent has is if their child died and they wish they took 2 minute to read the signs of stress. I think all parents should value education but value health and childhood equally. It is important to remember that suicide is not just a statistics it can happen to anyone.
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Post by Diana W. on May 4, 2016 22:44:33 GMT -4
This article not only identifies a very serious issue in today's society - childhood suicide - but also sheds light on the actions of the nation's youth. As Suniya Luthar discovered, there is a bi-modal distribution of delinquent behavior among the poor and wealthy. What is most interesting is that rule-breaking takes different forms between the two groups. Whereas poor children are more physically aggressive, wealthy children are more likely to lie, cheat, and steal. The common denominator, however, seems to be related to parenting and expectations. Equally as interesting is the fact that childhood suicides occur in "suicide clusters." I believe that these clusters can more than likely be attributed to social media and the media in general. On these outlets, children that are already restless and starved for positive attention view suicides as being romanticized. Suicide becomes synonymous with classmate filled vigils, "wreath and teddy bear memorials," and "flower petals down the hallways." With pictures and videos of these events being spread on social media like wildfire, it makes other children feel that suicide is a viable option and will result in them being celebrated, remembered, and influential. Furthermore, with the advent of social media, cyber bullying has become a very real problem. As this article presents, suicide is related to the unrealistic and high attaining goals placed on affluent children in Palo Alto. However, I would bet that cyper-bullying is just as much to blame as unattainable parental expectations. Overall, there needs to be better and more open communication among children and their parents. Children should never have to view suicide as the only way to avert their parent's overzealous expectations.
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Post by Mario F Vigil on May 5, 2016 1:06:27 GMT -4
Luthar research exposed interesting findings. I think that the reasons behind a teen's suicide or attempted suicide can be complex. Usually teenagers experience strong feelings of stress, confusion, self-doubt, pressure to succeed, financial uncertainty, and other fears while growing up. If one or more of these signs occurs, parents need to talk to their child about their concerns and seek professional help from a physician or a qualified mental health professional. With support from family and appropriate treatment, children and teenagers who are suicidal can heal and return to live a normal life.
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Post by arjunkundra on May 5, 2016 1:47:12 GMT -4
Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States and one that deserves more attention. After reading this article, one can clearly understand the social, societal and academic pressures that today's youth face in a competitive job and school market. Each year we find that the job market gets more competitive and minimum requirements for these jobs increase dramatically. 20 years ago, a Bachelor's degree would be sufficient for a well regarded job in society and a High School diploma may even afford a decent living wage. In today's job market, we find that minimum degree requirements and certifications are rising almost annually to keep up with the competition of the market. Today's stressors of academia and the Job market coupled with the fragility and uncertainty of one's teenage years can be a devastating mix as clearly depicted here within this article. Without the proper family support, psychiatric support and guidance, it can be very easy for one to succumb to all the pressures whilst not fully being mentally matured and experienced enough to deal with all that life has thrown their way. I believe that this article begs us to ask ourselves how we can better detect mental health concerns and break the stigma around mental illness during these fragile years, especially in those individuals and societies where the stigma of needing psychiatric support is still very obvious.
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Post by Bradford Levison on May 5, 2016 8:30:33 GMT -4
After reading the article, I took notice of the strong efforts by the school administration to head off any immediate incidences following the Cameron’s death. The ramifications of a student’s suicide seem even more potent given the environment. He had plenty of exposure and interaction with the students around him, and his loss will impact each person differently. In order to avoid what the author referred to as a ‘suicide cluster’, special actions had to be taken by the school to ensure that no such events would take place because of his death. That the school had experts and outside counselors on site following the suicide speaks to the school’s resolve to not let these suicide clusters take place.
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Post by Amina C. on May 5, 2016 10:31:07 GMT -4
"Were they social outcasts, victims of clear mental illness or have they just been struggling" are only a few questions that one asks after hearing the drastic news of a child having killed him or herself. This topic in recent years has become a very big issue due to access to computers and phones and all the social media that is out there. Children are not only pressured to do well in school by parents, but also have to worry about "fitting in" around their peers. Bullying has been going on for years, but now with social media it has picked up its pace. This article sheds light on this sad but truly existing matter of childhood suicides and all these topics. It also discuss what the school administration should do to try to prevent this type of incident from happening again. It gives great detail of how the school handled the situation afterwards; allowing Gunn's teacher to take days off if they felt traumatized and counselors being available to the students and the staff to help them grief. It also mentions how every parent should be aware of the fact that this could happen to any one, "no one is safe, my kid could be next." Therefore, steps should be taken to try to prevent this from happening by teaching the children from a young age to love themselves no matter what anyone says and reducing the pressure of doing well in school by parents. Health and safety should always come before comparison and competition. Small steps must be taken now and hopefully slowly this issue will reduce to a number close to non-existing.
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Post by Irshad Prasla on May 5, 2016 10:33:10 GMT -4
I enjoyed this article and the subject matter. I found it especially interesting when it was discussing the family environment, and adolescent behaviors as it applies to socioeconomic status. I have to admit, I felt what the writer describes as a bewilderment about the idea that teenagers in affluent families can have stresses significant enough that they contemplate suicide as a solution. However, being from an Asian household and pursing a career in a very demanding and competitive field I can relate to the idea of acceptance from family and community going hand in hand with academic success. Lastly, I found the idea that surviving failure can be cathartic to be especially appealing since medical school remains a profession in which a stumble on the path to residency can seem as catastrophic as a miscalculation in trajectory when navigating in space. One bad test grade can derail a student from a dream of becoming a physician. I hope this article gets more exposure and more and more people are aware of the pressures of adolescence and the reality of teenage suicides.
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Melissa (Buhl) Burman
Guest
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Post by Melissa (Buhl) Burman on May 5, 2016 12:21:05 GMT -4
The thing that I found most interesting about this article was that the kids in the higher affluent communities were asked to make a list of the top 5 most important things to their parents and the majority of them listed achievement based values, like getting good grades, getting into a good school and attaining a high salary paying job. Fewer of the values on the list reported by these students were moral based values like being honest, treating other people kindly, living a happy healthy life. What was also interesting was research found by Luthar that correlated with this list. It showed these higher affluent kids to have more problems with lying, cheating and theft as oppose to lower socio economic class kids. It’s made me wonder if these parents who have these value, put such emphasis on earning, achieving and winning take any time to show the importance of simple things in life that make us happy that money and grades can not buy. I always loved the perspective from successful businessman or athletes that have believed that achieving goals in life through something that you love and are passionate about will naturally bring happiness and that through your genuine efforts, wealth and success are a by product of those efforts. It seems like a healthier perspective and a happier journey to attaining such goals.
Levine speaks about how “mass delusions” and kids adoption of the “parental norms” has led to an increase feeling of pressure from school and the need to be high achievers. They believe that their parents’ beliefs in success will ultimately and solely bring them success, but at the cost of what? This is a disturbing point and sad that a child will only feel loved, praised or acknowledged only when they achieve the “important goals” and if they come up short may feel inadequate and like they have failed, all the while accepting this mass delusion as an appropriate way to be loved and treated!
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Post by Amanda Nelli on May 5, 2016 12:54:37 GMT -4
Unfortunately suicide in schools is a rising epidemic across America. The more I talk to friends who have kids in middle school and high school, I am shocked at the frequency of which suicide touches this generation. Unfortunately I can relate to the author of this aritcle. I know a young girl, 8th grader, who has already been hospitalized for suicide attempts multiple times in the past year. As I follow her more, I have realized that multiple friends of hers have also attempted (some successfully) suicide. This is a sad epidemic of the next generation. This leaves me wondering, why is this happening?
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Post by AA on May 5, 2016 14:41:30 GMT -4
This article sheds more light on the overbearing attitude on some parents on their children forcing them (the children) to take on more tasks that they can handle and cope with. Every parent desires a child that can excel academically and also with some other extracurricular activities including sports and other activities but one sure thing is that it all comes with a price especially if such children can not cope with all he/she is involved in. It is a known fact that no matter what other activity a child engages in while in school, he/she has to cope with the regular academic expectations and also with the demands of such activities i.e meetings and practice and which can be overwhelming for a lot of the kids. Also schools can also put a limit to the number of extracurricular activities that can be combined with the student's academic workload. It is time the parents recognize the abilities of their children and not force things on them, help them succeed academically, support and love them no matter the career paths they chose.
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Post by Ruben Cabrera on May 5, 2016 16:46:14 GMT -4
Although, it's difficult to understand what drives people to point of suicide it's important to make an attempt to put yourself in their shoes and see it from their perspective. As in the case of this article, you see that the pressure from their families and to be successful in a competitive field can drive people to the point of no return. Although external pressures may be the cause of the unhappiness, it usually develops over time and it's important to note the signs that someone is unhappy and make an attempt to address their issues to prevent catastrophe within families.
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