Acquired Knowledge Cannot be Paid for with Mental Suffering

From the Unaweza Foundation's "Young Minds" report, conducted on a group of over 180,000 students aged 10-19, it appears that nearly 40 percent of Polish teenagers have experienced suicidal thoughts, and 16 percent have self-harmed. On average, every third student is suspected of depression, sleep problems, and learning difficulties. Every second student has extremely low self-esteem, 59 percent feel useless, and over 37 percent of students struggle with feelings of loneliness. The Unaweza report also shows that Polish teenagers are not coping with the stress of everyday life, often experience hate – both online and in the classroom – and have huge problems with self-acceptance. Despite this, as many as 68.5 percent of students have never used the help of a psychologist at school or elsewhere. On average, every tenth student also feels ignored by their parents.

"The Ministry of National Education has included in its plans the slimming down of the curriculum and the reduction of homework to such an extent that children and young people acquire knowledge, but that this knowledge is not paid for with mental suffering so that it all takes place in an atmosphere of safety, respect, and acquiring new skills at the appropriate stage," Paulina Piechna-Więckiewicz, Deputy Secretary of State in the Ministry of National Education, Minister's Plenipotentiary for Students' Mental Health, explained.

(Newseria)