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ATA committee making a difference in the lives of young people
Gang violence, homelessness, sexual exploitation, poverty. The list of horrible circumstances that some children live with is deeply disturbing. Any of these events can stifle children’s ability to learn, grow and develop healthy relationships, and thus contribute to their lifelong social disenfranchisement. To counterbalance these negative factors, integrated and sustained social, economic, health and educational interventions—such as youth justice programs, mentoring partnerships, mental wellness programs and early interventions for at-risk children—can dramatically increase the academic and social success of children and youth and change the trajectory of their lives.
Because teachers know that students cannot learn to their full potential if their basic needs are unfulfilled, almost 20 years ago the Alberta Teachers’ Association formed the Committee on the Well-Being of Children and Youth (CWBCY) to advocate for children. Through its activities, including an annual conference and sponsorship of the Joint Stakeholders’ Committee on Children and Poverty (JSCCP), CWBCY forges connections between concerned people and agencies, promotes strategies for action, and provides opportunities for education and collaboration among those engaged in this work. CWBCY is also a member of the Joint Stakeholders’ Committee on Children and Youth (JSCCY), an evolving committee of agency and ministry representatives and teachers that meets three times annually to exchange resources, network and talk about child poverty.
Poverty is a fundamental problem the committee explores regularly because it often underlies other social deficits. Campaign 2000, a national network of antipoverty organizations, noted in its 2010 Report Card on Poverty, Reduced Poverty = Better Health for All, that prior to the 2008 recession, one in ten Canadian children lived in poverty; the rate for Aboriginal children was one in four. The report further noted that 2010 saw the highest usage of food banks since 1997. Data also showed that just over half (52.1 per cent) of single mothers with children under six lived in poverty, and that other groups, such as children of immigrants, Aboriginals and those with a disability, were at a much greater risk of poverty. Given this and the fact that the gap between rich and poor in Canada is growing (according to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the top 10 per cent in Canada earn 10 times more than the bottom 10 per cent it is clear that Canada must develop a plan to close economic and social gaps, which will manifest themselves in the classroom, where teachers will continue to see the effects of poverty on children in increasingly diverse populations (www.campaign2000.ca, accessed March 15, 2011).
Despite Alberta’s high standard of living, many children in this province face economic problems in a natural-resource-based economy prone to boom-and-bust cycles. The report In This Together: Ending Poverty in Alberta (November 2011), jointly published by the Edmonton Social Planning Council, Public Interest Alberta and the Alberta College of Social Workers, noted that 47 per cent of children classified as poor live in a household where one or more persons are working full-time (based on 2009 data). Between 2008 and 2011, the number of Albertans using a food bank rose from 33,580 to 58,735—a dramatic increase despite the slowly recovering economy (www.edmontonsocialplanning.ca, accessed December 7, 2011).
CWBCY conferences in 2008 and 2009 had the same theme: “Alberta Youth—Growing Up in the Boom Years.” The conferences raised public awareness of the dire effect of economic instability on the most economically vulnerable people in our society. Recent presentations by the antipoverty group Vibrant Communities about its national strategy for mobilizing local action and the Alberta Council for Global Cooperation on how much Albertans care about poverty led the committee to be optimistic that the issue of child poverty continues to be a major concern.
Research indicates that poverty is sometimes associated with other issues that affect how young people learn. In the past two years, CWBCY has sponsored presentations on international comparisons of antibullying programs and youth and gang involvement in Edmonton; has provided information on Alberta government initiatives, grants and programs to support youth mentorship; and has featured the Safer Communities Innovation Fund and Setting the Direction for Special Education in Alberta. CWBCY committee members also met with the Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta, and a team of the Alberta child and youth advocate and the information and privacy commissioner to investigate early intervention strategies for children with learning disabilities and children’s online safety and privacy. CWBCY continues to explore threats to the well-being of those it serves and to make recommendations to the ATA to support the committee’s advocacy efforts.
Another focus of CWBCY is the mental wellness of youth, which is paramount to the interests of teachers because of the direct influence of mental health on learning. Depression, stress, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia are all examples of mental and behavioural health conditions. In 1998, Health Canada estimated that these types of conditions were the third-highest source of direct health care costs (Health Canada, www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hc-ps/dc-ma/mental-eng.php, accessed January 4, 2012).
Many Canadian adolescents become depressed each year; even more suffer from other mental disorders, mainly anxiety. The Canadian Council on Learning (CCL) notes that, according to the World Health Organization, depression currently ranks fourth out of the 10 leading causes of the global burden of disease, calculated in disability-adjusted life years (the sum of years of potential life lost due to premature mortality and the years of productive life lost due to disability). Alarmingly, by 2030, depression is projected to become the leading contributor of disease burden in high-income countries (CCL, www.ccl-cca.ca/pdfs/LessonsInLearning/04_15_09-E.pdf, accessed January 4, 2012).
It is estimated that, at any given time, approximately 15 per cent of children and youth in Canada experience mental disorders that inhibit their healthy development. A recent review by the CCL revealed that increased depression in students is associated with lower scores on measures of academic achievement. A growing body of research shows that symptoms of depression in youth are related to learning difficulties, dropping out of school, substance abuse, a greater likelihood of suicide and reoccurrence of symptoms of depression in adulthood (CCL, www.ccl-cca.ca/pdfs/LessonsInLearning/04_15_09-E.pdf, accessed January 4, 2012).
For the past two years, CWBCY has held a one-day conference entitled “Can We Talk? Communities and Teachers Supporting Mental Wellness,” that has offered teachers and agency workers opportunities for education and grassroots collaboration. On May 7, 2012, Lethbridge will be the site of this conference. Visit www.canwetalk.ca for more information.
Every day, Alberta teachers face poignant, troubling and tangible reminders that students carry their lives with them to school, just as they carry backpacks. And sometimes those lives and those backpacks lack the basic necessities—lunch, warm clothing, a place to sleep and a sense of social belonging.
Through their ATA committees and communities, teachers will continue working for a future in which all children’s social, emotional and economic needs are met. Together, communities and teachers can make a positive difference in the well-being of children and youth.
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Gaylene Schreiber is an ATA executive staff officer in the Government and Professional Development program areas.
Join the ATA Committee on the Well-Being of Children and Youth
Teachers interested in serving in a term appointment on the CWBCY are invited to apply through the ATA website (www.teachers.ab.ca). The JSCCP is always accepting new members from agencies, organizations and ministries that serve a broad social welfare agenda. For more information, contact Laura Harris, ATA administrative officer, Media Relations. E-mail: laura.harris@ata.ab.ca.
