DEFENDING PARENT'S RIGHTS: GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY, NOT IN HUDSON WISCONSIN!

DEFENDING PARENT'S RIGHTS: GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY, NOT IN HUDSON WISCONSIN!
Let’s unpack this…
The group psychotherapy model is not appropriate in the public school setting. 

Psychotherapy (sometimes called "talk therapy") is a term for a variety of treatment techniques that aim to help a person identify and change troubling emotions, thoughts, and behavior. Most psychotherapy takes place with a licensed, trained mental health professional and a patient meeting one-on-one or with other patients in a group setting.

Psychoeducational groups are led by a therapist who takes on the role of a teacher and trainer (Brown, 2018). This contrasts with process-oriented groups, where the therapist takes a background role as a facilitator of the group experience.

Psychoeducational groups are a form of education-based group therapy. Rather than focusing on individual client relationships, psychoeducational groups focus on providing education, training, and support.

Normally thee kinds of groups are led by licensed, trained mental health professionals. The English teachers are not trained sufficiently to facilitate this project. 

2.The books listed are sensitive and controversial, introducing students to subjects and risky behaviors, which in many cases students may not have known about until reading one of these books, participating in the group discussion, or reading the research-based, news-style article produced by fellow 9th graders.

Is the school ready to take legal responsibility for decisions students make as a result of introducing them to these themes, including “violence, depression, racism, sexuality, substance abuse, rape, and language?” 

When teaching minors to engage in risky behavior of any kind, the answer to the question is, “age appropriateness depends on the child, and the context of the instruction.

3.Students are not capable of dealing with adult level decision making at this age. We believe the lack of cognitive and developmental maturity levels of young people have been grossly overlooked by educators and curriculum authors.

Scientific findings regarding mental and emotional maturity are stunning. Conservative estimates indicate maturity at age 25. This is well known, throughout education, psychotherapy, and mental health circles.

Sandra Aamodt, neuroscientist and co-author of the book, Welcome to Your Child's Brain.

“Neuroscientists have found the brain scans show clearly that the brain is not fully finished developing until about age 25. The changes that happen between 18 and 25 are a continuation of the process that starts around puberty, and 18 year olds are about halfway through that process. Their prefrontal cortex is not yet fully developed. That's the part of the brain that helps you to inhibit impulses and to plan and organize your behavior to reach a goal.”

“We see that motor control, meaning the myelination of the motor pathways, occurs around 15 on average. Then the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, responsible for cognitive control and executive function, is pretty much myelinated by 25,” she says. “But then you start talking about emotions—and everyone realizes the impact of emotions on cognitive control. They can change how much control you have. So, when you look at the medial and orbital surfaces of the frontal lobe, which some call the ‘social’ brain, the mean age of myelination of those connections between the limbic system and those frontal areas is about 32. That’s a far cry from 18."