Saskatchewan’s Youth Council recently deciphered the main problems that students are facing throughout the province. The meeting included not only the 12 students that make up the Youth Council, Minister of Education, Gordon Wyant, was also in attendance to discuss the areas of concern.

Julie Patton, a grade 12 student from Luseland school and one of the Youth Council members, said many schools from across the province were experiencing the same issues and concerns that Patton identified in her own school in Luseland.

They broke the issues down into nine categories with mental health and culture topping the list, followed by teacher availability and student safety to round out the top three areas of concerns for students.

Patton explained more about the rising concerns regarding mental health in schools.

“We want to continue to work to remove the stigma around mental health, so that people who need help feel ok to reach out and ask for it. We all suggested that instead of big presentations in the gym, that really – no one wants to go to – instead, have smaller group discussions about mental health and talk more on an individual level.”

Patton stated although she and the rest of the Youth Council feel it’s important for those who need help to get it, she shared the information that is being shared needs to be accurate. Teaching students the difference between a bad day and actually being depressed, Patton said is very important, especially as mental health can sometimes appear to be trending on social media.

“It’s hard because there are people out there that are really going through a hard time, then sometimes, there are people who just seem to diagnose themselves as being depressed or something else when really, that isn’t necessarily the case, that’s why proper education on the topic is so necessary.”

Culture was tied for first on the list concerns, with all of the members of the Youth Council stating how important it is to learn about Saskatchewan’s First Nations and the Indigenous culture.

“I think it’s super important for us to learn about First Nations, they are our friends and our neighbours and their culture is such a big part of our province,” said Patton.

She also stated that there are Indigenous students who want to learn more about their history and culture and right now, those options are fairly limited. Thus, making it a prevalent topic that requires attention when discussing education within the province.

Second on the group’s list of concerns is teacher and staff availability. Patton spoke to this concern before the meeting, stating to West Central Online that there are not enough teachers to provide the time and attention some students need to fully learn the curriculum.

“I know it was a concern in our school and others in our area, but it was eye-opening to see that so many other schools across the province are having the same issue with having enough one-on-one time with teachers and education assistants.”

Thirdly, the Council members discussed the rising concern of school safety, primarily sexual harassment and other forms of bullying.

She shared more education needs to be done on the topics, again by moving away from big-gym-presentations, to smaller groups who may then feel more comfortable asking questions and sharing experiences.

“We talked about how, with sexual harassment, it can start by saying something that’s kind of inappropriate or someone just doing something that makes you feel uncomfortable, it can be a hand on your arm or something more. People need to know that it’s ok, to not be ok with this stuff and to say something about it.”

The other concerns the Youth Council identified include, preparing for the future, resources, student support, drop out rates and school policy.

All of these topics are multi-faceted and involve different levels of severity, however, Patton said she hopes by bringing these concerns forth to the Minister, that the discussions will begin and all parties can start to work towards solutions.

Patton said the group plans to have follow up meetings to stay on top of the issues, however, first up for Saskatchewan’s first-ever Youth Council, is the Saskatchewan School Boards Association’s Fall General Assembly.

The Youth Council was invited to do a presentation on student wellness and mental health and Patton said they are optimistic that they will be able to accept the invitation.