The Mind Inside

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Full film available now. This is the second episode in The Mind Inside, a docuseries exploring mental health in public schools.

2019 // 29:58 // Multiple Locations

Topics:

Mental Health

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Extras:

Left Right

Episode Two
2:50
Trailer: Episode Two
4:54
High Achievers, High Anxiety
1:49
A Day in the Life of a Counselor
1:35
Changes in Teaching
1:43
Devastated
1:27
Pressure to Achieve
5:52
Empowering Students
1:18
Fragile

The Mind Inside, a docuseries, explores the landscape of mental health issues in Nebraska's public schools.

Background

Based on interviews with students, teachers, and medical experts, the second episode of this I Love Public Schools Films series uncovers how the ever-changing social media landscape affects what happens in the classroom and the lasting impact on students’ mental health.

With remarkable candor, Episode Two illustrates the nuances of the digital and real worlds of today’s student, where the development of the adolescent brain and vulnerabilities of growing up are compounded by daily, persistent online interactions.

The 30-minute film includes the story of Reid Adler, a victim of cyberbullying and the inspiration behind the metro-area schools #BeKind initiative. The piece weaves together Reid’s story, told by staff members at Ralston High School, and blends student voices that describe the realities of today’s school experience, complicated by social media.

With research indicating a clear relationship between the amount of time spent on social media and an inclination to feel depressed and anxious, the conversation about social media becomes deeply connected with mental health. Throughout the film, real students reveal the ways this impacts their daily lives. From peer pressure to sexting, picture-perfect selfies and online memes, expressing the difficult feelings and behaviors often associated with adolescence conflicts with the happy, image-focused Internet identity amassed in youth culture today.

Informative and heartbreaking, this episode provides a framework for discussion around empowering a balance of appropriate media use and keeping students in a safe, productive, and positive environment online and in the real world.

More shorts and episodes in The Mind Inside series will be released throughout 2020. Watch Episode One and learn more about the series.

Anytime you’re dealing with a population of people, and certainly teenagers, you’re dealing with all sorts of levels of mental health, qualities of mental health. We have an insight into kids’ mental health status and it’s changed a lot, what children share, what they experience, and the challenges as a teacher has changed a lot because of [social media].”

— Beth McGrath, Ralston High School English teacher

Cast

Beth McGrath

English Teacher

Ralston High School

With more than 32 years of teaching experience, English teacher Beth McGrath provides first-hand examples of the dynamic change in classroom behavior over time. Her past experiences include interdisciplinary team teaching, alternative education settings, curriculum and technology committees, and cooperating educators for clinical practice.

Cammie Weland

Social Studies Teacher

Ralston High School

With more than a decade in the classroom, social studies teacher Cammie Weland shares how she's experienced a shift in classroom culture. Due to a myriad of societal influences combined with an influx of cell phones and social media, teaching today has changed and she shares the expectations and reality of what teachers are up against.

Dr. Jeff Bostic, MD, EDD

Professor of Child Psychiatry

Georgetown University

Faculty at Georgetown University Hospital, Dr. Bostic provides a national, medical perspective on the issue of brain development and social media, contextualizing what’s happening in the classroom.

Dr. Mark Adler, EDD

Superintendent

Ralston Public Schools

Since the death of his son in 2016, Dr. Adler has spoken with more than 30,000 people about bullying, appropriate use of technology, suicide, and spreading kindness and hope. In the film, he shares the story of Reid, a victim of cyberbullying and the inspiration behind the metro-area schools #BeKind initiative.

Jason Jackson

Social Studies Teacher

Ralston High School

High school social studies teachers Jason Jackson provides his perspective on the classroom today, the pressure technology has placed on the profession, and how teachers’ hopes and interpersonal investment in students has increased in recent years.

Stacy Athow

Director of School Counseling

Ralston High School

With more than 20 years of experience, Athows, Director of Guidance Counseling, shares the complexities of counseling today and the need to increase mental health resources for students. Additionally, she coordinates the High Ability Learner (HAL) program and serves as the College Access Grant Administrator.

6th Graders

Millard North Middle School

Freshmen-Seniors

Wilber-Clatonia High School

Juniors-Seniors

Omaha Central High School

Resources

Boys Town Social Media Safety

From guides and emails, parenting tips and access to experts, the Boys Town Social Media Safety resources help address cyber safety for kids and provide actionable steps for families.

Common Sense Media Digital Citizenship Toolkit

Educate students about Internet safety, appropriate online behavior, and cyberbullying. The free Common SenseMedia toolkit provides education for educators and parents alike.

Read More

Reid Adler Memorial Kindness Scholarship / The RA13 Legacy

The RA13 Legacy fund has been established within the Ralston Schools Foundation and is used to fund student scholarships and to provide resources to other projects or activities that promote kindness, service, leadership, and outreach.

START

START helps families use tech with intention with the hope kids grow up captivated by life, not screens.

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Cast