Ethan’s 2024 Statement
My name is Ethan and I am writing to you today about bullying in schools and the sort of policies that make me feel safe and supported in school. I used to be bullied all the time in elementary school and middle school.
Sometimes, when students talk about school safety and bullying, the solution presented to us is more police. In my old school, we had a very strong school policing policy. We had physical police officers that would scout our hallways because it was open air. They would be at the entrances and the exits, and there would even be some stationed in the hallways, just watching you as you walked by. It was unnerving being surveilled like that. My current school has two officers still, and they’re both stationed downstairs. Ideally, I’d like to see none.
Ethan’s 2023 Statement
My name is Ethan, and this is my third year participating in the Students Speak program. I am a freshman at a vocational school where I study digital & visual communications.
Today, I want to talk about a difficult transition that so many students face every year — going from middle school to high school.
I want to talk about this topic because every day, I see many of my friends and classmates struggling with the new challenges we face as high school students. Of course, no matter what year it is, going from middle to high school is tough — but it is especially tough right now.
Ethan’s 2022 Statement
My name is Ethan and I’m in the 8th grade.
Today I want to talk about some really positive improvements I’ve experienced in school.
When teachers create a positive—emotionally safe classroom—I see that I learn best: this is the optimal learning environment for students. Emotions have an impact on learning. When I’m in an emotionally safe classroom I’m better at processing information and I have more openness to understanding what’s being taught. Communication is an essential piece of this successful environment. Teachers have to communicate with students to be able to achieve an emotionally safe environment.
Ethan’s 2021 Statement
When I think about times I have felt safe or unsafe at school, it is the teachers I remember very vividly. Teachers play a very important role in how we feel as students.
I remember two teachers especially well. One was my science teacher and one was my math teacher. Both were similar in certain ways and yet very different. Both were relatively strict. My science teacher was strict in the sense that he was there to bring order to the chaos of the classroom. However, he also knew how to communicate with his students. He would talk with us one on one to resolve problems rather than yelling at students and making a big deal about it.
This website is dedicated to the valuable lessons we can learn from students’ own experiences about how to create better schools. Decisions about schooling are often made without listening deeply to students themselves. But students are in the best position to understand what they need in order to do well in school.
A collaboration of the Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative (TLPI), Harvard Law School and Massachusetts Advocates for Children (MAC). LEARN MORE