I am writing to address the issue of mental health problems among schoolgoers in Hong Kong. More attention must be paid to the increasing number of depression and anxiety cases, mostly attributed to the heavy school workload and high peer pressure in a competitive learning atmosphere.
There has been a steady upward trend in youth suicides in the city, with a third of pupils aged 10 to 14 recently identified as a potential suicide risk. Suicide rates for full-time students increased 76 per cent between 2012 and 2016. According to reports from schools to the Education Bureau, there were as many as 73 suicides between 2013 and 2018.
First, it is necessary to provide sufficient guidelines and screening exercises to discover students with major depressive disorder at an early stage. It is no help to simply tell parents that their children may have depression. Under the current system, students have already accepted the achievement-oriented and high-pressure learning atmosphere. Some consider depressive mood swings caused by pressure from studying to be a normal condition most of their classmates also have. Although some studies argue that a certain level of stress is helpful, an excessive amount of stress may result in major depression, which can have serious consequences.
Society should see the necessity of having clear guidelines and screening exercises to identify students in the early stages of depression. If proper exercises are carried out by professionals in schools, students may seek early intervention for potential issues. With legitimate treatment and intervention, students can regain mental balance, leading to a positive school life and enjoyment of the pleasure gained from learning new knowledge with classmates.
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Second, the education system in Hong Kong has to be examined and reviewed. The high-pressure competitive system is driving students and their parents to desperation. Interview classes for secondary school place allocations are becoming ever more popular. Such situations indicate job market-like competition has already infiltrated to students’ lives.
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Hannah MacLeod, part of the English field hockey team that won Olympic gold in 2016, leads Hong Kong students in a hockey clinic in March 2017, where she urged them to take an interest in more than just academics. Photo: K.Y. Cheng
