In today’s schools, mental health is starting to become a wide-ranging issue, and a good chunk of the reason why this issue is rising is the intense pressure felt in high school.

The constant worries of grades, social status and relationships weigh heavy on students all over the globe.

These pressures translate daily in the classroom in the form of simple tests, projects and quizzes. Unfortunately, the repercussions of not performing up to a certain level are forcing students to become depressed and even teetering on the edge of suicidal thoughts.

As challenging as coursework can be, and as much pressure as students put upon themselves, parents are also part of this pressure-induced issue.

That said, holding grades from parents and eliminating grade books like Infinite Campus would be helpful in alleviating students’ stress levels. Because parents apply massive pressure on kids to achieve academically, the constant ability to see a child’s progress, or lack thereof, is actually a detriment.

Mental health issues like anxiety and/or depression have risen greatly, and so much of this has to do with the constant comparison amongst students regarding classroom and standardized test scores.

Constantly being asked, “What did you get on the test?” rapidly surfaces and makes students feel inferior.

So why not keep grades private? Why not keep grades an issue and discussion point only between students and teachers?

We don’t need campus, and we don’t need phone calls made relaying D’s or F’s to parents.

Students need to advocate for themselves. Student need to deal with their own grades, and personally accept the consequences of bombing a test.

This isn’t for parents, and it’s not for friends. It’s a personal and private matter.

Isn’t it okay if the best a student can achieve in a particular class, or on a particular test, is a ‘C’?

Shouldn’t doing your best while maintaining your honor and mental health be good enough?

According to the American Psychological Association, on a scale topping out at 10, the average teen reports their personal stress level to come in at nearly 6.

These statistics certainly result in a negative self-image for a good number of students.

Pressure constantly builds, and this leads to sleeping issues, eating issues, depression issues, and, on occasion, even worse.

The inability for the teen mind to adequately deal with stress has been connected to suicide.

Due to school-induced stress issues, between 600-800 students in the U.S attempt suicide each year, according to John Harkin, head teacher at Oakgrove Integrated College in the UK.

This isn’t all right. In fact, it’s scary, maddening and needs to be addressed.

As stress grows, so does the issue of mental health.

So let’s take the pressure off and let students breath.

That is how we will succeed.