"We didn't have to grow up with that." — Ross Greene, on school shootings
One of the most persistent worries these days is that our kids aren't okay. With most of the blame, of course, now being placed on the ubiquity of social media. But psychologist Ross W. Greene, author of the bestselling Lost at School, has a new book out today called The Kids Who Aren't Okay which doesn't place all the blame on social media. Indeed he argues that if we focus only on the internet, we'll fail to understand the broader psychological struggle that many of our kids face today.
It's not that Greene is in total denial about the destructive nature of social media. But none of his leading reasons for today's crisis in schools are associated with technology. His top three:
• School shootings
• High-stakes testing
• Zero-tolerance policies with a focus on punishment rather than empathy
The new book, Greene impishly promises, has things in it that will offend just about anybody on both the left and right. He calls out teacher unions for failing to support legislation against restraints and seclusions—pinning kids to the ground, dragging them to locked rooms. And he criticizes both parties for bipartisan policies that have made it harder for educators to educate.
The definition of good teaching, Greene insists, is meeting every kid where they're at. Standard testing is exactly the opposite. If you try to treat everybody exactly the same, he warns, you will meet nobody where they're at. We need to get busy teaching kids how to collaborate on solving problems, he says—otherwise they'll turn out like us—only worse.

Five Takeaways
• Social Media Isn't in the Top Three: Greene's top factors: school shootings, high-stakes testing, and zero-tolerance policies. If we focus only on social media, we'll miss the rest of the picture.
• We're Still Pinning Kids to the Ground: Schools still use restraints and seclusions. Legislation has been available since 2011. The two largest teacher unions have yet to support it.
• High-Stakes Testing Is the Opposite of Good Teaching: Good teaching means meeting every kid where they're at. Telling every kid to get over the same bar is exactly not what the doctor ordered.
• Fairness Means Treating Every Kid Differently: If you try to treat everybody exactly the same, you will meet nobody where they're at. Meeting each kid where they are is fair to everyone.
• This Book Will Offend Just About Anybody: Greene calls out both political parties, teacher unions, and policies on both sides. Somebody's got to wade in. Somebody's got to call it.

About the Guest
Ross W. Greene, PhD, is the author of Lost at School and The Explosive Child, founder of Lives in the Balance, and inventor of the Collaborative and Proactive Solutions approach.
References
The Kids Who Aren't Okay: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1982198397
Lives in the Balance: https://www.livesinthebalance.org/

About Keen On America
Nobody asks more awkward questions than the Anglo-American writer and filmmaker Andrew Keen. In Keen On America, Andrew brings his pointed Transatlantic wit to making sense of the United States.
Website: https://keenon.tv/ Substack: https://keenon.substack.com/ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@KeenOnShow

Chapters:
00:00:00 Introduction: The kids who aren't okay
00:01:17 Are most kids struggling?
00:02:51 Top three factors: Not social media
00:04:11 Is this an American problem?
00:05:15 Distrust of authorities—even PhDs
00:06:47 Which kids are struggling most?
00:08:04 Where's the cultural rebellion?
00:09:55 Helicopter parenting
00:11:34 Wading into the culture wars
00:13:00 Restraints and seclusions: We're still pinning kids down
00:15:10 Were schools always this punitive?
00:17:23 Why teachers are underpaid and leaving
00:18:57 Public vs. private schools
00:19:59 Is this about money?
00:21:07 Every kid is different
00:24:06 The problem with 'fairness'
00:26:27 Medication: Not black and white
00:28:34 Social media: Correlational, not causal
00:31:54 What happens to kids who aren't okay?