In so many ways, Maine is just one big town.
If you are boarding the bus in Boston, the odds are actually pretty good that you will know a few of your fellow passengers - and if you run into someone from Maine while traveling the globe, there's a bond.
Midcoast resident Heather D. Martin wants to know what's on your mind; email her at [email protected].
I think this sense of "all in it together," coupled with this being "the way life should be," is part of why the recent incidents of hazing and bullying at some of our high schools has been so shocking and disturbing.
The most recent school to grapple with hazing is Mt. Ararat in Topsham. The investigation is still underway there, and obviously we need to let all the facts come in, but it sounds like there is reason to investigate and find those facts.
Back in October, Lisbon High was under investigation and the report there found "a culture of hazing" among the football team, and in 2021, it was Brunswick's football team under the same investigation.
Why? What's behind all this? I don't know and while I would not be shocked if someone made a link to the lockdown we all endured, that particular question is above my pay grade.
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What I do know is that there has been an awful lot of research done on how to combat it - and it is good news for us because here in Maine we are perfectly poised to make the most of two of the top strategies: literacy and nature.
Yes, that's right, books and woods. I know! Two of my all-time favorite things. It's like learning that cake is a health food.
Numerous studies have shown a clear link between reading and a decrease in violence. Increased literacy brings independence, opportunities for better paying jobs, but then there are the benefits of reading for reading's sake.
Research indicates an interest in the world and increased empathy when you read about people different from you, a sense of community when you read about people who experience what you are going through, and a sense of empowerment when a person is able to gather accurate information in order to solve a problem.
As for nature, well, I'm sorry to keep getting all "lab coat" on this conversation, but while my opinion is solidly in line with this, science and research actually matter when it comes to policy, and again studies show that exposure to nature and nature-based education benefits mental health, decreases both ADHD symptoms and drug use, increases cooperation, and decreases bullying - all while also increasing critical thinking skills and test scores.
This is not news to the rest of the world. The hot new trend of "forest bathing" for mental and physical health is a centuries-old practice in Japan. Countries like Finland (renowned for its public education and its happy kids) have long promoted "forest schools" where kids spend large amounts of time outside exploring and learning.
This is not news to us in Maine, either, and is the foundation for the Maine Outdoor Learning Initiative, a truly innovative program thanks to Gov. Janet Mills and the Maine Department of Education. This is a hands-on interactive program for students in junior high and high school across the state, and a fantastic platform to build upon for greater nature-based learning for all students.
There are lots of things we in Maine don't have (like restaurants open after 10 p.m., for example) but we do have a decent system of both school and public libraries - and we sure do have nature. Let's make the most of this, use our resources and get our kids outside the school walls and back into the woods.
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filed under: American Journal Opinion, Forecaster opinion, Lakes Region Weekly opinion, Leader Opinion, Mainewhile, sentry opinion
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