Unfit Systems

America’s Children Are Unwell. Are Schools Part of the Problem? by Jia Lynn Yang
New York Times Magazine, November 24, 2025

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Educators have likely observed the increase in children's stress and anxiety levels over the last few decades, perhaps especially the last few years. What if schools themselves were responsible for this? In a piece for the New York Times Magazine, Jia Lynn Yang traces how the expectations of childhood have changed and how schools and school systems have evolved to meet these expectations. Throughout the latter half of the 20th century, as politicians and school systems placed ever-increasing value on test scores and other quantitative metrics (with public funding often tied to these metrics), incentives for various mental health diagnoses emerged for both schools and families. If a child “doesn’t fit,” as Yang puts it, or experiences friction within a rigid school environment, a diagnosis can seem like a helpful option, giving access to adaptations or accommodations which can help children meet challenging expectations. Yang does not propose a solution to these problems, though she mentions some parental responses like microschools and the “unschooling” movement. Institutions and educators who believe in the transformative power of education must consider their place in the worrisome culture Yang describes and consider the true impact of the system of expectations we build.