The Reading / Listening - Depression - Level 5

Depression among college students has increased in the past decade. Boston University reports that the number of students with anxiety or depression more than doubled between 2013 and 2021. Anxiety among students rose by 110 per cent, while the number of depressed students jumped by 135 per cent. In 2021, over 60 per cent of students had some form of mental illness. This is double the figure from eight years ago. Alarm bells are ringing with mental health experts, but the number of students seeking therapy has fallen by 18 per cent.

Depression among students has been on an upward trend for decades. A researcher said: "The age of onset for lifetime mental health problems also directly coincides with traditional college years." She said: "Living in a new setting, and away from home, can often create overwhelming and stressful circumstances." Around 75 per cent of lifetime mental health problems will be in people by the age of 24. The COVID-19 pandemic, the loneliness of lockdowns, and school closures all worsened this mental health crisis. Many students fear for their increasingly uncertain futures.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Depression - Level 4 or  Depression - Level 6

Sources
  • https://nypost.com/2022/08/18/majority-of-college-students-have-a-mental-illness-study/
  • https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-11117777/Rates-depression-college-students-jumped-135-2013-2021.html
  • https://www.foxnews.com/us/majority-college-students-suffering-from-mental-illness-anxiety-depression-rise-study


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. Depression among
  2. increased in the past
  3. the number of students
  4. more than
  5. Anxiety among students rose
  6. some form
  7. Alarm bells
  8. the number of students seeking
  1. are ringing
  2. doubled
  3. by 110 per cent
  4. college students
  5. therapy
  6. with anxiety
  7. of mental illness
  8. decade

Paragraph 2

  1. Depression
  2. an upward
  3. coincides with traditional
  4. Living in a new
  5. overwhelming and stressful
  6. the loneliness
  7. worsened this mental
  8. increasingly uncertain
  1. circumstances
  2. futures
  3. health crisis
  4. trend
  5. setting
  6. among students
  7. college years
  8. of lockdowns

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Depression among college students has increased in (1) ___________________. Boston University reports that the number of students (2) ___________________ depression more than doubled between 2013 and 2021. Anxiety among students rose by 110 per cent, while the number of depressed (3) ___________________ 135 per cent. In 2021, over 60 per cent of students had some form of mental illness. This is (4) ___________________ from eight years ago. Alarm (5) ___________________ with mental health experts, but the number of students (6) ___________________ fallen by 18 per cent.

Depression among students has been on (7) ___________________ for decades. A researcher said: "The age of onset for lifetime mental health problems also (8) ___________________ traditional college years." She said: "Living in (9) ___________________, and away from home, can often create overwhelming and stressful circumstances." Around 75 per cent of lifetime mental health problems will be in people by (10) ___________________ 24. The COVID-19 pandemic, the (11) ___________________, and school closures all worsened this mental health crisis. Many students fear for their (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Depressionamongcollegestudentshasincreasedinthepastdecade.Bo
stonUniversityreportsthatthenumberofstudentswithanxietyordepre
ssionmorethandoubledbetween2013and2021.Anxietyamongstude
ntsroseby110percent,whilethenumberofdepressedstudentsjumped
by135percent.In2021,over60percentofstudentshadsomeformofme
ntalillness.Thisisdoublethefigurefromeightyearsago.Alarmbellsarer
ingingwithmentalhealthexperts,butthenumberofstudentsseekingth
erapyhasfallenby18percent.Depressionamongstudentshasbeenona
nupwardtrendfordecades.Aresearchersaid:"Theageofonsetforlifeti
mementalhealthproblemsalsodirectlycoincideswithtraditionalcolleg
eyears."Shesaid:"Livinginanewsetting,andawayfromhome,canofte
ncreateoverwhelmingandstressfulcircumstances."Around75percen
toflifetimementalhealthproblemswillbeinpeoplebytheageof24.TheC
OVID-19pandemic,thelonelinessoflockdowns,andschoolclosuresal
lworsenedthismentalhealthcrisis.Manystudentsfearfortheirincreasi
nglyuncertainfutures.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

Help Support This Web Site

  • Please consider helping Breaking News English.com

Sean Banville's Book

Thank You