Name withheld

At a glance

• They came to where they live now a few years ago; a normal week is school on some days and home a lot, because their language classes clash with their regular ones and they get confused about where to be.
• School expects them to already know the language, even in lessons that are not language lessons.
• Some classmates make it clear this student is not from there, so on some days this student just does not want to go.
• When their mind is elsewhere they go very still and stop answering, even when they know the answer.
• They told a counsellor at school, in private, that dark thoughts had come up during a hard stretch, and the counsellor checked on this student for a few weeks afterwards, which helped, even if it was small.
• A classmate started walking with them between classes without being asked; the only rights conversation they remember is the counsellor saying this student could always come back.

In their words

It asks me to already know the language, basically, even in classes that aren't language class.

And I want people to know that being quiet in class doesn't mean nothing's happening, it usually means the opposite.

What they want changed

They want their school to plan for students like them from the start, instead of scrambling each time one arrives. What they want readers to understand: being quiet in class does not mean nothing is happening; it usually means the opposite.

If this is close to home: help lines