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Back to To the Point

To the Point

Academic Success: Are Teenagers Paying Too High a Price?

Silicon Valley's Palo Alto school district is in crisis. The suicide rate for teenagers there is four to five times the national average. This tragic statistic has made the city a symbol of the pressure kids live under in affluent communities to get into elite colleges, to excel at everything, to succeed at all costs.

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KCRW placeholderBy Barbara Bogaev • Dec 28, 2015 • 34m Listen

Silicon Valley's Palo Alto school district is in crisis. The suicide rate for teenagers there is four to five times the national average. This tragic statistic has made the city a symbol of the pressure kids live under in affluent communities to get into elite colleges, to excel at everything, to succeed at all costs. This week, as high school seniors and their families gather around computers racing to finish their college applications, we ask whether the obsession with getting into the best colleges is hurting kids more than helping them, and what schools, parents and students can do lessen the stress.

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    Barbara Bogaev

    radio journalist

  • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

    Jenny Hamel

    KCRW

  • KCRW placeholder

    Katie Cooper

    Producer, 'One year Later'

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    Paul von Zielbauer

    Producer, 'To the Point'

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    Suniya Luthar

    Arizona State University

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    Julie Lythcott-Haims

    Stanford University (formerly)

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    Gwyeth Smith, Jr.

    independent college counselor

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