Not only do we want fast, easy, and inexpensive ways to discover which students have mild to severe depressive symptoms, we also want inexpensive, easily-implemented effective ways to treat them. Treating depression when someone is young can produce a lifetime of benefit, avoid years of unnecessary suffering, and can prevent many of the problems that arise when that person and people in their environment are not coping with these symptoms. Elementary school aged youngsters may suffer less, simply by being understood by parents once they see the scores on the self-screening sheets. Because depression interferes with memory and concentration, these children need this help. Since both the tutor and child who need help benefit from the program and it doesn't cost any money, there are no barriers to using it.
Depression is even more common during adolescence.
Once students begin to choose from a variety of elective classes, any student could be given the option of enrolling in a class that teaches the skills that would decrease depression and anxiety. Because it would be a class like any other offered in high school, technical colleges and universities, it would reach a large number of people in a cost-effective manner. Of course people who are very severely depressed usually need to be on effective medication for a time before they would benefit fully from the therapy. And it often takes a number of months before people show improvement. But this not essentially different from what we know about other forms of medical treatment.