I have worked at 8 different schools as a teacher and school administrator. Every school seems to have them - "these kids." The label typically comes up when educators are talking about student behavior.
The truth is that all schools are dealing with the societal change in student behavior. As I think back to the early years of my career as an educator, I don't recall students who exhibited behaviors like running out of the school building and extreme outbursts that might require a child to be restrained. The answer to why these problems occur is more complex.
Students who have encountered adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are becoming more widespread. According to acestoohigh.com, there are 10 types of childhood trauma measured in the ACE Study. Five are personal — physical abuse, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, physical neglect, and emotional neglect. Five are related to other family members: a parent who’s an alcoholic, a mother who’s a victim of domestic violence, a family member in jail, a family member diagnosed with a mental illness, and the disappearance of a parent through divorce, death or abandonment. Each type of trauma counts as one. So a person who’s been physically abused, with one alcoholic parent, and a mother who was beaten up has an ACE score of three. According to the CDC, a high ACE score can be linked to risky health behaviors, chronic health conditions, low life potential, and early death.
It makes sense that a child who has experienced these types of difficulties would find it challenging to assimilate to the expectations and routines that are common place in schools. Most individuals can look at the big picture of a child's story and acknowledge the difficulties that the student has faced. It becomes a more challenging task to move forward from awareness to making informative, purposeful decisions about how to support a child in the classroom who has experienced ACEs.
As an undergraduate education major, I don't remember taking any classes that prepared me for supporting the needs of students with a high number of ACEs. I think that over the years, I have observed educators who have the gift of working with students and have adopted these methods in my daily interactions with students. The biggest factor that I have seen to make an impact on students, though, comes from the heart.
Students have a built in lie detector. They are able to sense when someone genuinely cares about them. Does it mean that every day is perfect in the classrooms for these educators? It doesn't, but it does show in their ability to skillfully help a child navigate feelings of disappointment, sadness, and anger, as well as equipping them with strategies to support academic and social challenges. When a student who has experienced ACEs has a moment of connection with someone on staff at school, it makes all of my hard days at school worth it. An optimal learning environment would be a school that doesn't talk about "these kids," but focuses on the heart and meeting the needs of ALL kids!
If you are interested in learning about some of the school-wide strategies and tools that my school has implemented to help students overcome ACEs, I would love to work with you to support your school and can be contacted at amychristinemason@gmail.com.
