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00:00:00 --> 00:00:05 Welcome to Your Morning Boost, your daily leadership advice to help you lead your school community.
00:00:05 --> 00:00:09 Brought to you by AWB Education and sponsored by Grundmeyer Leader Services,
00:00:10 --> 00:00:14 where together we are transforming education, one leader at a time.
00:00:14 --> 00:00:16 Now here's your host, Adam Bush.
00:00:17 --> 00:00:21 Good morning, fellow educators. Happy Monday. And I guess it's happy National
00:00:21 --> 00:00:25 Sticker Day and happy National Rubber Ducky Day if you're into those things.
00:00:25 --> 00:00:29 So happy those days as well, but welcome to your Morning Boost.
00:00:29 --> 00:00:33 Today, we're going to tackle those everyday challenges and discover practical
00:00:33 --> 00:00:36 tips to enhance our leadership just like we try to do every day.
00:00:36 --> 00:00:41 Today, we're going to dive into a crucial topic, and that is school avoidance.
00:00:41 --> 00:00:45 Now, school avoidance is often mistakenly labeled as simple truancy,
00:00:45 --> 00:00:50 but to be honest, this is a complex issue with multifaceted roots.
00:00:50 --> 00:00:52 It's not merely about skipping school.
00:00:52 --> 00:00:57 It's a manifestation of these underlying anxieties and fears and maybe challenges
00:00:57 --> 00:01:02 and all of these things that prevent our students from engaging fully in the learning process.
00:01:02 --> 00:01:06 Now, these can include things like academic struggles. They can.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:10 You know, students may be overwhelmed by challenging coursework or they're experiencing
00:01:10 --> 00:01:12 difficulty with a specific subject.
00:01:12 --> 00:01:16 It could also be that they are just fearing failure. But all of those academic
00:01:16 --> 00:01:20 struggles can lead to social anxiety or mental health concerns.
00:01:20 --> 00:01:26 It could be related to bullying or social isolation or fear of social situations,
00:01:26 --> 00:01:32 or maybe even some concerns about fitting in depending on the class or the social group.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:36 All of this can significantly contribute to school avoidance along with just
00:01:36 --> 00:01:40 standard mental health concerns, anxiety disorders, generalized anxiety,
00:01:40 --> 00:01:42 social anxiety, separation anxiety, right?
00:01:42 --> 00:01:47 There's a lot of these that can really just be a trigger that causes students
00:01:47 --> 00:01:48 to not want to come to school.
00:01:49 --> 00:01:52 It can also be with depression or other mental health conditions that have that
00:01:52 --> 00:01:57 significant impact on a student's ability and their desire to attend school.
00:01:57 --> 00:02:00 It also could be related more to trauma.
00:02:00 --> 00:02:03 Students who have experienced trauma, such as abuse, neglect,
00:02:03 --> 00:02:08 or even just significant life disruptions, any of this might cause students
00:02:08 --> 00:02:10 to exhibit some school avoidance as a coping mechanism.
00:02:11 --> 00:02:13 There's not a lot going on in my life right now that I trust,
00:02:13 --> 00:02:16 and school is one of those as well. It's hard to be able to do that.
00:02:16 --> 00:02:20 So we start putting up a defense wall and try to take care of ourselves instead
00:02:20 --> 00:02:23 of reaching out for others. That trauma piece is real.
00:02:24 --> 00:02:27 And that really gets down to just the family factors in general.
00:02:27 --> 00:02:31 I mean, if there is some family instability, maybe there's some parental mental
00:02:31 --> 00:02:34 health issues that are going on or family conflicts that maybe we don't even
00:02:34 --> 00:02:38 know about, any of this can create an environment that makes it very difficult
00:02:38 --> 00:02:40 for a student to focus on school.
00:02:40 --> 00:02:44 We just have to remember that every student is unique. It's not a one-size-fits-all
00:02:44 --> 00:02:45 approach, and it never will be.
00:02:46 --> 00:02:49 None of that's ever going to be effective. We have to approach school avoidance
00:02:49 --> 00:02:55 with empathy and understanding and a commitment to individualized support for our students.
00:02:55 --> 00:02:59 So here's a few strategies for you to think about when we're trying to address school avoidance.
00:02:59 --> 00:03:03 Make sure you maintain open communication. You want to foster a safe and supportive
00:03:03 --> 00:03:07 environment where your students feel comfortable expressing their concerns.
00:03:07 --> 00:03:09 Maybe that's with you as a school leader.
00:03:09 --> 00:03:13 Hopefully, for sure, it's with their teachers. But we want to make sure that
00:03:13 --> 00:03:17 we provide this consistent and proactive communication opportunity with our
00:03:17 --> 00:03:20 students, especially those exhibiting signs of avoidance.
00:03:21 --> 00:03:25 Also, think about having a collaborative approach. Work closely with your parents
00:03:25 --> 00:03:29 and guardians, your counselors, school psychologists, other support staff to
00:03:29 --> 00:03:31 understand the root causes of the avoidance.
00:03:31 --> 00:03:36 We've got to get to the cause before we can really try to help work on a solution.
00:03:36 --> 00:03:39 A multidisciplinary approach, that's going to help. And it's going to be essential
00:03:39 --> 00:03:43 for developing an effective intervention for your individual student.
00:03:43 --> 00:03:46 And that's where I go back to those individualized support plans.
00:03:47 --> 00:03:48 Develop personalized plans.
00:03:49 --> 00:03:51 These address the specific needs
00:03:51 --> 00:03:55 of each student. We will not have a one-size-fits-all. It will not work.
00:03:55 --> 00:03:58 You might have to include some academic interventions, you know,
00:03:58 --> 00:04:02 providing extra support in those challenging subjects if that's what we're identifying
00:04:02 --> 00:04:05 as a reason for school avoidance. Implementing some differentiated instruction.
00:04:06 --> 00:04:09 Maybe there's some alternative learning pathways. Maybe we're at that point
00:04:09 --> 00:04:11 right now, even if it's just temporary.
00:04:11 --> 00:04:14 Next part would be social-emotional learning, implementing programs that focus
00:04:14 --> 00:04:18 on building social skills, emotional regulation, and also resilience.
00:04:19 --> 00:04:23 This can include mindfulness exercises, social-emotional learning curricula,
00:04:23 --> 00:04:24 maybe peer support groups.
00:04:25 --> 00:04:28 That's where we get into the mental health support too. Try to do your best
00:04:28 --> 00:04:31 to connect your students with your school counselors or outside resources,
00:04:32 --> 00:04:35 therapists, psychiatrists, anybody else that's going to help address maybe the
00:04:35 --> 00:04:38 trauma that's there too. providing that trauma-informed care.
00:04:39 --> 00:04:43 Involves creating a safe and supportive environment, but we have to build trust,
00:04:43 --> 00:04:46 help our students understand that this is not going to be an area of trauma.
00:04:47 --> 00:04:50 They might have enough of it outside of school. We don't need it at school as well.
00:04:50 --> 00:04:53 So address those emotional and psychological needs of your students.
00:04:53 --> 00:04:57 Now, just remember that early intervention is key. If we are proactive in addressing
00:04:57 --> 00:05:00 school avoidance, we have a chance at helping students overcome their challenges.
00:05:01 --> 00:05:05 In the end, it helps us foster positive and fulfilling school experience for all of our kids.
00:05:05 --> 00:05:08 If you want any further insights, I would recommend exploring resources from
00:05:08 --> 00:05:12 the National Association of School Psychologists. They have a lot on school refusal.
00:05:13 --> 00:05:16 Take a little bit of time to pop into their webpage and check that stuff out.
00:05:16 --> 00:05:19 That's it today for your morning boost. I hope these tips provide you with some
00:05:19 --> 00:05:22 valuable insights as you navigate the complexities of school leadership.
00:05:22 --> 00:05:26 A quick note, we have a special episode coming up later this week.
00:05:26 --> 00:05:28 Check that out. I think that'll drop here on Wednesday.
00:05:28 --> 00:05:31 Other than that, thank you for listening today. Have a great day,
00:05:31 --> 00:05:33 and we will talk with you again tomorrow.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:44 You can find out more about our services by clicking on the links in the description.
00:05:44 --> 00:05:49 Remember, you are doing this vital job that only a few can do.
00:05:49 --> 00:05:53 So until next time, thank you for your service to your community.