Transforming Education: Addressing Learning, Behavior, and Emotional Challenges in Schools
Credit: Allison Shelley for American Education
In recent years, the conversation around educational reform has gained momentum, with leaders advocating for transformative changes in how schools operate. However, when it comes to addressing the learning, behavior, and emotional problems that students face, the response from education leaders has been disappointingly minimal. As the prevalence of these issues continues to rise, it is crucial to examine what is currently being done and what more can be achieved to support students effectively.
The Current State of School Support Systems
Schools across the nation allocate resources to address student problems, but the effectiveness of these efforts varies significantly. Some institutions manage to provide a broad range of student and learning supports, while others can only offer what is mandated by law. Unfortunately, the majority of schools find themselves in a position where the available resources cater to only a small fraction of students in need. With tight budgets and limited funding, the prospect of hiring additional support staff remains a distant dream for many districts.
The approach to student support is often fragmented and piecemeal, leading to a patchwork of specialized programs and services. Over the years, this fragmentation has prompted calls for “integrated services” and, more recently, “integrated support systems.” However, these discussions frequently overlook a fundamental issue: the longstanding marginalization of the role schools play in addressing barriers to learning and teaching.
The Challenge of Marginalization
Education leaders and policymakers face a significant challenge in overcoming this marginalization. To effect meaningful change, it is essential to shift away from outdated perspectives on how schools should address learning, behavior, and emotional problems. The current focus on fragmentation fails to recognize the interconnectedness of these issues and the need for a comprehensive approach.
A Vision for Transformation
What might a transformed approach to education look like? To effectively address the complex barriers that hinder teaching and learning, schools must adopt a systemwide strategy that supports whole-child development. This requires a reevaluation of how districts and schools frame their practices in relation to learning, behavior, and emotional challenges.
One promising framework is the multitiered system of supports (MTSS), which emphasizes a continuum of interventions. MTSS recognizes the necessity of promoting healthy development, preventing problems, providing immediate assistance, and addressing serious and chronic special education needs. However, to maximize its effectiveness, it is crucial to reframe each level of intervention into subsystems that integrate school and community resources.
Six Domains of Support
Research indicates that various programs, services, initiatives, and strategies can be organized into six key domains of student and learning support:
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Embedding Supports in Classroom Strategies: Integrating student and learning supports into regular classroom practices to enhance teaching and learning.
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Supporting Transitions: Providing assistance during critical transitions, such as moving to a new grade or school, and during daily transitions like lunch or after-school programs.
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Increasing Home-School Connections: Fostering engagement between families and schools to create a supportive network for students.
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Crisis Response and Prevention: Developing strategies to respond to and prevent personal and school crises.
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Community Involvement: Encouraging collaborative engagement with community resources to enhance support for students.
- Facilitating Access to Special Assistance: Ensuring that students and families can easily access necessary support services.
By organizing support activities within these domains, schools can clarify the types of assistance needed both inside and outside the classroom, ultimately enabling effective teaching and motivating student learning.
The Path Forward
While the changes proposed may seem daunting, maintaining the status quo is no longer an option. Simply tinkering with existing systems will not suffice to meet the growing needs of students. Education leaders must commit to transforming how schools address barriers to learning and teaching, creating a unified, comprehensive, and equitable system that is fully integrated into school improvement policies and practices.
This transformation is essential for enhancing equity of opportunity, ensuring that all students have the support they need to succeed in school and beyond.
Conclusion
As we look to the future of education, it is imperative that we prioritize the mental health and well-being of students alongside academic achievement. By addressing the systemic issues that contribute to learning, behavior, and emotional challenges, we can create an educational environment that fosters growth, resilience, and success for every child.
Howard Adelman and Linda Taylor are co-directors of the Center for MH in Schools & Student/Learning Supports at UCLA, an initiative aimed at improving outcomes for students by enhancing how districts and schools address barriers to learning and teaching.
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