Information for Educators
Much has been written about the needs of the student with a chronic illness.
However, the teacher and other school staff also have great challenges
in meeting the needs of this special population of learners. Not only does
the staff need to be aware of the student’s educational needs, but
also of the social, emotional, psychological and health related needs and
status of the student.
Teachers Need Help, Too
Providing appropriate services requires a lot of
energy, effort and resourcefulness on the part of the school staff working
with the student. The teacher’s own emotions may be impacted by the
journey of the youngster, and he/she may feel much sadness at observing
the challenges faced by a student with a chronic illness.
It is important for a teacher to get in touch with his/her own feelings
and to identify how that impacts their interactions with the student. It
is important to be aware of the dangers of sympathizing with the student.
This may result in the young person’s inability to understand their
diagnosis and result in the misperception that they are more ill than they
have been told by parents and medical care providers. The youngster may even “give
up” or cease trying to achieve a sense of normalcy in their world.
Sympathy vs Empathy
Sympathy does not help empower the youngster nor give them the ability
for self-determination.
Empathy, on the other hand, is a wonderful perception to guide a teacher
working with a student with a chronic illness. Empathy, or walking in the
shoes of another, enables us to more clearly understand the journey of
child. If we empathize with the chronically ill child, we are more likely,
as we better identify with their experiences, to be able to identify effective
means of helping the youngster. Everyone is a winner when a healthy dose
of empathy is supplied!
Think Outside
Educators are asked to “think outside the box” when planning
and providing education for a chronically ill child. For some, it is the
first time that they have been asked to individualize instruction to such
a great extent.
Daily decisions are required to determine what the child
needs now, and how to best support those needs. Parents, the student,
peers and administration all look toward the teacher for answers and solutions.
The classroom teacher may feel overwhelmed by what is expected of him/her
while being concerned about providing the best educational services to
the child.
Teachers and school staff must remember to take care of themselves. It
is important to find those who will support you as you face the day-to-day
challenges of educating chronically ill students. When it is done correctly,
it is a difficult and demanding task, yet one of the most rewarding experiences found in teaching!
For more information, please contact:
Kathy Davis, MSEd, PhD
kdavis2@kumc.edu
(913) 588-6305