The barriers educators experience in helping students process grief, explained
Educator grief training may shape how schools support children through loss
Teachers often encounter students coping with family upheaval, school changes and other losses, yet many have little formal preparation for helping children process grief.
A study discussed by Binghamton University social work professor Keisha M. Wint examined a four-week training program for preschool educators intended to address that gap. The program, “Helping Children with Loss,” was offered through the Grief Recovery Institute and included 26 educators.
The training covered age-appropriate ways to discuss grief with children and broadened participants’ understanding of loss beyond the death of a loved one. It included experiences such as turmoil at home and changing schools, according to Binghamton University.
The program also asked educators to examine their own experiences with grief. Wint said an educator’s personal recovery can influence how that person responds to a child’s loss and whether the issue is addressed.
Wint discussed the research in an episode of Binghamton University’s The Aha! Moment podcast. The study was co-authored with Binghamton social work faculty members Dahlee Yoon and Kelly Cook; Rebecca Swann-Jackson of Rutgers University’s Institute for Families; and Csilla Greiner, an infant and early childhood mental health clinician at Montclair State University.