Oct 19, 2018, WBTV, Charlotte, NC: Why West Charlotte High became a trauma informed school https://www.wbtv.com/2018/10/18/why-west-charlotte-high-became-trauma-informed-school/ Teachers and administrators say when students are exposed to violence – whether at home, in their neighborhoods, in their relationships, or being homeless - it leaves them traumatized. So the school’s principal is turning West Charlotte High into a trauma informed school. That means if students are acting out, teachers are on the look-out for why. … … “Understanding and recognizing that they may have some trauma that is manifesting itself in some way in the classroom - so that’s the first step – having them understand what does trauma mean and where does it come from.” “When kids are acting out in the classroom, it’s about getting to the root cause of why. Why? What is the trigger that could have happened to create the student misbehaving or crying out for help in maybe a way that is a little different than just saying can you help me?” Dr. Barnes-Jones says teaching is still happening at the school. … “They’re not thinking about math and Science and English. They have some needs that need to be met so it’s about saying I recognize that right now you’re hurting, something is going on and this is not the day for me to try to be business as usual in the classroom and I need to dig a little bit deeper.”
top of page
Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.
Anne Dachel, Media editor, Age of Autism
http://www.ageofautism.com/media/
(John Dachel, Tech. assist.)
What will happen in another 4 years? How can we go on like this? This is a national (and international) problem of monumental proportions. We have an entire new class of children who cannot be accommodated by the system: many are manifestly neurologically impaired. Meanwhile, the government and the medical profession sleep on regardless.
John Stone,
UK media editor, Age of Autism
The generation of American children born after 1990 are arguably the sickest generation in the history of our country.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
It seemed to me that with rising autism prevalence, you’d also see rising autism costs to society, and it turns out, the costs are catastrophic.
They calculated that in 2015 autism cost the United States $268 billion and they projected that if autism continues at its current rate, we’re looking at one trillion dollars a year in autism costs by 2025, so within five years.
Toby Rogers, PhD, Political economist
bottom of page