If it looks like things are taking a turn for the worse, address matters head-on as quickly as possible, whilst remaining sensitive and supportive.
The pupil must not be made to feel that they’ve failed
More than likely they’ll be beating themselves up and be feeling deeply upset that they’re letting everyone around them down. This is a heavy burden to bear and you should aim not to exacerbate it by encouraging feelings of guilt. Instead, help the student to realise that this is simply a setback and nothing more… a detour rather than the end of the line.
Explore what has triggered the current difficulties
It won’t always be possible to isolate the source of a setback but in many instances it may be that a particular incident has caused the current difficulties, perhaps something someone has said or done. It is entirely likely that the offending action or comment was not intended to cause any offence or upset – sometimes even comments which are meant as compliments or to boost confidence can be misinterpreted and can trigger a setback. For instance the pupil who is told they are ‘looking well’ who interprets this to mean they’re ‘looking fat’. The pupil needs to feel able to share any difficulties such as this in confidence so similar situations can be avoided moving forward Read the rest of this entry »