Abstract Youth homelessness in the United States remains a critical issue, each year affecting an estimated 4.2 million individuals ages 13 to 25. This study examines how homelessness influences adolescent physical, emotional, social, and academic well-being and whether school connectedness helps lessen these effects. Using data from the nationally representative 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey of 8,527 high school students, binary logistic regression was used to analyze relationships between homelessness, feelings of closeness at school, and multiple well-being outcomes. Most students reported feeling close to others at school, suggesting social connectedness as a potential protective factor. Results indicated that homelessness significantly increased the likelihood of substance use, including alcohol (odds ratio [OR] = 3.661, p < .001). Conversely, school connectedness was associated with reduced odds of poor mental health (OR = 0.456, p < .001), demonstrating a clear protective effect for emotional well-being. However, interaction terms between homelessness and school connectedness were not statistically significant, indicating that connectedness does not fully mitigate adverse outcomes. These findings highlight the severe implications of homelessness for adolescents, particularly regarding substance use and mental health, and suggest that while school connectedness supports emotional well-being, additional interventions are needed to address broader risks.
Abstract Collaboration between families and schools is fundamental for the educational inclusion of autistic students. This study examined the relationship between teachers’ perceptions of family involvement and their attitudes toward working with autistic students. A total of 98 teachers working with autistic children participated in the study. Serial mediation models were conducted using the bootstrap procedure. The results showed that perception of parental involvement mediated the relationship between teachers’ emotional response to working with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their expectations of a child’s chances of improvement. They also revealed that teachers’ emotional response to working with children with ASD mediated the relationship between perception of parental involvement and their evaluation and perception of pupils’ parents. The findings of this study support the need to promote collaboration between families and teachers of autistic children through social work as a way to foster positive attitudes toward working with this student population and promote their educational inclusion.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, school absenteeism has remained severely elevated, with significant repercussions for educational and social-emotional outcomes. In order to increase understanding of factors contributing to absenteeism, this study examined the relationship between internalizing behaviors and school attendance and the extent to which that relationship is moderated by age and gender among low-income children living in a community of concentrated poverty (N=145; age range=5-17). Poisson regression models found that internalizing behaviors were significantly associated with school attendance. Age significantly moderated this relationship such that higher internalizing scores were associated with higher rates of absences among older children while younger children were predicted to have the same rate of absences regardless of internalizing score. Associations between internalizing and absenteeism did not vary significantly across gender. These findings extend prior work linking higher levels of internalizing with absenteeism and expands knowledge to a sample of children living in an area of concentrated poverty, assessed after pandemic-era school shutdowns. We discuss implications for schools and school-based practitioners for linking attendance and mental health systems, including building opportunities to partner with families and targeting mental health interventions to younger students as a preventive absenteeism practice.
Social and emotional learning (SEL) promotes student academic achievement and well-being. Social workers are well positioned to leverage their cross-sector, multilevel skill set for providing SEL implementation leadership. Leadership plays a critical role in achieving high-quality SEL implementation in classrooms, schools, and districts. However, there are no empirical studies of SEL leadership above the district level, limiting social workers' ability to leverage all levels of the education system, including counties and states, to take SEL to scale. This study explores who provides county-level SEL implementation leadership, why county-level leaders partner for SEL implementation, and how they cultivate partnerships in the context of a statewide effort to advance SEL. To conduct the study, county SEL implementation plans were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Plans indicated that county-level implementation leadership was provided by people across levels of the education system, sectors, and regions, and by people from nongovernmental entities. Plans indicated that partnerships were intended to integrate SEL with aligned efforts, seek multiple perspectives on implementation, and expand the capacity for SEL implementation. SEL leaders intended to cultivate partnerships through relationship building and collaboration structures. Similarities and differences noted in county-level SEL implementation leadership, in comparison with school and district levels, are discussed alongside practice implications.
Abstract Older adult volunteers in schools help multiple generations: youth, adults serving as teachers, and older adults themselves. Considering the multiple positive impacts of classroom volunteering, it is important to explore the perceptions and experiences of supervisors of the older adult classroom volunteers. In this qualitative study, in-depth interviews with 12 supervisors working with older adult classroom volunteers via the Foster Grandparent Program were conducted. Interview data were analyzed through thematic analysis, which elucidated three overarching themes: (1) the impact older adult classroom volunteers have on multiple generations; (2) foster grandparents’ isolation and need for program participation during the pandemic; and (3) perspectives on schools offering comprehensive services for aging populations. Findings from this study on unique opportunities for intergenerational engagement for children, older adults, and professionals working with children guide an innovative approach to classroom volunteering. By involving older adults in classroom volunteering, schools can have an evolving role as a resource center for multiple generations in communities, supporting children’s optimal development, supporting teachers, and minimizing older adults’ social isolation.
Compounding disruptions to the U.S. educational context continue to pose a threat to educators' psychological well-being. Validating context-specific measures is essential for identifying conditions that promote teachers' psychological safety (PS) in contemporary educational settings, particularly as they relate to intrapersonal processes such as trait emotional intelligence (TEI). This study examined 174 PreK-12 educators working in multilingual and multicultural schools across Illinois. The majority identified as female (80.2 percent) and White (68.6 percent), with 22.3 percent born outside the United States. The study addressed three objectives: (1) to validate an adapted version of the Psychological Safety in School Scale for use with educators, (2) to validate the global TEI construct, derived from the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Short Form, and (3) to analyze the predictive relationship between global TEI and PS dimensions. Confirmatory factor analysis supported a four-factor model of PS and a unidimensional model of TEI, both demonstrating strong reliability and model fit. As a novel finding, structural equation modeling revealed that global TEI significantly and positively predicted all PS dimensions.
Older adult volunteers in schools help multiple generations: youth, adults serving as teachers, and older adults themselves. Considering the multiple positive impacts of classroom volunteering, it is important to explore the perceptions and experiences of supervisors of the older adult classroom volunteers. In this qualitative study, in-depth interviews with 12 supervisors working with older adult classroom volunteers via the Foster Grandparent Program were conducted. Interview data were analyzed through thematic analysis, which elucidated three overarching themes: (1) the impact older adult classroom volunteers have on multiple generations; (2) foster grandparents' isolation and need for program participation during the pandemic; and (3) perspectives on schools offering comprehensive services for aging populations. Findings from this study on unique opportunities for intergenerational engagement for children, older adults, and professionals working with children guide an innovative approach to classroom volunteering. By involving older adults in classroom volunteering, schools can have an evolving role as a resource center for multiple generations in communities, supporting children's optimal development, supporting teachers, and minimizing older adults' social isolation.
This article reports the results of a survey of school social workers (SSWs) at inclusive schools in select Asian and African countries (N = 1,061), exploring their awareness of assistive technology, competencies in use, perceived barriers, and training needs. Close to two-thirds of the SSWs reported being aware that assistive technology devices provided equal opportunities to children with disabilities. The majority (four-fifths) of SSWs suggested that the perceived barriers in the use of assistive technology included issues of affordability, accessibility, lack of qualified personnel, and limited social acceptance. Results of the discriminant correspondence analyses identified gender as a sole and significant predictor contributing to variations in SSWs' awareness and perceptions. Male SSWs confirmed they could identify varied assistive technology devices and were aware of local and international agencies providing services. Female and gender-nondisclosing SSWs felt more competent than male SSWs to use assistive technology to facilitate instruction. An estimated two-thirds of the total respondents proposed the need for training in community-based rehabilitation to reach most vulnerable groups for facilitating inclusion. Other training needs of SSWs working at inclusive schools in Asian and African countries included learning ways to collaborate with rehabilitation professionals, mastering strategies of estimating student needs and mapping resources, gaining awareness of ongoing research and development in assistive technology, and getting access to accredited training programs.
Changing demographic landscape has contributed to the increased awareness of the impact of cultural diversity on the provision of mental healthcare for children and youth. This study explores how high school students experience school mental health services in the context of their racial, ethnic, and cultural background and identities. This qualitative study had two primary aims: (1) understand how high school students define and experience their culture; and (2) explore the role of culture in their access to and engagement in school mental health. Utilizing qualitative methodology, two semistructured focused groups (N = 14 students) were conducted with students across six high schools in an urban school district. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis with an inductive research strategy. Five major themes emerged across three categories: (1) definitions and context: importance of cultural identity; (2) understanding of mental health: between two worlds, stays within the family, and (mis)understanding of mental health; and (3) engagement in mental health services: seen and connected. Study findings suggest the importance of culturally relevant care; the role of connection and belonging in student engagement in school mental health services; and emphasis on racial, ethnic, and cultural identity in youth's development and approach to treatment.
Schools are charged with preparing all students to transition to their postsecondary goals for learning, working, living, and thriving in adulthood. School social workers (SSWs) play integral roles on interdisciplinary teams that support students with disabilities (SWD) in this transition as part of the Individualized Education Programs, but the literature lacks a comprehensive review of specific ways in which these professionals facilitate secondary transition services. This scoping review of 37 peer-reviewed journal articles, dissertations and theses, and one book chapter examined the ways in which SSWs have or have been recommended to contribute to transition services for SWD across the areas of transition assessment and goal development, instruction, planning, experiences, partnerships, and program development and improvement. Findings highlight the ways in which school districts can further leverage the professional contributions of SSWs for facilitating more equitable outcomes toward supporting secondary transition services that prepare SWD for their postsecondary goals. Authors include important implications for future research and practice regarding in-service and preservice school social workers.
Notwithstanding the substantial body of literature on discrimination toward American Muslims (who, at approximately 7 million persons, constitute a significant population group), and, especially since the 1990s, on the bullying of schoolchildren, a significant gap remains in knowledge about bullying faced by Muslim students in American public schools. Many Muslim families are worried about the safety of their children, concerned that they seem to be prime targets for religious bullying by their peers at school. This qualitative study explores the problem of bullying faced by Muslim students in American public schools. While adding to the knowledge base on religious bullying, it may also assist education policymakers, social workers, and community organizations at the local and national levels in the development of better strategies to address bullying, to ensure the well-being of Muslim students in public schools, and to ensure safer learning climates.
Two elements of zero tolerance school discipline make it a major component of the school-to-prison pipeline. One is overreliance on exclusion and punishment. The other is disproportionate use of these practices on minoritized populations, particularly Black students, who are twice as likely to be suspended as White students. While evidence suggests that preventative frameworks like positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) help improve school discipline and lower suspension and expulsion rates, they do not consistently decrease racial disciplinary disparities. This study used a hybrid inductive/deductive thematic analysis approach to analyze semistructured interviews of 23 educational staff at one high school at the outset of PBIS implementation to understand their perceptions of school discipline and racial disciplinary disproportionality. Educators supported several aims of PBIS, including reducing suspensions and improving schoolwide disciplinary consistency. While they expressed concern about racial disproportionality and its potential causes, many also engaged in discourse rooted in cultural deficit narratives and normalization of racial inequality, which served to rationalize disparate racial outcomes and processes. The findings suggest that race-neutral frameworks like PBIS have the potential to be an alternative to punitive school discipline, but face significant barriers in addressing the roots of disciplinary disproportionality.
Trauma significantly shapes students' academic, social, and emotional outcomes, particularly for Black and Brown adolescents navigating traditional educational systems that rely heavily on punitive disciplinary practices. These approaches often fail to address the underlying impacts of adverse childhood experiences and may exacerbate disengagement and exclusion. This qualitative exploratory case study examines the collision between traditional education models and trauma-informed care (TIC) practices within alternative education settings in Washington, DC. Drawing on semistructured interviews and a focus group with educators, administrators, and school-based social workers, the study explores how trauma-informed, culturally responsive practices influence student engagement, relationships, and resilience. Findings reveal six central themes highlighting the limitations of punitive models and the transformative potential of TIC approaches grounded in safety, trust, collaboration, empowerment, and cultural responsiveness. Participants emphasized the importance of relational practices, restorative behavioral supports, and culturally affirming learning environments in fostering student belonging and emotional regulation. Despite noted barriers, including resource constraints and training gaps, TIC emerged as a promising framework for disrupting cycles of adversity. This study underscores the need for systemic shifts toward trauma-informed, equity-centered educational practices to better support historically marginalized students.
In the United States, children have a right to equal educational opportunities, supported by safe school environments. Corporal punishment (CP) undermines student safety, harming child development and disproportionately affecting marginalized students. This study provides an up-to-date review of state statutes related to CP in U.S. public schools. The review identifies states with legal bans on CP, states that allow force by school personnel to maintain order, and states with trauma-informed education policies that also allow CP. The authors conducted a systematic review of legislation across all states and the District of Columbia. Legal statutes were accessed from government websites, and trauma-informed education policies were reviewed using National Association of State Boards of Education data. The review identified 18 states that permit CP in public schools, with 15 explicitly allowing it. Among the 32 states that ban CP, 10 allow force for maintaining order. All 18 states permitting CP have at least one trauma-informed education policy mandate. Findings indicate that despite evidence of CP's negative impacts, over a third of states lack legal bans. Inconsistent legislation and contradictory policies undermine student safety. Policymakers must eliminate CP and resolve legal inconsistencies to ensure safe educational environments for students.
