From time to time, children during their primary and secondary years may go through stages where they don’t wish to attend school. This may take the shape of, ‘I feel sick today, I don’t think I can go to school’, or ‘I hate school, I want to stay home’.
This can cause some anxieties for parents but is usually short lived and almost a normal part of school life, sometimes not wanting to be there. Just like sometimes, an adult doesn’t want to go to work.
However, there are other situations in which children develop a range of anxieties which lead to not just an occasional not wishing to go to school, but a real fear and set of symptoms that lead to great levels of distress and at times depression.
When this occurs, it is referred to as ‘school refusal’. The terminology is confusing, because there is also the term 'truant'. While some children appear to have a habit of truancy, and some of the truant behaviours are similar to school refusal, there are differences, and this article is related to school refusal.
What is school refusal?
It can be a serious emotional problem, which, if not addressed, can lead to longer-term problems for children. School refusal involves a high level of stress about school attendance. Children wish to remain at home where they feel safe and removed from the severe anxieties they carry about school.
Children may exhibit physical symptoms of their stress including stomach aches, panic attacks, crying, extreme anger and tantrums. Some children appear to have significant separation anxieties from their parent or primary caregiver.
School refusal usually manifests itself in a gradual process over time. Parents may notice that a child becomes increasingly reluctant to go to school on a Monday after the weekend or after a holiday period.
What can be done about school refusal?
It becomes increasingly difficult to return to school the longer a child has refused to attend. Therefore it is very important that intervention and a range of strategies occur as soon as possible to help the child gain confidence again, and to lessen the anxieties or other issues that are a challenge for the child.
It is important to try to return the child to school as soon as possible. It may be useful to have a doctor check the child to ensure that any of the physical symptoms that the child says they have, can be investigated. It also provides an opportunity for the doctor to refer the child and family perhaps to a counsellor or psychologist so the child and family have the opportunity to discuss and explore issues.
The school and teachers need to be aware that the child at the current time has a serious problem, and this needs to be respected and understood by the teachers and not regarded simply as ‘attention getting’ or making things up.
The school and parents will need to work together to help support the child to get to school, and to feel as safe and comfortable as possible.
One of the most important things to remember about a child who refuses to go to school over a prolonged period of time and reflects high levels of distress and anxiety, is to acknowledge the stress, provide support as soon as possible, to inform and discuss these issues with the school, and to seek additional support such as counselling.
Children who experience this anxiety about school often become extremely distressed and it is the shared responsibility between school and parents, and the community to provide a range of supports as quickly as possible.
Kathy Walker, Educational Consultant.