How does neglect from parents affect student’s learning and how can we, as teachers, help to support

those who have been neglected or abused?

The causes of child abuse and neglect are complex and occur across all areas of society, although there tends
to be a higher incidence in disadvantaged communities (Cicchetti & Carlson 1989, p xiii). The long and short
term effects can have serious implications on children's learning and development. Some include the parents
involvement in drug and alcohol use, while others may just be unprepared to care for a child or do not want
the child (Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders 2015). Studies indicate that children who have been raised in a
neglectful environment are more likely to have growth and development issues (Smith & Fong 2004, p. 16).

Attending school can be the child’s escape and therefore teachers need to be aware of signs that something
is wrong. Some of the signs include poor hygiene, tiredness, illness and absence (Department of
Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services 2015). Neglected children will also find it hard to achieve in
the classroom and accept discipline, compared to their peers (Smith & Fong 2004, p. 7). These are a few signs
which are common with those children who are neglected or abused, however there are many more signs
which will depend on the individual child. Bandura’s social learning theory, Erikson’s psycho-social
development theory and Piaget’s theory of cognitive development (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 81, 115,
315) can help educators to identify some aspects of a neglected child and how to support those children who
are in need.

Bandura’s Social Learning theory tells us, if children see something being modelled by a significant person in
their life (e.g family member, teacher), they are likely to repeat those actions (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p.
315) depending on how many times the child see’s the action occurring and the situation they are in. This
means that if they are neglected or abused, they may be lacking in positive figures in their life to influence
their behaviour and actions, therefore becoming conditioned to think that negative behaviours and actions
are acceptable. The child’s behaviour at school is most likely to be reflective of the behaviours they are being
exposed to in their home environment. Sometimes, teachers are the only positive adult figure these students
have to look out for them. In some cases if no protection is put in place, it may be fatal. Teachers can greatly
benefit the child because although they are not shown appropriate behaviour at home they can be exposed
to positive behaviour at school. This theory is also known to have links with behaviour (Ormrod 2014, p. 301)
and by using strategies such as modelling (Ormrod 2014, p. 304) with this theory in mind, it will be easier to
understand the behaviours of those who are being neglected and how to handle these situations.

One way to benefit those students who have been neglected or abused is using symbolic modelling (Ormrod
2014, p. 304) through reading. This can bring a positive message to the child and allows them to explore
other ways of expressing themselves. “Children’s reading experience can lead to an association with literate
peers that in turn increases vocabulary and comprehension” (Siegel 1991, p. 113). A benefit of one on one
reading is to promote positive feelings and trust towards the staff member who is doing the reading with the
child. One on one reading can allow the child to develop a greater understanding of the content and the
message the story brings by asking questions without feeling intimidated. A Terrible Thing Happened
(Williams 2014) is a great book to read to children who have been/are being neglected or abused because it
uses symbolic modelling to show the child that they are not alone. This book might show ways of expressing
their thoughts about their home life and may be the first time a student understands that their situation is
not typical. This book can give the child the chance to voice their problems.

Another great way of showing children they are not alone is by showing them a movie with characters,
narratives or themes that they can identify with. Matilda (DeVito 1996) the movie expresses the importance
of school even when her parents did not look after her. The main character, Matilda, had other children to
engage with and the support of her teacher. Throughout the movie, Matilda recognises that she is not alone
when the teacher offers her support. She also escapes her home-life situation by reading books and
expanding her knowledge. This movie is another great example of using symbolic modelling (Ormrod 2014, p.
304) in the classroom to show children that there are conditions other than those they are living in. This may
also help students identify that they are not alone and that support is available if they open up to someone.

By not only using symbolic modelling but incorporating positive live modelling into the classroom, children
can build on their academic skills, handling aggression and interpersonal behaviours (Ormrod 2014, p. 304).
Teachers can use modelling when it is suspected that the child is being neglected, or if the child needs help
with any problems which are closely connected with neglect. This skill is very useful for helping the child to
express themselves in an appropriate way (Ormrod 2014, p. 305).

Dorota Iwaniec’s (2006) study states “it is now a cliché that a child needs close, confident and warm physical
and emotional contact… in order to grow healthily and happily”. This means it is important for the child to
have a regular level of care including, but not limited to, attention, physical and emotional support from
parents and siblings or extended family members. Without a regular level of care complications can arise
later in life.

Bandura’s theory (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 315) however, does not take into consideration that not all
children will react to being neglected in the same way. This can affect the strategies used, because a teacher
may not always be able to recognise that a student is being neglected. The child is also living in two very
different situations – home, where living arrangements can be unstable/unstructured and school where
there are structured lessons and staff providing stability and support. Given the home situation is where the
child spends majority of their time it may be hard for them to trust other adult figures. They are not likely to
be able to recognise a teacher (another adult) trying to provide support and positive experiences, and
therefore it is important that teacher's demonstrate consistency and reliability in the way they react to the
child.

According to Erikson’s psycho-social development theory there are eight stages of psychosocial development
which children all children experience (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 116). These stages help us to see how
neglect might affect a child at different points in their lives. Some of these stages include developing trust
between teacher and student, self-confidence, initiative and a path of industry (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p.
116). Erikson’s theory is also very important when dealing with neglected children, because it connects the
importance of the adult figure in their life with the progress of the child through the stages of development.

Erikson’s theory shows the necessity of basic trust in a child’s life is very important for stable and healthy
growth (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 116). “According to Erikson, the infant will develop a sense of trust if
their needs for food and care are met with comforting regularity and responsiveness from caregivers”
(Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 116). Students who have been neglected are not always receiving this care. If
the child has struggled to trust the parent figure in their life, they may struggle to trust a teacher. Even
though they may not be able to trust this figure in their life it is important they learn to trust other people in
their life. This can be done through creating a buddy system, by pairing the students with someone who they
can build a relationship and become comfortable with.

The second stage (autonomy versus shame and doubt) addresses the issues of responsibility and self-
confidence (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 116). Autonomy cannot be reached in this stage if the child does
not have a responsible adult figure looking after them, providing positive influences. If the parent does not
reassure the child they may begin to doubt themselves. This means if the child does not have contact with
assurance the child will struggle to believe in themselves later in life (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 116). It is
important that teachers provide the student with reassurance and praise because they did not/do not, have
this growing up.

The initiative versus guilt stage shows the importance of children being involved with activities (Woolfolk &
Margetts 2013, p. 116). This means if a child of neglect does not have access to these activities, they will not
be able to experience initiative thoughts. However, if the child has access to the activities but is constantly
put down, they will eventually develop guilt and a sense of failure (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 116 - 117).
Failure at this stage can harm the child’s development because they will not want to explore and they will
lack in confidence. A way to allow students to be engaged with the content is to support them whilst giving
them space to show initiative.

By applying the path of industry (fourth stage), (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 116) the child will be
comfortable and confident with whom they are and the skills they learn. However, if the child instead follows
the inferiority path, the child will be very timid and afraid of learning new things. This can be found in
children of neglect as they have not been able to apply the previous stages. Due to their family lifestyle, they
do not always feel welcomed. Educators need to be able to encourage these students to try new activities
and not be afraid to fail. These “failures” help children develop their resilience.

Erikson’s psycho-social theory (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 116) shows the importance of support and
confidence within the child. This theory allows educators to identify what stage the child is in at one
particular time and use strategies recognised for each different stage to help the child. The main strength of
this theory is its basic guideline as to where the child is staged and how to further the child’s development.
However, Erikson’s theory does not cater to the individual child. As a child may move regularly between
stages it will become difficult for educators to identify a specific way of incorporating each strategy into one.

Piaget’s theory proposes four stages of cognitive development: sensorimotor; preoperational; concrete
operations and formal operations (Ormrod 2014, p. 29). Children in the early years of their primary schooling
would be in the preoperational stage. This stage is based around those children aged about two to seven
(Ormrod 2014, p. 29). In this stage the children are not able to think logically like adults, however their
language and symbolic thinking now increases (Ormrod 2014, p. 29). This is when the child learns how to use
symbols and words to communicate their emotions and needs (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 84-85). This
can be hard for the neglected child because they may not have had an opportunity to learn these symbols
and words used in everyday life. Simple imitation and semiotic function (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 84-85)
can also be hard to grasp for a child who has not had a lot of contact with others. To be able to help children
who have been neglected, educators must be able to show a great deal of support and care for the child to
help gain these skills.

Piaget’s theory suggests that adults think in different ways to children as they have more skills and
experience with language (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 81). This means it is reasonable to suggest that if a
child being raised in a positive environment was not able to understand the concept being taught, the
neglected child would find the content extremely difficult to come to terms with because neglect inhibits the
development of schemas.

“Sometimes all you need to do to teach a new concept is to give students a few basic facts… At other times,
however, all the facts in the world are useless” (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 81). This quote shows that if a
student is not prepared or have the ability to learn a new concept, the information given to them to learn
this new concept will not be useful. This shows that Piaget’s theory includes the necessity of basic knowledge
and commitment to the world around us. This knowledge will allow stable progression for the child.

The first factor of Piaget’s theory is maturation. This factor is the most critical for neglected children because
this stage explores the importance of nourishment and care to develop physically, socially, emotionally and
cognitively (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 82). If the child does not experience this care, they will struggle to
develop thoroughly (Smith & Fong 2004, p. 16).

The second factor of Piaget’s theory is activity (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 82). This factor takes into
consideration exploration and observation of the world. This can be hard for neglected children because they
may lack experience and confidence and will often feel very insecure, afraid of the unknown and unwilling to
try new things. This in relation to Erickson’s inferiority stage allows a deeper understanding as to why the
child may be struggling if they have been neglected.
Some neglected children may not be able to develop their social transmission skills as well as other children
because they do not have a secure adult figure in their life, apart from their teacher or other significant adult
figure (grandparent). This is why it is important for the teacher to be supportive of these students as they are
not exposed to this role model at home (Pearce & Pezzot-Pearce 2007, p.31-34).

Piaget’s theory is useful for understanding why the neglected child may not understand the content at hand.
It gives an idea of what tools need to be used (symbols, interaction) to help the child to build these skills
(Ormrod 2014, p. 29). The theory however, is only a guide and does not account for every student’s
individual needs (Ormrod 2014, p. 35). This means it is difficult for educators to understand what a particular
student should be able to understand at a certain time.

These three theories (Bandura’s Social Learning theory, Erikson’s psycho-social development theory and
Piaget’s theory of cognitive development) (Woolfolk & Margetts 2013, p. 81, 115, 315) are all useful for
determining the stages and strategies educators may use to help the neglected child. In conjunction these
theories can greatly benefit educators by providing basic needs of children of their age and skill level. This
can be used to identify students not only are/have been neglected but those who have struggled to develop
as regularly as other students have.

Piaget’s theory of cognitive development and Erickson’s psycho-social development theory (Woolfolk &
Margetts 2013, p. 81, 115) both describe milestones in development to help identify students who are
struggling. These milestones are steps which might alert teachers to situations where a child is in danger.
These theories are the most useful when dealing with a neglected child. This is because there are clear
milestones to reach in each phase and if they are not met, more in-depth investigation can be done to
recognise why.

Research from the University of Dundee states, “professionals tend to have higher thresholds for identifying
neglect than the general public.” To help support those students who are being neglected pre-service
teachers are able to report any suspected issues. Pre-service teachers are also now trained to help recognise
children who are in need (University of South Australia 2015). This means that future generations of teachers
will hopefully become more aware of the signs of a neglected child and easily have the knowledge to be able
to do something about it.

In some cases, children who are being neglected will be reported and soon after, relocated to another
family/care facility. Teachers are there for support and to identify those who they believe are being
mistreated. This can be difficult, however it is a necessary part of being an educator. “Any… teacher… will
recognise the portrait of children who are neglected and will recognise the devastating impact of neglect on
healthy development” (Stevenson 2007, p. xi).
References:

Cicchetti, D & Carlson, V 1989, Child maltreatment: Theory and research on the causes and consequences of
child abuse and neglect, Cambridge University Press, Melbourne.

Daniel, B, Taylor, J & Scott, J 2009, Noticing and helping the neglected child, University of Dundee, viewed 2
May 2015, <http://discovery.dundee.ac.uk/portal/files/1318982/DCSF_RBX_09_03.pdf>.

Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services 2015, Signs of child abuse and neglect,
Queensland Government, viewed 11 April 2015, <https://www.communities.qld.gov.au/childsafety
/protecting-children/what-is-child-abuse/signs-of-child-abuse-and-neglect>.

DeVito, D 1996, Matilda, DVD, Sony Pictures.

Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders 2015, Neglect, Mind Disorders, viewed 25 June 2015,
<http://www.minddisorders.com/Kau-Nu/Neglect.html>.

Iwaniec, D 2006, The emotionally abused and neglected child: identification, assessment and intervention: a
practice handbook, John Wiley & Sons, viewed 9 April 2015, <https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&l
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Ormrod, JE 2014, Educational psychology developing learners, 8th edn, Pearson Education, Inc., USA.

Pearce, JW & Pezzot-Pearce, TD 2007, Psychotherapy of Abused and Neglected Children, 2nd edn, Guilford
Publications, viewed 16 April 2015, <https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=wwBPAgAA
QBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=neglected+children&ots=sKBzasyKoi&sig=o1W7fkopWsbEVB6pvDDl7Ae6PUE#v=
onepage&q=neglected%20children&f=false>.

Siegel, M 1991, Knowing children experiments in conversation and cognition, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates
Ltd, East Sussex, UK.

Smith, M & Fong, R 2004, The children of neglect when no one cares, Brunner-Routledge, East Sussex, UK.

Stevenson, O 2007, Neglected children and their families, 2nd edn, John Wiley & Sons, viewed 2 May 2015
<https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=ii4MFOhkvQ0C&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=neglected+childre
n&ots=u33B-E-FnX&sig=ozUZDzVClG_F7mX9r8nnaRhUXc0#v=onepage&q=neglected%20children&f=false>.

University of South Australia 2015, Legal issues and professional boundaries around the development of
relationships, University of South Australia, viewed 20 March 2015, <https://lo.unisa.edu.au/mod/book/vie
w.php?id=243717&chapterid=37420>.
Williams, A 2014, A terrible thing happened, Good Reads Inc., viewed 11 April 2015, <http://www.
goodreads.com/book/show/1095833.A_Terrible_Thing_Happened>.

Woolfolk, A & Margetts K 2013, Educational psychology, 3rd edn, Pearson Australia, Frenchs Forest, NSW.