Overcoming School Refusal. Joanne Garfi

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Название Overcoming School Refusal
Автор произведения Joanne Garfi
Жанр Социальная психология
Серия
Издательство Социальная психология
Год выпуска 0
isbn 9781925644050



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      First published 2018 by:

      Australian Academic Press Group Pty. Ltd.

      18 Victor Russell Drive

      Samford Valley QLD 4520, Australia

       www.australianacademicpress.com.au

      Copyright © 2018 Joanne Garfi

       Copying for educational purposes

      The Australian Copyright Act 1968 (Cwlth) allows a maximum of one chapter or 10% of this book, whichever is the greater, to be reproduced and/or communicated by any educational institution for its educational purposes provided that the educational institution (or the body that administers it) has given a remuneration notice to Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) under the Act.

      For details of the CAL licence for educational institutions contact:

      Copyright Agency Limited, 19/157 Liverpool Street, Sydney, NSW 2000.

      E-mail [email protected]

       Production and communication for other purposes

      Except as permitted under the Act, for example a fair dealing for the purposes of study, research, criticism or review, no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder.

      Overcoming School Refusal: A practical guide for teachers, counsellors, caseworkers and parents

ISBN9781925644043 (paperback)
ISBN9781925644050 (ebook)

      Publisher: Stephen May

      Copy editing: Rhonda McPherson

      Cover design: Luke Harris, Working Type Studio

      Typesetting: Australian Academic Press

      Printing: Lightning Source

      Contents

      Chapter 3 The impacts of school refusal

      Chapter 4 What professionals can do

      Chapter 5 What parents can do

      Chapter 6 Treatment for school refusal

      Chapter 7 Treating high achievers who are school refusing

      Chapter 8 Treating students with autism spectrum disorder who are school refusing

       Helpful Resources

       Endnotes

       Acknowledgements

      The idea for this book came as something of an epiphany during a road trip with a friend in 2017 and has only become a reality with the help and support of some very special people. Firstly, I would like to thank my daughters and husband who never once doubted I could do this even though I had many, many doubts and fears. Special thanks also go to my publisher and co-conspirator Stephen May who could see the potential in this book and said so from day one. Stephen, you will never know how much that first conversation we had meant to me. Thank you for believing in me and guiding me through to this point. You have been amazing. I’d also like to thank my dear friend and mentor Dr Angela Ramagnano who offered support and encouragement when I felt like I was fraying at the edges. You have been an earth angel since the day I met you. Finally, but certainly not least, I would like to thank the families and students who have enriched my knowledge by allowing me to work with them. All the theories, differential diagnoses and treatment modalities mean nothing if you do not have the right people to work with and learn from. This book is for you and all the ‘you’ that I will meet in the future. Together we can do this!

       About the Author

      Joanne Garfi is a psychologist with over 30 years of experience and expertise in child and adolescent issues. She has 9 years’ experience as a school psychologist, working in both primary and secondary schools providing specialised training to teachers. She has a special interest in the treatment of anxiety and panic disorder and is well known for her work with childhood anxiety, behavioural disorders and developmental issues. She currently conducts workshops on school refusal around Australia. Joanne uses a variety of treatment modalities and prefers to take a whole person approach to treatment. Her emphasis when working with children is to have families and schools working together to bring about change.

       Chapter 1

       What is school refusal?

      School refusal is a complex issue that is stressful for the child, their family and the school. The more time a child is away from school, the more difficult it is for the child to resume normal school life. If school refusal becomes an ongoing issue it can negatively impact the child’s social and educational development.

      Children who develop school refusal display severe emotional and cognitive stress in the face of attending school. While it is a well established behavioural condition, it is not recognised as a disorder in its own right within the main diagnostic tool used by psychologists and psychiatrists to reliably diagnose disorders — the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5).1 There is, however, a consensus in the literature that school refusal is characterised by absences from school that can be over extended periods of time, periodic, general tardiness or repeated missed classes. It is driven by intense feelings of anxiety that can arise from a variety of causes, which we will discuss further in future chapters.

      In contrast to the issue of truancy, an anxious child who refuses to attend school does so because they are genuinely distressed. A school refuser will often attempt to get up in the morning, put on their uniform, have breakfast and may even