photo by Liz/ CC2.0
Editor's note: This excerpt from an article in the Storm Lake Pilot-Tribune in Storm Lake, Iowa highlights how teachers in the Storm Lake School District are being trained in how to recognize trauma in their English Language Learners, which make up the majority of the student population.
"With 63 percent of Storm Lake’s students being English language learners (ELL), cultural diversity is a given for teachers. But the trauma inherent with immigrants and refugees in today’s climate brings a new layer of stress to students—one that some teachers may find themselves less prepared to address.
Imagine being detained in isolation for months on end after your family brings you across the border. It’s a reality right now for 14,000 children.
Think about the ever-present fear of coming home from school to find your parents were arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement while you were gone—giving your family a crippling fear when leaving the house. It’s a reality even for American citizens—4.1 million of them, to be exact—who have at least one undocumented parent."
Click here to read more of this story in the Pilot-Tribune by Elijah Decious
To learn how pediatricians are working cross sector with schools and other stakeholders and with their patients, you can also check out our ACEs Connection webinar The Trauma Toll on Pediatric Immigrants, Refugees and their Families and our blog post about it.
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