Page 49 - Education Supplement February 2026

EDITORIAL

This is true for children with recognised learning This is not indifference on the part of educators. Many teachers
differences, for those who are neurodivergent, and want to understand their learners better and support them
for many children who have never been labelled at more effectively. What is often missing is access to training that
all. Human variation is the norm, not the exception. fully embraces the child as both a human being and a learner,
rather than as a set of academic or behavioural outcomes.
Schools, however, are built around pace, coverage,
and visible performance. This is not because Much professional development focuses on difficulties once
teachers do not care. It is because the systems they they escalate, rather than on recognising and building
work within prioritise what can be measured easily strengths that can help address them. Attention is drawn to
and consistently. Effort, regulation, and internal what is not working, instead of how a child’s existing abilities
strain are harder to see, and harder to support. might support learning, regulation, and confidence.

When strain begins to show, it usually appears first For parents, this gap is especially hard to navigate because
in behaviour. struggle does not always look dramatic. A child may cope well
enough to pass. They may be articulate, polite, and outwardly
Behaviour is where overload, anxiety, fatigue, successful. The cost is internal. Exhaustion. Anxiety. A growing
confusion, and misalignment surface. It is often sense that learning is something to endure rather than
the clearest signal that something in the learning engage with.
experience is not quite fitting. Too often, behaviour is
treated as a separate issue to be managed rather Because systems are designed to notice failure more readily
than information that can deepen understanding. than strain, many children are missed until something gives.

“Behaviour tells us how a child is coping,” says This is not about blame. It reflects the reality of complex
Kate La Trobe, co-founder of Breaking All Barriers. classrooms, limited training pathways, and systems under
“When expectations exceed a child’s capacity to pressure. Teachers, parents, and children are often doing their
regulate, behaviour is where that strain shows best within structures that were never designed to hold the full
up first.” range of human learning.

A child who struggles to sit still may be dealing with What makes a difference is a more connected way of working.
regulation demands that exceed their capacity. A
child who disengages may be overwhelmed rather Support is most effective when learning, behaviour, emotional
than unmotivated. A child who resists may be regulation, environment, and context are considered together.
protecting themselves from repeated failure. When When adults pause long enough to understand how a child
responses focus only on correcting what is visible, learns, what supports regulation, and which strengths can be
the underlying challenge remains unchanged. used to meet challenges.

Education | February 2026 | 47