‘We Send Them To Mrs Jones And She Deals With It’

: Key Stage 2 Teachers’ Experiences Supporting Bereaved Children Of Diverse Religious Backgrounds

Abstract

Teachers are likely to teach bereaved children during their career but research shows they have little experience of bereavement support. Reviewing the literature in this area reveals there is no research focusing on the impact of religious and cultural beliefs in supporting bereaved children. The aim of this research project is to explore primary teachers’ experiences of supporting bereaved children of diverse religious backgrounds, and their needs when doing so. This is supported by three sub aims: to establish teachers’ experience of bereavement training, to identify the resources they have access to in supporting bereaved pupils, and to explore their involvement with local religious communities in a bereavement context.

To gain initial data, a survey was distributed to primary teachers working in a town in the south of England. This was followed up with semi-structured interviews to gain richer data. The research found that participants did not have access to bereavement training or resources and had not engaged with local religious communities. As a result, although all participants felt comfortable discussing death in general, they were afraid of saying the wrong thing. This was particularly the case when children were of different religious and cultural backgrounds to the participants. Their fear prevented them supporting bereaved children themselves and instead they relied on colleagues who were assumed to be more knowledgeable about death and loss. These findings demonstrate a need for teachers to have access to culturally-sensitive bereavement training, ensuring they are better prepared to support the grieving children in their care.

Date of Award	15 Jul 2024
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Winchester
Supervisor	Alasdair Richardson (Supervisor) & Tina Welch (Supervisor)