Educating students with insecure attachment histories: toward an interdisciplinary theoretical framework

Abstract

Middle school students with insecure attachment histories present a particular challenge for school personnel. These students frequently cause behavioural disruptions and fail to academically engage in course content. This paper draws from attachment theory, as well as literature in the fields of education, neurobiology and psychology, to establish a theoretical framework for future research on teachers and attachment. The framework illustrates conceptual linkages between research from these academic disciplines to show that teachers can play a role in the rehabilitation of students' internal working models and attachment strategies, especially during this key developmental period.

Keywords:

• attachment theory
• early adolescents
• student–teacher relationships

Aknowledgement

I thank Dan Siegel for his generous comments on earlier drafts of this article.