Often students with learning struggles are afraid to ask for help, fearing ridicule from their classmates, or worse, their teacher. Children need to be assured that the teacher is kindly-disposed toward them and genuinely cares about their learning. Also, children need to understand they are in charge of their own actions and that they can act with competence...a tall order for children who have seen too much failure up close.
The educational therapist, because of the close and supportive relationship with the child, is attuned to children's insecurities about their abilities and their anxieties about seeking help. She guides the learner toward communicating their problems and needs with their teachers to prompt a more involved relationship with their teachers, one where the child can feel more comfortable about asking for help.
Through the safety of a nurturing and trusting relationship with the educational therapist, children can be guided to think about personal learning goals, especially ones that emphasize learning rather then performance (good grades.) Students who focus on performance are less interested in the process of learning and want only the answers, the lazy way of asking for help. Whereas, students who focus on the learning process, want to understand their errors and learn the problem-solving strategies, and appropriately seek help to this end.
In the educational therapy session, children can tackle acedemic challenges and experience the good feeling of mastering difficult tasks. The sense of competence they gain can carry over into the classroom where they may be less reluctant to seek help when some problems are too difficult.
Struggling learners can avoid asking for help for fear of embarrassment. The educational therapist can help build their confidence and competence.
Reference:
Newman, R. (2010) Encouraging students to seek academic help: the role of the educational therapist. The Educational Therapist 31(2), 8 - 10.