Research: Preparing teachers to support students with asthma
One in every 12 children has asthma, making it the most common chronic condition in children. But many teachers lack the training needed to support those students, according to a new study from the University of Georgia.
The researchers began studying asthma in schools in 2001, when only a handful of states had laws that let students keep their rescue inhalers with them at school. As more students faced medical emergencies because they didn’t have access to their inhalers, more states passed self-carry laws.
The present study drew from survey data from more than 500 teachers. Even though self-carry laws now exist in all 50 states, over half of teachers surveyed were not sure if their state had one.
“In general, the field prepares teachers to address children’s special educational needs, such as learning disabilities or speech and language challenges,” said Stacey Neuharth-Pritchett, corresponding author of the study and a professor in the Mary Frances Early College of Education. “We don’t spend as much time as we need to help teachers understand the array of chronic medical conditions that youth bring with them to classrooms.”