Effective Skills of Teachers of Students with TBI

People who work with or support students who have TBI should be taught, supported and encouraged in the use of these skills.

• Know the consequences of TBI in general and for the specific student with TBI.
• Have a good relationship with the student who has a TBI.
• Challenge the student and give honest proactive feedback.
• Provide opportunities for success while setting higher and higher expectations.
• Be optimistic about the student’s abilities and what the student might be doing in the next few years.
• Be able to find the positive in the student’s behavior and focus on it rather than looking for the negative.
• Be flexible enough to adapt to the changing needs of the student.
• Be creative and able to think outside the box.
• Focus on finding multiple solutions to problems and encourage the student to find his own solutions, too (generating multiple solutions to problems can be part of the student’s IEP).
• Be enthusiastic and supportive of the student’s progress.
• Be mature enough to allow the student to grow without creating dependence.

Adapted from:

Ylvisaker, M., & Feeney, T. (1998). Everyday people as supports: Developing competencies through collaboration. In. M. Ylvisaker (Ed.), Traumatic brain injury: Children and adolescents (pp. 429-445). Newton, MA: Butterwort-Heinemann.

Turkstra, L., & Kennedy, M. (2005). Evidence-based practice for cognitive-communication disorders after traumatic brain injury. Seminars in Speech & Language, 26(4), 213-214.