Measuring Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), Using Social-Emotional Screeners, and Improving Students' Mental Health (Volume 2, Episode 18)

Davey and Angela discuss the current state of students' mental health across the country, and the challenges that schools face relative to addressing these students' social-emotional needs. Based on a September 21, 2024 Blog by Dr. Howie Knoff, your hosts discuss (a) the characteristics and concerns with social-emotional screening tools; (b) the use of the ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences (screening tool in particular; and (c) the importance of understanding the results social-emotional screening tool, and the limitations of using the ACEs-- especially by itself. Davey and Angela discuss a recent ACEs study that found correlations between ACEs' scores for young students’ and their social-emotional--but not their academic--status. They note at the same time the serious limitations with the validity of ACEs assessments, and the tool's (in)ability to causally explain students’ social-emotional—and, especially, trauma-related—difficulties. The many reasons (beyond traumatic events) that explain students’ significant social-emotional challenges are presented, as well as a discussion of the Tier 2 and 3 interventions that are available. The discussion concludes by emphasizing that comprehensive diagnostic assessments are needed to understand the root causes of students' social-emotional challenges. These causes need to be linked to a multi-tiered support system that includes a range of interventions and trained mental health professionals. Through Dr. Howie's work, Davey and Angela conclude that an ecological approach to social-emotional assessment, and a holistic approach to intervention is superior to relying solely on ACEs scores.