September 27, 2023
“Addi means so much to the children and staff at our school. There are children who need to see her every day and others who may check in with her occasionally but all of our community benefit from having Addi onsite. There is a measurable reduction in stress and anxiety when Addi is around”
Jenni Concilia
Students face many stressful and problematic situations—at school, at home, in their communities—not to mention the world news highlighting global warming and other catastrophes. Extraordinary situations require novel solutions, and one idea that has gained enormous traction in recent years is the introduction of emotional support dogs in schools. The connection between humans and dogs is long-standing, as evidenced by the 2011 discovery of a dog buried about 32,000 years ago, with what is believed to be a mammoth bone placed in his mouth. Radiocarbon dating has identified another dog, buried alongside a man and a woman in Ober-Kassel (Germany) approximately 14,300 years ago. While in ancient Egypt, the dog-headed Anubis guided spirits to the afterlife; our canine companions today provide invaluable, but different, service. Today, there are many favorite children’s books that explore relationships between children and their dogs such as the much loved American book “Clifford the Big Red Dog,” by Norman Bridwell or the Little Golden Book “The Poky Little Puppy”, by Janette Sebring Lowrey.
We interviewed Jenni Concilia, Head of Individual Needs for students from 3-12 years old at Wesley College, Glen Waverley Melbourne who is responsible for implementing the Therapy Dog program at the school. She explained that Therapy Dogs are first selected for their temperament and then trained, together with their handler, to be calm and obedient in order to provide emotional support, comfort, and companionship to different individuals in a variety of settings. ‘Addi’ is an emotional support dog in an Australian school and she is having a big impact on student wellbeing. Jenni outlined that she wants Addi to acquire and develop the following attributes:
- Being calm, friendly, and affectionate to students, staff and strangers.
- Enjoying socializing with unfamiliar people on campus and other dogs offsite.
- Being reliably gentle and obedient.
- Being confident and adaptable to novel noises, places, smells, and equipment.
Jenni shared a story about one transformative interaction between a student and Addi.
“In the very first month of introducing Addi to the school she was called upon to spend time with one of our young students. X, a six-year-old student from a trauma background, was dysregulated and was in a heightened state both verbally and physically. Addi and I were transitioning from one room to another and Addi instinctively went to X and placed herself against his leg, while he began stroking her soft fur. As a result, his yelling stopped, his breathing became deeper and more regulated, the tears stopped, and we were all able to witness an incredible transformation for this young student.”
Photos provided by Jenni Concilia, Wesley College, Glen Waverley Melbourne.
Jenni observed that older students in the school come to spend time with Addi prior to sitting their exams to help them de-stress and reduce their anxiety. With reference to Therapy Dogs and academic achievement, an interesting early study ‘Reading to Rover’ (2010) led by UC Davis’s Martin Smith, a veterinary school science educator, indicates that the mix of children, books, and dogs is a powerful way to increase reading fluency. The results showed participating students increased their reading fluency by 12% to 30%. This study was inspired by the ‘All Ears Reading Program’, an animal-assisted therapy program developed by St. Louis Cardinals’ baseball manager Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation of Walnut Creek. This program had seen anecdotally that children become better readers when they regularly read aloud to dogs, but the formal study results had to wait until UC Davis became involved with the project. “I feel relaxed when I am reading to a dog because I am having fun,” one child told researchers. “The dogs don’t care if you read really, really bad so you just keep going,” said another.
In addition to the impact dogs have on humans, the human-canine relationship has had a physiological impact on dogs. “Researchers have found that dogs have evolved muscles around their eyes, which allow them to make expressions that particularly appeal to humans (Coughlan, 2019). Although driven by dogs’ need to survive, this development is indicative of the deep and powerful bond we share with them. Sadly, dogs can also suffer at human hands, however, if we were as empathic and generous with other living creatures as we are with dogs, this could have major implications for our relationship with other living creatures. Many educators are concerned by the alarming rise in social and emotional problems besetting our students, so we must consider different solutions as many of our past programs have not always been as successful as we had hoped. There is a wealth of research that shows benefits for the whole school community when a therapy dog joins. Having seen first-hand Addi’s contribution to Wesley College Junior School, maybe it’s time to see if your school is interested in the support of a dog for your students who are struggling emotionally and socially.
References
Alliance of Therapy Dogs (Ed.). (2022, April 28). How do Therapy Dogs Help in the Classroom? Retrieved September 21, 2023, from https://www.therapydogs.com/how-do-therapy-dogs-help-in-the-classroom/
CASEL (Ed.). (2023). What Is the CASEL Framework? Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning CASEL.org. Retrieved September 21, 2023, from https://casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/what-is-the-casel-framework/
Concilia, J. (2023, September 15). [Personal interview by the author].
Convert, G. (2023). The human-dog relationship – a historical perspective. Boheringer-Ingelheim. Retrieved September 21, 2023, from https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.com/our-responsibility/animal-health-news/human-dog-relationship-historical-perspective
Coughlan, S. (2019, June 18). Dogs’ eyes evolve to appeal to humans. BBC News. Retrieved September 21, 2023, from https://www.bbc.com/news/education-48665618Jones, D. (2010, April 16). READING TO ROVER: Does it really help children? Veterinary school says ‘yes’. UCDavis.edu. Retrieved September 21, 2023, from https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/reading-rover-does-it-really-help-children-veterinary-school-says-%E2%80%98yes%E2%80%99
You may also be interested in reading more articles written by Meredith Harbord EdD and Sara Riaz Khan for Intrepid Ed News.
