Classroom misbehaviour could indicate childhood trauma, a behaviour analyst told parents and teachers last night.

Frances Dunlop, clinical director at Intuition Ltd, said this trauma may not be a life-changing event but an earlier childhood experience that manifests itself at school.

She explained: “It’s so important to look at the bigger picture and involve schools, teachers and parents to figure out if there are experiences in a child’s life that are now presenting at school and the reason why are seeing a lot of the behaviour that we are.

“I think a lot of the cases are striving to fit these diverse children that are showing up and being born very different to ten years ago and trying to fit them into a mainstream class that hasn’t grown as quickly as our children have grown.”

Ms Dunlop joined Keisha Allen-Smith, founder of Target Learning, Donavin Durrant, of Success Academy, and Trina Davis-Williams, also of Intuition Ltd, on a behaviour panel at Victor Scott Primary School.

Representatives from Metanoia psychological services, WindReach, the Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute and Solstice were also at the event, which had dozens in attendance and ran for about two hours.

Ms Davis-Williams said students with low self-esteem either withdraw from other children or follow their peers to be accepted.

She explained: “Whether they know the behaviour is correct or not, following the child has more value to them, because they are getting the acceptance and a little bit of attention from that child, so they will do those behaviours and not even be worried about getting in trouble.”

Ms Allen-Smith said constant stress can psychologically harm students’ ability to focus in the long term.

She explained: “If a child is constantly stressed and constantly dealing with trauma, their amygdala, the part of the brain that processes emotions, is working overtime and the prefrontal cortex is shut off all the time.”

The prefrontal cortex is associated with functions such as planning, reasoning and decision-making.

Ms Allen-Smith added: “For children that are traumatised, most of the time, what makes a difference in their life is having at least one adult that is there for them, that supports them and shows them love.”

She encouraged parents to focus on their own and their children’s wellness, and Mr Durrant advised them to embrace change.

He said: “Every child learns different, so think outside the box; don’t be afraid of change and know, or get to know, your child.

“Once you get to know your child, you will know what to do with them, when to do it and how to do it.”