Navigating Loss and Grief within Educational Environments

The field of education often overlooks the crucial and complex subjects of loss, death, and grief. Addressing these topics presents educators with challenging questions about the most effective ways to introduce and manage discussions surrounding them. The sensitive nature of these subjects, combined with societal taboos, cultural beliefs, and parental apprehensions, often relegates conversations about them to peripheral discussions rather than central curricular themes.

Recent research highlights the necessity to shine light on the need of incorporating death education as an integral part of schooling, emphasizing that conversations around death ultimately are discussions about life. The inclusion of death education could have the potential to help the whole educational community (students, parents, teachers, and staff) navigate the complexities of life with greater resilience and understanding. Despite significant strides, a structured approach to integrating these life experiences into the education system remains in early stages, necessitating further exploration and study.

This Research Topic aims to explore and establish educational frameworks and best practices for incorporating discussions of loss, death, grief, and bereavement within educational settings. By emphasizing the importance of confronting these challenging themes, it seeks to destigmatize them and empower educators to navigate them confidently. The ultimate objective is to transform the current educational landscape to be more inclusive and supportive, fostering a community that is prepared to engage with these topics openly and constructively. By examining current research and methodologies, we also aim to underline the necessity of structural changes that facilitate such conversations in schools.

To gather further insights, this Research Topic welcomes diverse approaches across educational stages, mental health, and complex illness scenarios. We welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

• Beliefs of education professionals regarding grief and death;
• Collective grief;
• Curriculum integration;
• Emotional education;
• Hospital pedagogy & Palliative care;
• Inclusion of students with complex illnesses;
• Interventions with parents, educators, students, or staff;
• Pedagogy of death;
• Psychosocial support for teachers;
• Support groups in educational settings;
• Teacher training initiatives.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Registered Report
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Bereavement Curriculum, Death Education, Hospital Education, Grief, Palliative Care, Pedagogy of Death

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.