'The Biology of Attainment' Keynote from Suzanne Zeedyk

1. 1
The biology of attainment
Dr. Suzanne Zeedyk
Univ of Dundee & connected baby
AHDS Conference
April 2017
The impact of emotional trauma
on attainment
Dr. Suzanne Zeedyk
Univ of Dundee & connected baby
AHDS Conference
April 2017
What happens when schools
help pupils fight anxiety?
Dr. Suzanne Zeedyk
Univ of Dundee & connected baby
AHDS Conference
April 2017
What happens when an attainment
strategy overlooks anxiety?
Dr. Suzanne Zeedyk
Univ of Dundee & connected baby
AHDS Conference
April 2017
What happens when an attainment
strategy overlooks biology?
Dr. Suzanne Zeedyk
Univ of Dundee & connected baby
AHDS Conference
April 2017 Musicians
Voluntary sector

2. 2
My message
1. Babies arrive already connected.
2. Connection shapes brain development.
3. Society suffers when babies (and adults)
don’t feel connected.
Today
1. Scottish Attainment Challenge
2. Trauma
3. Changing a nation
Today
1. Scottish Attainment Challenge
2. Trauma
3. Changing a nation
A controversial start…
A controversial start…
The Scottish Attainment Strategy
will fail
unless it takes account of
children’s biology.
A controversial start…
The Scottish Attainment Strategy
will fail
unless it is based in
an understanding of
emotional trauma.

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6 March 2017 We aren’t getting it
““The three environmental
conditions absolutely essential
to optimal human brain
development are: nutrition,
physical security, and consistent
emotional nurturing. …
The third one – emotional
nurturance – is the one most
likely to be disrupted in Western
society.”
2010
“Christakis argues that most of
today’s youngest children are
spending their critical early-
learning years in environments
that ignore or misunderstand
their needs…. The kind of
respectful observation that
children need -- of what they
can (and can’t) do -- is rare in
early childhood settings.”
2016
2014
8 January 2017
“Boys are more vulnerable to neuropsychiatric
disorders that appear in the early years, such as
autism and ADHD. Early disorders have been
increasing in recent years. Notably, more babies have
also been put into daycare settings in recent years,
nearly all of which provide inadequate care for babies.”

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Upworthy.com
August 2015
Social skills of 800 kindergarteners were measured.
At age 25:
• For every one-point increase in a child's social skill score
in kindergarten, a child would be 54% more likely to finish
secondary school, twice as likely to graduate from
university, and 46% more likely to have a stable, full-time
job at age 25.
• For every one-point decrease in scores, a child had a 67%
higher chance of having been arrested in early adulthood,
a 52% higher rate of binge drinking and an 82% higher
chance of being in public housing.
Conclusion:
“The bottom line? We need to do more than
just teach kids information. We need to
invest in teaching them how to relate to
others and how to handle the things they're
feeling inside.
Ignoring social skills in our curricula
could have huge ramifications for our kids
down the road.”
One in 4 foster children moved at least once.
Some moved 7 times.
21 Sep 2015
2/3 have experienced 4 or more bereavements Some have had 22 care placements by age of 15

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26 Jan
2016
“Children as young as 3 have been disciplined for
assaults on nursery school staff in Dundee.”
The biology of attainment
Facebook Response:
12,000 reach:
“This is a sorely neglected topic.”
“Head teachers need to hear this.”
“Someone from our setting needs to go to this!”
“I’m looking forward to hearing it!”
“When are you coming to speak to the heedies?”
“Please send a copy to Mr. Swinney.”
Today
1. Scottish Attainment Challenge
2. Trauma
3. Changing a nation
Adverse Childhood Experiences Study
1998
https://vimeo.com/214183672
Adverse Childhood Experiences Study
(ACE Study)
• 1995-1997
• 17,000 patients undergoing standard physical
health examinations in USA
• Published as: ‘The relationship of adult health
status to childhood abuse and household
dysfunction’ (American Journal of Preventative
Medicine, 1998)

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Childhood Experiences
Abuse:
Physical abuse
Emotional abuse
Sexual abuse
Neglect:
Emotional neglect
Physical neglect
Household Dysfunction:
Mother treated violently
Substance misuse
Parent mental illness
Parent in prison
Parental divorce
Consequences for health
• Liver disease
• Heart disease
• Depression
• Fetal death
• Illicit drug use
• Alcoholism
• Health-related
quality of life
• Early sexual activity
• Adolescent
pregnancy
• Partner violence
• Smoking
• Suicide attempts
• Sexually transmitted
disease
Number of Adverse Childhood Experiences
(ACE Score)
No. Experiences Percent
0 36%
1 26%
2 16%
3 10%
4 or more 13%
Adverse Childhood Experiences Study
1998
My meetings last week
Nadine Burke Harris

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February 2016
July 2016
https://vimeo.com/137282528
Scottish Tour
Glasgow Edinburgh Dundee
Inverness Kirkcaldy Airdrie
Aberdeen Ardrossan Kirkwall
Tranent Greenock Dumfries
Stirling Hamilton
www.connectedbaby.net / events

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My meetings last week: Outcome
Today
1. Scottish Attainment Challenge
2. Trauma
3. Changing a nation
We have arrived at a
landmark moment in Scottish history

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“The cheery
chimney sweep”
1904

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Where to start?
1. Mindfulness
1. Mindfulness
“I love the idea I’ve seen of schools doing
mindfulness and meditation, instead of
detention. It could result in less children
being labelled as ‘bad’ or ‘hyper’. I don’t
think it even needs to be a big Randomised
Control Trial or anything like that. It just
needs to be a normal, every day thing in
schools.”
2. Change our language
Pitteuchar East Primary School, Fife
2. Change our language
“We changed our
language, from
‘challenging
behaviour’
to
‘distressed
behaviour’.
That’s all we did.
It transformed
the school.”
If we don’t help our children
feel safe…
…we can’t help them learn

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Thank you
www.suzannezeedyk.com
www.connectedbaby.net