Effective Learning begins when children feel safe

Kathryn Berkett, a neurobiologist and trauma expert, reminds us of a profound truth that too many classrooms overlook: learning begins when children feel safe. This isn’t merely a sentimental statement – it’s a biological, psychological and educational fact rooted in how the brain develops and functions.

Children are not just vessels waiting to be filled with knowledge. They are complex human beings with emotions, histories, and needs. When these needs are unmet, especially the basic need for safety, learning becomes nearly impossible. In the absence of emotional and physical safety, the brain activates its survival mode. This state, driven by the limbic system, prioritises defence and alertness over reasoning and reflection. A child who is anxious, threatened, or unstable isn’t defiant or disinterested – they are neurologically unavailable for learning.

Kathryn Berkett’s insight challenges us to redefine the role of the teacher. Beyond content delivery, the educator becomes a builder of safe spaces. This safety is not just about physical environments, though clean, predictable classrooms matter.

It is about relational safety—the trust that students place in their teachers and classmates. Do they feel seen? Heard? Respected? Do they know they won’t be humiliated for getting it wrong or punished for being vulnerable?

In schools where strict discipline overshadows empathy, children quickly learn that fear governs their experience. This may produce compliance, but it does not foster genuine engagement.

Learning fueled by fear is fragile; learning nurtured by safety and connection is enduring. Berkett reminds us that emotional safety must precede academic rigour. When a child is confident that they are safe, they are more willing to explore, to make mistakes, and to grow.

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This principle is especially vital in classrooms serving children from trauma-impacted backgrounds—those facing poverty, neglect, abuse, displacement, or instability. For them, school might be the only stable environment they encounter. What a waste it would be if that space mimicked the chaos they’re trying to escape.

Instead, let it be the opposite: a place where predictable routines, gentle tone, consistent boundaries, and unconditional positive regard create a sanctuary for the mind to open.

Safety is also not the absence of challenge. In fact, real learning involves risk – intellectual, social, and emotional.

But the paradox is this: risk is only possible when there is safety. A child won’t raise their hand to speak unless they’re sure they won’t be mocked. They won’t try the complex math problem unless they know they won’t be judged for failing. They won’t read aloud unless they trust the room.

Kathryn Berkett’s message is therefore both a caution and a call to action. Teachers, parents, school leaders, policymakers – if we want better learning outcomes, we must first ensure better emotional environments.

Curriculum changes, digital tools, and assessments mean nothing if a child sits in fear, confusion, or shame. Safety is not a luxury or soft skill—it is the soil in which all learning is planted.

Let us begin there. Let us greet each child not with a demand, but with an invitation: ‘You are safe here.’ Only then can the real work of teaching—and learning—truly begin.