THE HIDDEN CURRICULUM OF SILENCE AFTER A STUDENT’S SUICIDE: IMPACTS OF SCHOOL POSTVENTION ON LEARNING, BELONGING, AND RETENTION AMONG BEREAVED STUDENTS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63330/aurumpub.062-088Keywords:
Adolescence, Educational management, Grief, Mental health, Protection networkAbstract
Adolescent suicide is a multidimensional phenomenon with far-reaching consequences for students, families, professionals, and school communities. Although schools are recognized as strategic settings for protection, responses following a student’s death remain insufficiently systematized, particularly regarding their effects on grief, school belonging, and educational continuity. This study aimed to analyze the scientific literature on suicide postvention in school settings, identifying practices, responsibilities, and research gaps. A scoping review guided by the PRISMA-ScR framework was conducted in Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed/MEDLINE, PsycINFO, ERIC, SciELO, and the Virtual Health Library, covering publications from 2011 to July 2026. After identifying 98 records, removing 17 duplicates, screening the remaining records, and assessing 39 full-text articles, 21 studies were included in the synthesis. The findings revealed a research concentration on prevention and risk identification, limited evaluation of postvention practices, and a scarcity of studies addressing learning, attendance, and school retention. They also highlighted the importance of safe communication, school belonging, professional training, and coordination among schools, families, and intersectoral protection networks. Suicide postvention should therefore be established as an ongoing institutional policy capable of disrupting the hidden curriculum of silence while integrating psychosocial support, safeguarding life, and educational continuity through sustained follow-up and institutional evaluation.
Downloads
References
ALLEN, K.-A.; GREENWOOD, C. J.; BERGER, E.; PATLAMAZOGLOU, L.; REUPERT, A.; WURF, G.; MAY, F.; O’CONNOR, M.; SANSON, A.; OLSSON, C. A.; LETCHER, P. Adolescent school belonging and mental health outcomes in young adulthood: findings from a multi-wave prospective cohort study. School Mental Health, v. 16, p. 149–160, 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-023-09626-6
ALLEN, K.-A.; SLATEN, C. D.; ARSLAN, G.; ROFFEY, S.; CRAIG, H.; VELLA-BRODRICK, D. A. School belonging: the importance of student and teacher relationships. In: KERN, M. L.; WEHMEYER, M. L. (ed.). The Palgrave handbook of positive education. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021. p. 525–550. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64537-3_21
BALDINI, V.; GNAZZO, M.; VARALLO, G.; DI VINCENZO, M.; SCORZA, M.; FRANCESCHINI, C.; DE RONCHI, D.; FIORILLO, A.; PLAZZI, G. A comprehensive approach to adolescent suicide prevention: insights from a narrative review perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, v. 16, e1612067, 2025. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1612067
BREET, E.; MATOOANE, M.; TOMLINSON, M.; BANTJES, J. Systematic review and narrative synthesis of suicide prevention in high-schools and universities: a research agenda for evidence-based practice. BMC Public Health, v. 21, e1116, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-11124-w
DE OLIVEIRA, J. M.; DUEÑAS, J.-M.; MORALES-VIVES, F.; GALLARDO-NIETO, E. Educational agents and institutions called into action in suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention. Frontiers in Psychology, v. 14, e1213751, 2023. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1213751
DIAS, M. A. N.; FEITOSA, A. A.; SILVA, A. C. Q. da; SÁ, R. A. de; TROMBETA, D. C.; SILVA, L. A. G.; BATISTA, D. C. S.; TIRELLO, D. da C. Letramento, violência escolar e mediação de conflitos: contribuições para construção da cultura de paz no ambiente escolar. Periódicos Brasil: Pesquisa Científica, v. 5, n. 1, p. 1354–1373, 2026. DOI: https://doi.org/10.36557/2674-9432.2026v5n1p1354-1373
FONSECA-PEDRERO, E.; AL-HALABÍ, S.; PÉREZ-ALBÉNIZ, A.; DEBBANÉ, M. Risk and protective factors in adolescent suicidal behaviour: a network analysis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, v. 19, n. 3, e1784, 2022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19031784
HOSSEINI, A.; GHASEMI, E.; NIKBAKHT NASRABADI, A.; SAYADI, L. Strategies to improve hidden curriculum in nursing and medical education: a scoping review. BMC Medical Education, v. 23, e658, 2023. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-023-04652-z
KÄRNER, T.; SCHNEIDER, G. A scoping review on the hidden curriculum in education. RECAP: Global Perspectives, n. 1, p. 1–29, 2024.
LEE, C. A.; WILKINSON, T. J.; TIMMERMANS, J. A.; ALI, A. N.; ANAKIN, M. G. Revealing the impact of the hidden curriculum on faculty teaching: a qualitative study. Medical Education, v. 57, n. 8, p. 761–769, 2023. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.15026
MARTINS, J. R. M.; DIAS, M. A. N. Ações de polícia comunitária e patrulha escolar: prevenção da violência através da integração. Revista Foco, v. 18, n. 1, e7389, p. 1–22, 2025. DOI: https://doi.org/10.54751/revistafoco.v18n1-010
MÉNDEZ-BUSTOS, P.; TAPIA, A.; LOPEZ-CASTROMAN, J.; FUSTER-VILLASECA, J. Conducta suicida en adolescentes chilenos: un análisis multidimensional centrado en factores psicológicos, clínicos y sociofamiliares. Revista Médica de Chile, v. 153, n. 5, p. 362–372, 2025. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4067/S0034-98872025000500362
MORCILLO, V.; FERRER-RIBOT, M.; MUT-AMENGUAL, B.; BAGUR, S.; ROSSELLÓ, M. R. Mental health and suicide attempts in adolescents: a systematic review. Healthcare, v. 13, n. 9, e1039, 2025. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13091039
PRADES-CABALLERO, V.; NAVARRO-PÉREZ, J.-J.; CARBONELL, Á. Factors associated with suicidal behavior in adolescents: an umbrella review using the socio-ecological model. Community Mental Health Journal, v. 61, p. 612–628, 2025. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-024-01368-2
PETERS, M. D. J.; MARNIE, C.; TRICCO, A. C.; POLLOCK, D.; MUNN, Z.; ALEXANDER, L.; MCINERNEY, P.; GODFREY, C. M.; KHALIL, H. Updated methodological guidance for the conduct of scoping reviews. JBI Evidence Synthesis, v. 18, n. 10, p. 2119–2126, 2020. DOI: https://doi.org/10.11124/JBIES-20-00167
ROSSOUW, N.; FRICK, L. A conceptual framework for uncovering the hidden curriculum in private higher education. Cogent Education, v. 10, n. 1, e2191409, 2023. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2023.2191409
SUSKHA, F. Silent pedagogies and hidden curriculum in Arabic language instruction among rural madrasahs. Education Achievment: Journal of Science and Research, v. 6, n. 2, p. 884–894, 2025.
ŠTREMFEL, U.; ŠTERMAN IVANČIČ, K.; PERAS, I. Addressing the sense of school belonging among all students? A systematic literature review. European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education, v. 14, n. 11, p. 2901–2917, 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ejihpe14110190
TRICCO, A. C.; LILLIE, E.; ZARIN, W.; O’BRIEN, K. K.; COLQUHOUN, H.; LEVAC, D.; MOHER, D.; PETERS, M. D. J.; HORSLEY, T.; WEEKS, L.; HEMPEL, S.; AKL, E. A.; CHANG, C.; MCGOWAN, J.; STEWART, L.; HARTLING, L.; ALDCROFT, A.; WILSON, M. G.; GARRITTY, C.; LEWIN, S.; GODFREY, C. M.; MACDONALD, M. T.; LANGLOIS, É. V.; SOARES-WEISER, K.; MORIARTY, J.; CLIFFORD, T.; TUNÇALP, Ö.; STRAUS, S. E. PRISMA extension for scoping reviews (PRISMA-ScR): checklist and explanation. Annals of Internal Medicine, v. 169, n. 7, p. 467–473, 2018. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7326/M18-0850
WALSH, E. H.; MCMAHON, J.; HERRING, M. P. Research review: the effect of school-based suicide prevention on suicidal ideation and suicide attempts and the role of intervention and contextual factors among adolescents: a meta-analysis and meta-regression. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, v. 63, n. 8, p. 836–845, 2022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.13598
WEARE, K.; NIND, M. Mental health promotion and problem prevention in schools: what does the evidence say? Health Promotion International, v. 26, supl. 1, p. i29–i69, 2011. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/dar075
WEBB, M.; BAILEY, E.; LAMBLIN, M.; KRYSINSKA, K.; ROBINSON, J. What is the evidence for preparing for and responding to student suicide in schools? A systematic review. School Mental Health, v. 18, p. 339–356, 2026. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-025-09773-y
WILLIAMS, D. Y.; WEXLER, L.; MUELLER, A. S. Suicide postvention in schools: what evidence supports our current national recommendations? School Social Work Journal, v. 46, n. 2, p. 23–69, 2022.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
