Children and Trauma: Critical Perspectives for Meeting the Needs of Diverse Educational Communities (Educational Psychology: Meaning Making for Teachers and Learners) 1975503430, 9781975503437

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Advance Praise for Children And Trauma: Critical Perspectives for Meeting the Needs of Diverse Educational Communities Children And Trauma performs a major public service. The work of Kramer and McKenzie will help administrators, educators and most importantly children. As a clinician and educator, the need for trauma informed practices in our school systems has never been greater. This book provides hope for schools to integrate and meet the mental health needs of children in schools. —Dr. Brad Simpson, Director of Research and Development Sunrise Residential Treatment Center and owner of 3rd Wave Counseling and Consulting This timely and informative book is a must read for educators and beyond seeking to fully understand childhood trauma. With a unique social justice lens, readers are offered a theoretical framework of trauma, as well as practical and effective interventions. Chapters propose a range of actions to guide a path forward, from pre-service preparation to in-service practices, including applications across divergent settings. The book’s broad scope makes it especially appealing to a variety of educational and social service professionals, all of whom are certain to regularly encounter children who have experienced trauma. —Dr. Lee Kern, Professor and Director Center for Promoting Research to Practice, Lehigh University Brianne Kramer and Jennifer McKenzie provide a comprehensive look into trauma that can affect any student, at any time. As we start to look at how to move beyond the global traumatic event of the COVID-19 pandemic that was coupled with racial unrest, this is a must-read for educators in order to establish trauma-informed classrooms that center youth. —Melissa Tomlinson, Special Education Teacher Executive Director of Badass Teachers’ Association As a teacher education professor seeking to introduce students to understanding the impact of trauma in all aspects of the child’s life and education, I am thrilled that this book exists! The research on trauma and adverse childhood experiences make it clear

that protective factors mitigate the impact of trauma. Thus, educators must understand trauma, how it impacts learning, and how pedagogy, curriculum, and school policies can be those needed protective factors. Children And Trauma: Critical Perspectives for Meeting the Needs of Diverse Educational Communities will be required reading for my students as it fills a much-needed gap in addressing trauma in schools.  —Denisha Jones, Ph.D., J.D. Director Art of Teaching, Sarah Lawrence College

Children And Trauma

Educational Psychology: Meaning Making for Teachers and Learners Series Cathrene Connery, PhD, Greg S. Goodman, PhD, and Althea J. Pennerman, PhD Inspired by the contributions of Vygotsky, Freire, and a host of post-modern, feminist, and critical educators, Educational Psychology: Meaning Making for Teachers and Learners is a collection of books dedicated to individual learners and seeking to create a collective, egalitarian enlightenment. This educational psychology series strives to involve the best of today’s researchers and practitioners in a dialogue dedicated a mutual educational and cultural advantage for both teachers and learners. Looking to stimulate and promote positive changes in the pedagogy and practice of learning, Educational Psychology: Meaning Making for Teachers and Learners seeks contributions from writers who are both proffering solutions and are proud to have their voices heard. As a field of inquiry, educational psychology has continued to evolve by responding to changes in our understanding of the importance of cultural diversity, individual learner propensities, and the collective need to find relevance and purpose. In pursuit of these goals, we invite authors to submit proposals for texts designed to enlighten teachers and students on topics that inspire today’s learners: equity, creativity, experiential learning, cultural diversity, STEM, interdisciplinary study, international education, authentic assessment, peace education, second language acquisition, outdoor education, and other new and novel approaches. If you share our passion for promoting educational change, we invite you to consider Myers Educational Press for your publishing project. To assist you in the process, we are available to provide you with resources to support the development of your project all along the continuum from concept development through publication. Please contact us for further assistance concerning your proposal. M. Cathrene Connery General Editor [email protected]

Greg S. Goodman Althea Pennerman General Editor General Editor [email protected] [email protected]

Books in the Series Children and Trauma: Critical Perspectives for Meeting the Needs of Diverse Educational Communities by Brianne Kramer & Jennifer McKenzie (2022)

Children And Trauma Critical Perspectives for Meeting the Needs of Diverse Educational Communities

BY

Brianne Kramer & Jennifer McKenzie

Gorham, Maine

Copyright © 2022 | Myers Education Press, LLC Published by Myers Education Press, LLC P.O. Box 424, Gorham, ME 04038 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying, recording, and information storage and retrieval, without permission in writing from the publisher. Myers Education Press is an academic publisher specializing in books, e-books, and digital content in the field of education. All of our books are subjected to a rigorous peer review process and produced in compliance with the standards of the Council on Library and Information Resources. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available from Library of Congress. 13-digit ISBN 978-1-9755-0343-7 (paperback) 13-digit ISBN 978-1-9755-0344-4 (library networkable e-edition) 13-digit ISBN 978-1-9755-0345-1 (consumer e-edition) Printed in the United States of America. All first editions printed on acid-free paper that meets the American National Standards Institute Z39-48 standard. Books published by Myers Education Press may be purchased at special quantity discount rates for groups, workshops, training organizations, and classroom usage. Please call our customer service department at 1-800-232-0223 for details. Cover design by Teresa Lagrange Visit us on the web at www.myersedpress.com to browse our complete list of titles.

Dedication

For our students—past and future

“Whoever teaches learns in the act of teaching, and whoever learns teaches in the act of learning.” —Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of Freedom: Ethics, Democracy, and Civic Courage

Contents

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Contents Acknowledgments xiii Introduction Chapter 1 A Bioecological Model for School-Based Trauma Informed Practice Theresa Kruczek

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Chapter 2 Trauma, Adversity, and the Classroom Teacher: Systematically Planning for Safety and Resiliency Doyle Pruitt and Peter Kozik

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Chapter 3 Integrated Theories for Integrated Childhoods: How Bioecological Systems Theory and Relational Cultural Theory Shape Trauma-Informed Care in Schools Joel Arvizo-Zavala, Yifat Levenstein, and Amira Trevino

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Chapter 4 Ensuring the Success of Young Children: Trauma-Informed Practice in the Preschool Classroom Marla J. Lohmann, Johanna P. Higgins, and Jennifer Rossman

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Chapter 5 Understanding the Impact of Trauma on School-Age Children and Their Families Jennifer Foster and Aneesh Kumar

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Chapter 6 Helping the Helpers in Education Jody A. Kunk-Czaplicki and R. Jason Lynch

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Chapter 7 Research and Teaching Methods for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma Meghan Kessler and Michele Miller

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Chapter 8 Relationship Over Reproach: One School’s Efforts in Fostering Resilience Through Trauma-Informed Practices Carrie Giboney Wall

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Chapter 9 A Trauma-Informed School District Case Study: Iron County School District Maren Hirschi and Shawn Christiansen

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Chapter 10 Strategies to Meet the Needs of Students with Trauma Natalia Assis, Mark Reid, Angela Proctor, and Thomas Brooks

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Chapter 11 The Impact of Trauma on Rural Communities Susanne James, Anni Reinking, and Jayme Swanke

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Chapter 12 Trauma’s Impact on Urban School Districts: An Action Plan for Educators Jennifer Hernandez

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Chapter 13 The Need for a New Trauma-Informed Framework: Integrating Social Justice Education Brianne Kramer

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Chapter 14 rACEism: Addressing Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) of African American Youth in K–12 Education and Beyond Laura Danforth, John W. Miller, Jr., and Jaqueline Burse

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Chapter 15 Indigenous Methodologies for Teaching in a Trauma-Informed Health Education Program Sarah Allen, Rae Deernose, Alma Knows His Gun McCormick, Shannen Keene, Brianna Bull Shows, John Hallett, Mark Schure, Suzanne Held, and Christiane Parrish

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Chapter 16 Blurred Lines: Trauma and Educational Disability Jennifer M. McKenzie

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Chapter 17 Responding to Trauma: Considerations of Attachment of Youth in Foster Care Amanda Hill

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Chapter 18 A Call to Action: Recommendations for Teacher Advocacy in the Aftermath of 2020 Brianne Kramer, Jennifer M. McKenzie, and John Rodari Meisner

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Conclusion 333 Editor and Author Biographies

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Index 351

Acknowledgments

Children and Trauma: Critical Perspectives for Meeting the Needs of Diverse Educational Communities was born from an idea for a textbook chapter that quickly shaped into a necessary resource for educational practitioners. While editing a book amid a global pandemic that disrupted education was not an easy feat, we are proud of the contributions this text brings to the field, especially given the lessons learned in 2020. It has been a privilege to put together a volume that works to provide resources to educators and other practitioners in the field to better students, teachers, and the profession. Special thanks to our editing team at Myers Education Press: Cathrene Connery, Greg Goodman, Althea Pennerman, and Chris Myers. We appreciated your mentorship as you helped us nurture this text into being. To our authors: Thank you for being part of such an important project. We hope that your work inspires educators to engage with the ideas you have presented and implement them into their own classrooms. We would also like to thank our Southern Utah University colleagues whose work is included in the text: Sarah Allen, Shawn Christiansen, Maren Hirschi, and John Meisner. These contributions are an illustration of the rich knowledge and application of trauma-informed practices within the College of Education and Human Development. Many thanks to our copyeditor, Katie Guest. We could not have finished this book without you, and we are forever grateful for your assistance with the final pieces of the process. We would also like to thank our families: Matt, Luke, Aaron, Jason, Ava, and Emerson. We have appreciated your love and support during this process. Finally, we would like to thank our students, both past and future. This book is dedicated to you. May you take the knowledge within these pages and add it to your teaching repertoire.

Introduction

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Introduction

Brianne Kramer and Jennifer McKenzie

It is the beginning of the third week in the school where you’ve been an administrator for 10 years. So far, things are going smoothly and you’re happy with the relative ease of the start to the year, considering each of the last several years seems to have brought increased student behavioral concerns. You are in the middle of your morning routine: walking from room to room greeting students as they enter their classrooms to begin the day. In the back of one second-grade classroom, you notice Paul, a student in the foster care system who is new to your school this year, lingering near the bookbags. As you approach, you notice he looks very tired and appears to be quite zoned out. You call his name and reach out a hand to touch his shoulder, and he recoils toward his backpack, yelling, “Get away from me! Leave me alone!” He curls up on the floor under the backpacks, still yelling incomprehensibly, while the entire room of kids watches with rapt attention. You stand there, shocked, and wonder to yourself what is going on with these kids lately to make them behave this way. What you do not know, however, is that Paul has been in the foster care system since he was 4 years old, and since that time, he has lived in 8 different foster homes, all due to his behaviors. He was placed in the system because of child endangerment as a result of parental drug abuse, and before he was removed from the home, he witnessed the physical abuse of his mother on several occasions. Although visits with his mother are infrequent, she showed up for a visit last weekend. Today is Friday, and your science class is full of eighth graders who are excited for the pep rally and dance tonight . . . especially Maria. From the moment she bounded into your room 20 minutes ago, she has not stopped moving or talking. Because you’ve become accustomed to this behavior from her, you have seated her as far from other students as you can, but this is not helping the level of disruption she’s causing today. To attempt to redirect her energy, you ask her to help pass out papers. As she moves from student to student, she gleefully

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assigns each person a nickname, several of which are sexually explicit and none of them is appreciated by her peers. As you begin to intervene, another female student exclaims, “It’s no wonder you don’t have a date for the dance. A person would have to be crazy to want to date you!” Maria immediately stops and looks around the room at her peers, throws the papers to the floor, bursts into tears, and flees the room. You watch her run down the hallway and enter the girls’ restroom, so you call the office to alert them and get some assistance. As you hang up the phone, you catch yourself feeling a bit relieved that she’s no longer in your room. At least now you can focus your attention on the other students in your room. You really like Maria, but she takes up so much of your time and energy. Perhaps your feelings about Maria’s behavior would be different if you knew that, since she was 10 years old, she has lived in a small two-bedroom apartment with her aunt and her younger siblings because they were removed from the custody of their mother. At the age of 7, Maria began to be sexually abused by her mother’s boyfriend. When Maria reported the abuse to her mother, she was physically punished and told that she must do whatever the boyfriend asked her to do because he was the man of the house. Maria has been in therapy since moving in with her aunt, but she continues to struggle to trust others and to demonstrate appropriate behavior with others. Scenes such as these are becoming more commonplace in K–12 classrooms. If you ask educational professionals, many would tell you that student behaviors are becoming more frequent and severe and that the age of onset for these behaviors is getting younger. Unfortunately, schools appear to be ill equipped to respond to these behavioral changes in their students in terms of prevention and treatment. In the 2017–2018 school year, approximately 80% of all public and charter schools in the United States had at least one full- or part-time security staff present at school at least once per week (Diliberti et al., 2019). At the same time, only 51% of schools reported providing diagnostic mental health assessments to students, and only 38% provided mental health treatment. Most schools are attempting to address student behavioral problems through coercion and law enforcement involvement instead of addressing the root cause of the behaviors. In many cases, this root cause is experiencing trauma.

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Defining Trauma According to the American Psychological Association (2015), trauma is an emotional response to a terrible event, which can lead to difficulties with emotional regulation and social relationships and to the development of physical symptoms. Traumatic experiences may include physical or sexual abuse, neglect, experiencing or witnessing violence, war, suicide, and disasters. When these traumatic events occur prior to the age of 18, researchers call them adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Felitti et al., 1998) conducted a large-scale study which found that roughly 64% of people experience at least one ACE and 22% of the population experiences three or more ACEs. The more ACEs a child has, the more likely they are to develop school-based academic and behavioral challenges, such as aggression, depression, inattention, anxiety, and delayed language and cognitive development (Lansford et al., 2002; Veltman & Browne, 2001). Knowing that students who exhibit problem behavior face higher rates of exclusionary discipline procedures, such as out-of-school suspension (U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division & U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights, 2014), it is imperative that K–12 schools utilize trauma-informed practices (TIPs) and employ trauma-informed (TI) teachers. According to the National Center for Trauma-Informed Care (2018), a TI approach or system contains the following elements: 1. Realizes the widespread impact of trauma and understands the potential paths for recovery 2. Recognizes the signs and symptoms of trauma in the clients, families, staff, and others involved with the system 3. Responds by fully integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures, and practices 4. Seeks to actively resist retraumatization The development and use of TIPs are currently increasing in educational spaces across the United States as educators and others who work with children become more aware of how socio-emotional development and exposure

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to trauma changes the developmental trajectory of children. Because of growth in these areas, and the reality that most educational professionals have little to no training or experience in dealing with individual trauma in students, it is imperative for educators and others who work with children to have a resource to consult. This text grew from the editors’ powerful experiences in schools, working with both children and educators who struggled with trauma’s detrimental effects on behavior and learning. It is our hope that this work is used by teachers, administrators, and other educational professionals to understand the signs of trauma in children, realize the range of evidence-based TI practices that exist, and learn ways they can be successfully used in the classroom. Additionally, school districts can utilize this text in professional development, particularly if they are wishing to become fully trauma-sensitive organizations. Finally, we hope the information provided assists educational professionals in recognizing their own level of stress and trauma that may be exacerbated by the difficult job of working with traumatized children and helps them seek the support they need for their own well-being.

Organization of the Text This text is organized according to Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) ecological systems theory of human development. This model states that individuals are significantly affected by interactions within a series of nested systems: microsystems, exosystems, and macrosystems. Furthermore, Bronfenbrenner and Cici (1994) added an additional nested element, biophysical, to the model to account for differences within individuals that can affect their development. This text begins with the three chapters covering theoretical models on which the book is based. The remaining chapters are organized according to the original systems, from the smallest to the largest, with many biophysical elements throughout chapters. In the first three chapters, Theresa Kruczek provides an overview of the bioecological model for school-based TIPs, Doyle Pruitt and Peter Kozik illustrate theories of safety and resiliency to be employed in schools, and Joel Arvizo-Zavala, Amira Trevino, and Yifat Levenstein discuss how relational cultural theory interacts with bioecological systems theory as they relate to TIPs in schools.

Introduction

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Biophysical factors are an important consideration when considering the effects of traumatic life events on an individual. A person’s physical and emotional reactions to trauma are dependent upon many innate characteristics, including those to which they are genetically disposed (Pfefferbaum, 1997). However, even those who exhibit no outward symptoms will still experience the automatic psychological and physiological reactions to stress, including neurochemical changes that accompany conditioned fear responses (van der Kolk, 2003). These reactions are based on Selye’s (1956) “fight or flight” responses that all humans employ as a safety mechanism in the face of what they perceive as danger. Unfortunately, some individuals are also genetically predisposed to develop posttraumatic stress disorder and the symptoms that accompany the disorder. Many chapters throughout this text examine biophysical factors related to TIPs in schools as they intersect with each individual chapter’s content. Although these biophysical elements of trauma response are well documented, it is also important to examine the social and environmental contexts in which they occur. Microsystems are those that most directly affect individuals and form the next nested level in ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner & Ceci, 1994). Factors and settings included in the microsystem level are family, peers, religious groups, work, and school classrooms. Each of these has been shown to be crucial factors affecting trauma response in both children and adults, serving as protective factors when they are healthy and strong for an individual (Yule et al., 2019). This text has seven chapters that focus on the research behind the microsystem’s important factors and how individual teachers can mediate any negative trauma effects regarding those factors. The section begins with a chapter on TIP in the preschool classroom by Lohmann, Higgins, and Rossman, followed by research and strategies to lessen the negative impact of trauma on school-aged children and their families by Foster and Kumar. The next two chapters focus on specific systems in schools and the reciprocal relationships between the systems and trauma exposure. Jody Kunk-Czaplicki and R. Jason Lynch examine how to support teachers as trauma helpers, considering both their own trauma exposure and that of their students. Meghan Kessler and Michele Miller provide research and teaching methods for children who have experienced trauma that are specifically formulated to help individual classroom teachers adopt and implement these strategies in their classrooms. The

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final two chapters in this section provide examples of schools that have successfully integrated TIPs into their processes and procedures. Carrie Wall presents an analysis of a school that decided to focus on relationships to foster resilience in its students. Finally, Maren Hirschi and Shawn Christiansen present a case study of a school district that has embraced TIPs as a districtwide approach to meeting the complex needs of students. The next level in the nested model is the exosystem (Bronfenbrenner & Ceci, 1994), which is external to the individual but still has an influence on the person. Factors in this system are more indirect than those in the microsystems and include neighborhood and community systems and public school systems. Natalia Assis, Mark Reid, Angela Proctor, and Thomas Brooks present successful systems-level approaches to be examined by school leaders to support TIP adoption in schools. Susanne James, Anni Reinking, and Jayme Swanke discuss how trauma’s impact is unique in rural communities and Jennifer Hernandez presents how urban communities may experience trauma. The final chapter in this section presents how social justice education and restorative justice practices are integral components in systems of TIPs in schools to ensure equity for all students. The most distal nested system in the model that we are using in this text is the macrosystem (Bronfenbrenner & Ceci, 1994). While this system operates furthest from individuals, it encompasses the larger cultural context in which people live and work. Factors contained in this system include societal norms, economic factors, socioeconomic factors, governmental systems, and environmental effects of disaster. Chapters in this section focus on the larger social, cultural, and legal contexts in the United States that must be considered to effectively meet the needs of all groups. In the first chapter in this section, Brianne Kramer explains the need for greater integration of social justice education in public schools. Next, Laura Danforth and John Miller address the experiences of African American students and trauma, including how systemic racism in America creates another layer of trauma for these children. Sarah Allen and colleagues then present a view of TIP within Indigenous groups in the western United States, including the roots of many trauma-informed pedagogies used across cultures. In the next chapter, Jennifer McKenzie attempts to disentangle the requirements for educational disability under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEIA, 2004) from the biophysical and behavioral

Introduction

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manifestations of trauma. This section ends with Amanda Hill’s examination of trauma and the foster care system, including information that educators need to know about the system to support the children within it. The final chapter in this book is intended to be a call to action for all teachers to take the relevant next steps in their own contexts to seek the needed support for themselves and for their students. The collective authors of this text hope the information contained throughout the text will assist teachers to feel empowered through this new knowledge and to use their experienced and passionate voices to enact the critical changes that are desperately needed in America’s public schools. We believe that teachers and students are the world’s best hope for a safe, inclusive, and bright future!

References American Psychological Association. (2015). Guidelines on trauma competencies for education and training. http://www.apa.org/ed/resources/trauma-competencies training.pdf Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. Harvard University Press. Bronfenbrenner, U., & Ceci, S. J. (1994). Nature-nurture reconceptualized in developmental perspective: A bioecological model. Psychological Review, 101(4), 568–586. https://www.imprs-life.mpg.de/27210/22_bronfenbrenner_ceci.pdf. Diliberti, M., Jackson, M., Correa, S., and Padgett, Z. (2019). Crime, violence, discipline, and safety in U.S. public schools: Findings from the School Survey on Crime and Safety: 2017–18 (NCES 2019-061). U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Felitti, V. J., Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D. F., Spitz, A. M., Edwards, V., Koss, M. P., & Marks, J. S. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) study. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14(4), 245–258. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0749-3797(98)00017-8 Lansford, J. E., Dodge, K. A., Pettit, G. S., Bates, J. E., Crozier, J., & Kaplow, J. (2002). A 12-year prospective study of the long-term effects of early child physical maltreatment on psychological, behavioral, and academic problems in adolescence. Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, 156, 824–830. https://doi.org/10.1001/ archpedi.156.8.824 National Center for Trauma-Informed Care. (2015). Trauma-informed approach and trauma-specific interventions. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

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Pfefferbaum, B. (1997). Posttraumatic stress disorder in children: A review of the past 10 years. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 36(11), 1503–1511. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0890-8567(09)66558-8 Selye, H. (1956). The stress of life. McGraw Hill. U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division & U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights. (2014, January 8). Joint “Dear Colleague” letter. https:// www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/letters/colleague-201401-title-vi.html van der Kolk, B. A. (2003). The neurobiology of childhood trauma and abuse. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 12(2), 293–317. https://doi.org/ 10.1016/S1056-4993(03)00003-8 Veltman, M. W. M., & Browne, K. D. (2001). Three decades of child maltreatment research: Implications for the school years. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 2, 215–239. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838001002003002 Yule, K., Houston, J., & Grych, J. (2019). Resilience in children exposed to violence: A meta-analysis of protective factors across ecological contexts. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 22(3), 406–431. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567019-00293-1

A Bioecological Model for School-Based Trauma-Informed Practice

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CHAPTER 1

A Bioecological Model for School-Based Trauma-Informed Practice Theresa Kruczek

According to the 2017–2018 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH, 2020), about one third of all children in the United States have experienced one adverse childhood experience (ACE) and another 14.1% have experienced two or more ACEs. Almost one quarter of students live with a separated or divorced parent. Additionally, 8% of students live with someone struggling with substance use, 7.3% live with someone with mental illness, and 7.3% live with a family member who has served time in jail. Approximately 5% have witnessed family violence, and 4% have experienced community violence. Almost 4% report having been treated or judged unfairly due to their race or ethnicity. It is important to note there are significant disparities in adverse experiences related to poverty and race. Students living in households below the federal poverty level are more than twice as likely to experience two or more ACEs (22.2%) when compared with those living in households with income at or above the poverty level (7.3%). Furthermore, 21.3% of non-Hispanic Black students are likely to have experienced two or more ACEs. A rate that is almost twice as much as non-Hispanic White students. There also has been a recent call to identify bullying as a type of interpersonal trauma that can lead to post traumatic stress reactions in children and teens (Idsoe et al., 2021). As such, this source of trauma should be particularly concerning given that one in five students, ages 12 to 18, reported having experienced bullying (National Center for Education Statistics, 2017). Students most vulnerable to experiencing ACEs also appear more likely to experience

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bullying. In two large population-based surveys, one third of students reported bias-based bullying, and this type of bullying was associated with compromised physical and mental health (Russell et al., 2012). Data from the 2018 National School Climate Survey suggests that sexual minority youth experience some types of bullying at rates higher than other marginalized youth (Kosciw et al., 2018). Specifically, this survey revealed that approximately 20% to 30% of sexual minority students are physically bullied (pushed and shoved), a rate consistent with racial minority youth and youth with disabilities. However, 50% to 70% reported being verbally bullied (threatened and called names), a higher rate than reported by other minority groups (Kosciw et al., 2018). Students who have experienced ACEs, and who are also bullied, are at increased risk for school disengagement and health concerns, leading Baiden et al. (2020) to describe this situation as a toxic duo. Increased awareness of the impact of ACEs and bullying, recent mass trauma events (e.g., COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters, school, and community shootings), societal challenges (e.g., opioid addiction crisis, widening economic gap), and the antiracist movement have resulted in what prominent educational organizations have described as an “epidemic of trauma in schools” (National Council of State Education Associations [NCSEA], 2019). Child-serving organizations, including educational institutions, have increasingly begun to recognize the toll trauma takes on development and long-term functioning (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014). As a result, there has been a national movement within the medical, mental health, and educational professions which emphasizes the need for trauma-informed care with children and adolescents (Crosby, 2015). Toward that end, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA, 2014) developed guidelines for trauma-informed approaches, beginning with a shared definition of trauma which includes three key elements: event(s), experience, and effects. Specifically, the SAMHSA (2014) definition states that trauma results from an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual’s functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional, or spiritual well-being. (p. 7)

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Schools could benefit from a comprehensive conceptual model to understand and guide trauma-informed practices. Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) model of human development has had a significant influence on contemporary educational practices and therefore can serve as a useful theoretical model for school-based, trauma-informed practice. Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) original bioecological model of human development recognizes the complex interplay between factors occurring among several nested systems. These systems are hierarchical in nature and move from immediate environments such as the family, peers, and classrooms at the innermost ring to larger sociocultural, political, and economic systems at the outermost ring. In 1994, Bronfenbrenner and Ceci added a new level to Bronfenbrenner’s original model at the innermost ring. This new level identified those biophysical systems influencing development and includes factors such as temperament and neurobiological processes. Their newer model also includes the concept of chronosystems or time and developmental processes as factors which transcend the systemic influences on human development. Hoffman and Kruczek (2011) articulated a bioecological model of trauma that was grounded in Bronfenbrenner and Ceci’s (1994) bioecological model of human development. Hoffman and Kruczek’s (2011) bioecological model of trauma was designed to provide a conceptual framework to account for the complexity of trauma reactions in response to mass disasters. The conceptual framework described in the current chapter utilizes bioecological constructs as articulated in Hoffman and Kruczek (2011) to help education professionals understand the impact of trauma on child development and apply this understanding to school-based, trauma-informed practice. This theoretical model can be used to understand the impact of trauma on learning and social-emotional development, as well as serve as a guide for school-based prevention programs and intervention strategies in the aftermath of trauma. The goal of this multisystemic approach is to help students achieve their highest potential in terms of academic, career, and social-emotional development (McMahon et al., 2009). Figure 1.1 displays the hierarchical nature of the nested systems in this bioecological model of trauma with the chronosystem transcending each level. It is important to acknowledge that the impact of trauma on child development is just one of many life events that can be understood using a bioecological framework.

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Figure 1.1 Bioecological Model of Trauma (Hoffman & Kruczek, 2011)

Bioecological Model of Trauma Biophysical The innermost ring of a bioecological model of trauma consists of biophysical factors. It is generally accepted that to understand an individual’s response to trauma, we must first understand the neurobiological underpinnings of trauma reactions. The notion of physiological fight-or-flight reactions was first proposed by Cannon in 1915. His early theory described a process in which the body shifts from a state of homeostasis into one which prepares us to mobilize our internal physical resources in a way that enables us to escape the perceived threat or defend ourselves if we can’t escape. Selye (1936) extended Cannon’s theory and described what he called the general adaptation syndrome, which forms the basis of modern stress theory. Since then, advances in medical and biological science have significantly expanded the knowledge about the

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neurobiology of stress reactions in a way that helps explain both the immediate and long-term consequences of traumatic life experiences. Understanding the mechanisms which impact vulnerability and resilience enables us to develop educational practices which optimize the learning environment. First, it is important to acknowledge that not all stress is bad. Eustress is a type of positive stress, experienced when encountering normal life challenges (Nelson & Simmons, 2003). Experiencing eustress can help the brain adapt and learn—when students are able to meet and cope with these challenges. In this way, eustress can contribute to resilience. Luthar et al. (2000) defined resilience as adaptation and adjustment in the face of adversity. This resilience is manifested as the development of positive behavioral and social/interpersonal skills despite life challenges and traumatic experiences. In contrast, distress is a negative form of stress and can be acute or chronic. Acute stress occurs when individuals encounter episodic, traumatic life events (e.g., changing schools, moving, relationships ending, loss of family or friends). Acute stress can be negative when the individual experiencing it doesn’t have adaptive coping strategies. Chronic stress, on the other hand, is a type of long-lasting and severe stress that occurs when individuals experience abuse, neglect, bullying, multiple ACEs, or other repetitive traumatic experiences (American Psychological Association, n.d.) Students at greatest risk are those who have experienced multiple adverse experiences and/or prolonged trauma exposure (Terr, 1991) and consequently experience complex trauma reactions (Herman, 1992). These complex trauma reactions result in what contemporary researchers have identified as toxic stress responses. Toxic stress in children can occur with exposure to intense, frequent, and/or extended adversity without sufficient support from caring adults. This exposure leads to prolonged activation of the physiological stress system and results in structural and functional brain changes as well as increased risk for physical and mental illnesses even into adulthood (Johnson et al., 2014). Trauma reactions begin with exposure to events perceived as threatening, thus activating the biological stress response system. The perceived threat can be either physical or psychological (Godoy et al., 2018). More specifically, stress responses initiate when our senses encounter a perceived environmental threat to health and well-being. This perceived threat activates the thalamus, which integrates sensory input and perceives pain. The thalamus then relays this sensory

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information to the amygdala, which is responsible for emotions—specifically for understanding emotions and developing emotional memories. Both these areas are located just above the brain stem (the most primitive and automatic part of the brain) and have extensive nerve connections to the cerebral cortex (the thinking part of the brain). When there is a perceived threat, our brain can get “hijacked” by the amygdala in that the brainstem and hypothalamic regions respond in reflexive ways and behavior becomes reactive rather than thoughtfully responsive (Goleman, 1995). These reactions occur because the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the limbic-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (LHPA; Ulrich-Lai & Herman, 2009) become automatically triggered when there is a perceived threat. Engagement of the SNS results in physiological changes which lead to increased alertness, hypervigilance, and rapid appraisal of the situation. When the environment is perceived as threatening, the anxiety circuits of the amygdala are activated, and the threatened individual becomes overwhelmed by feelings of fear. Activation of the LHPA axis also stimulates the adrenal cortex, which in turn causes the pituitary gland to stimulate the adrenal glands (which sit right above the kidneys) to secrete stress hormones into the bloodstream. These systems are activated automatically to rapidly initiate the physical changes needed to energize and protect us. For example, activation of the SNS increases heart rate in order to circulate blood more quickly as well as raises blood pressure to constrict blood vessels and reduce bleeding if we’re injured. It also dilates and expands airways to assist breathing. It releases stored energy in the form of blood sugar to increase strength and endurance while simultaneously decreasing insulin levels to prevent reabsorption of blood glucose. Furthermore, activation of the SNS diverts energy away from processes less important during an emergency (i.e., digestion and reproduction), making us lose our appetite and interest in social connection (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014; Godoy et al., 2018). When the perceived threat is a psychologically uncontrollable or socially threatening situation, both the physical response system described earlier and a cognitive stress response ensues (Skoluda et al., 2015). Furthermore, chronic exposure to psychological threat results in a bottom-up control of stress reactions in which the amygdala rather than the cortex—especially the prefrontal cortex or the brain’s control center—controls reactions, resulting in the behavioral challenges associated with maladaptive stress reactions (Wei et al.,

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2018). Cognitive stress responses make it difficult for those who experience traumatic events to consolidate memories associated with the traumatic events, while at the same time developing what seems to be automatic fear responses with little understanding of what their fear reaction is associated with (LeDoux, 1996). This fear conditioning response is likely a classically conditioned fear reaction to stimuli associated with the trauma and may underlie the reexperiencing symptoms (e.g., nightmares and intrusive memories associated with post traumatic stress disorder [PTSD]; Cohen et al., 2002). Psychological threat also affects the reward structures in the brain and leads to behavioral response patterns whereby situations perceived as rewarding are approached and aversive are avoided (Lammel et al., 2011). While this stress system is adaptive in terms of responding to isolated physical and psychological threats, chronic exposure leads to structural and functional changes in the brain and body (Godoy et al., 2018). For example, long-term exposure results in disruption in the neurotransmitter systems associated with emotional and behavior disorders as well as those hormones associated with social relationship difficulties. It also affects the immune systems associated with autoimmune disorders, cardiopulmonary disease, diabetes, and seizure disorders. Furthermore, chronic exposure to stress results in longer stress response cycles, and it takes children with a history of maltreatment longer to return to a state of biological homeostasis (Cicchetti et al., 2010). The practical impact is that students with a history of trauma are often in a chronic state of stress reactivity while at school. It is important to note that there are also interactions between an individual’s genes and their environment that influence vulnerability or resilience in stress system responses to childhood trauma (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014). Epigenetic factors associated with historical race, ethnic group, and gender-based trauma appear to increase the risk for these groups. Specifically, the impact of historically experienced traumatic stress appears to be transmitted to subsequent generations, resulting in their increased temperamental vulnerability to adverse stress reactions (Jawaid et al., 2018). Fortunately, there appear to be environmental factors that foster resilience. A positive social environment may be able to mitigate the adverse impact of stress. Specifically, social support, nurturing relationships, and caring responses appear to decrease negative emotional and behavioral outcomes (Weaver et al., 2004).

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Contemporary understanding of trauma response has grown significantly to encompass not only the biophysical elements of trauma response but also the social contexts within which they occur and as they unfold across the life span. The remaining sections of this chapter review the complex and interrelated systems impacting trauma response and which can be used to guide comprehensive trauma-informed educational policy, practice, and advocacy.

Microsystems The next level within the bioecological model includes those systems that most directly influence development and response to traumatic life events. In a bioecological model of trauma, these include systems which have a direct, daily influence on the child such as the classroom, family, and childcare environments. Peer relationships similarly have a direct and daily influence. Less direct or frequent microsystemic influences might include the parent’s work environment and other factors such as religious engagement. Classroom Classroom models of instruction and discipline can be conceptualized on a continuum from a teacher-centered approach to a student-centered approach (Wolpow et al., 2016). In the extreme, the teacher-centered approach relies on rigid hierarchies, and students are expected to follow and comply with the demands of the teacher. Conversely, in the extreme version of the student-centered approach, the teacher merely provides a learning environment in which the student can independently seek out enriching learning opportunities. Most classrooms fall somewhere in between, and research on effective instruction reflects a need for both structure and opportunities for student engagement. This practice is consistent with the recommendations for trauma-informed schools (TISs; National Child Traumatic Stress Network, 2017). Creating classrooms that minimize the likelihood of school-based interpersonal violence is one way to foster TISs so students don’t experience the toxic duo of ACEs and bullying (Baiden et al., 2020). In order to decrease the likelihood of school-based interpersonal trauma, it is important to recognize and remediate those classroom environmental factors identified as contributing to the increased prevalence of bullying. These factors include having a

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classroom environment that relies heavily on punitive approaches to discipline, utilizes less structured and organized activities, and focuses on lower quality instructional activities (e.g., test preparation; Allen, 2010). Classroom instructional quality can be enhanced when students are engaged in establishing learning goals that are related to their lives and interests in addition to providing students with opportunities for monitoring their own learning and helping develop class rules and procedures (Barbetta et al., 2005). Similarly, teachers can promote resilience in students who have experienced trauma by setting clear and consistent behavioral expectations, empowering them to actively engage in the learning process, and implementing social-emotional curriculum that fosters the development of emotional regulation and social skills (Wolpow et al., 2016). This approach results in learner-centered classrooms with authoritative (vs. authoritarian or permissive) instructional and disciplinary practices which utilize proactive versus reactive approaches to meet the academic, social, and emotional needs of traumatized students while minimizing the risk of retraumatization (Allen, 2010). Peer Relationships Recall that one third of students reported experiencing interpersonal trauma in the form of bias-based bullying (Russell et al., 2012) and that ACEs and bullying have been identified as a toxic duo (Baiden et al., 2020). Wolke and Lereya’s (2015) review of the bullying literature revealed that students who have been victims of bullying are at a higher risk for somatic problems, such as headaches, stomachaches, sleeping problems, and susceptibility to colds or the flu. These students are also more likely to engage in health risk behaviors, such as smoking. During adolescence they are more likely to develop anxiety and depression, along with thoughts and actions of self-harm. Being the victim of chronic bullying results in stronger adverse and lasting effects. Interestingly, there was less evidence for a negative impact on academic functioning. Students who engage in bullying behavior are at increased risk for depression, although to a lesser degree than victims. In adolescence, students identified as “bullies” are also more likely to engage in delinquent behavior, commit offenses against others, and perpetuate dating violence (Wolke & Lereya, 2015). In addition to bullying, social contagion (copying or imitating peer behavior) also appears to occur with other types of peer violence (Bond

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& Bushman, 2017), trauma symptoms (Tyano et al., 1996), and nonsuicidal self-injury (Walsh & Muehlenkamp, 2013). In contrast, peer support is well established as a key factor that promotes mental health and fosters a sense of community in schools (Visser, 2004). Social support can moderate the adverse impact of psychosocial stressors (Dalton et al., 2001) and the quality of peer relationships during adolescence can exacerbate risk or enhance resilience in both physical and mental health outcomes for trauma survivors (Lamblin et al., 2017). Two key developmental periods have been identified in terms of when peer support is crucial. Positive peer relationships appear to protect against traumatic stress, at the ages of 8–9 and 16 in particular (Sokol et al., 2020). Furthermore, peer support appears to moderate the adverse impact of complex trauma for both internalizing and externalizing behavior problems at all ages (Yearwood et al., 2019). It is likely that supportive peer relationships afford students with an opportunity to connect around shared experiences, and these relationships provide a forum for sharing resources and healthy coping strategies (Louw et al., 1998). Emotional and behavioral challenges can be addressed by empowering students to ask for help within their peer group, thereby increasing their sense of self-efficacy and independence (Visser, 2004). Peer support and social skills development groups designed to foster resilience are a core component of trauma-informed school practice (Cavanaugh, 2016). Family While as education professionals we have limited control over family factors, it is important to recognize the crucial role the family plays in trauma response, particularly in vulnerable populations (Murthy, 2007). ACEs are one type of childhood trauma that takes place within the context of family relationships. Recall that ACEs include being a victim of violence or witnessing domestic violence, experiencing economic hardship, the death of a parent, having an incarcerated parent, having a family member with severe mental illness or substance abuse problems, and living with parents who are divorced or separated. Furthermore, almost half of the children in the United States have experienced one or more ACEs, and there are racial and socioeconomic disparities such that the most vulnerable students are more likely to have experienced one or more ACEs.

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In addition to being more likely to experience ACEs within the context of the family, parent and caregiver reactions to traumatic events are one of the most significant factors to influence risk and resilience (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014). Risk is increased when parents/caregivers avoid dealing with the trauma, withdraw from contact with their child(ren), deny the child(ren)’s symptoms or negative reactions, and/or engage their child(ren) in ways that induce guilt and anxiety (Scheeringa & Zeanah, 2001). Regarding this latter response, parents and caregivers who become overprotective and restrict their children’s engagement in developmentally normative activities also increase the likelihood of an adverse reaction (Cohen, 2009). Conversely, the family can also serve as a buffer and protective factor against the adverse impact of trauma. Social support, nurturing relationships, and caring responses appear to mitigate the negative emotional and behavioral outcomes that can accompany stressful and traumatic life events (Weaver et al., 2004), and parental reactions fostering resilience are the best predictor of adaptive coping (Scheeringa & Zeanah, 2001). Religiosity and Spirituality While public schools do not integrate religious activities and spirituality into activities and instruction, it is important to understand the impact of these factors on those students for whom religious identity and engagement is an important aspect of their lives. While there is limited research investigating the relationship of religion, spirituality, and trauma recovery in children and teens (Bryant-Davis et al., 2012), there is some evidence that shaming, rigid, and narrow religious beliefs that induce feelings of anxiety and guilt contribute to poorer adjustment and coping after a traumatic event (Bussema & Bussema, 2007). Religion and spirituality appear to contribute to healthy psychosocial adjustment for some children and teens by providing a sense of community and social support (Good & Willoughby, 2006). Additionally, for some traumatized children, a positive sense of spirituality in the face of adversity may facilitate their ability to develop an improved sense of meaning and life purpose as well as increased feelings of happiness and positive esteem (Holder et al., 2010). Awareness of these factors can facilitate education professionals’ understanding of a student’s reaction to trauma. Furthermore, students from religious systems associated with poorer adjustment and coping may need additional social and emotional support within the academic environment.

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Exosystems The exosystem contains those more immediate networks or systems which have a more indirect impact on child development. Exosystems include factors such as neighborhoods and communities, health care systems, school systems, and social and mass media. The military system is an important exosystem for military personnel and their families. School System Most teachers and education professionals strive to establish classrooms and school environments where we have positive interactions with students who are engaged and motivated. However, at times, there are systemic factors which that can interfere with the creation of positive learning environments. Mayer (2002) identified a host of factors which have been linked to school violence and antisocial behavior. Specifically, schools situated in communities that favor punitive approaches to behavior control in lieu of positive behavior management principles are more likely to have higher rates of aggression and vandalism. Aggressive behavior from students is also greater when there are unclear guidelines for school comportment. Furthermore, students may be misperceived as aggressive and may struggle to meet behavioral expectations when school personnel lack understanding about culturally responsive teaching practices. These challenges can be compounded by a lack of administrative and peer support, particularly when staff don’t agree with school policies. Finally, students are more likely to act out when they have experienced frequent academic failure and lack critical social-emotional skills. This negative behavior is often a way to disengage within the school environment and thereby avoid academic tasks or escape from stressful classroom environments (Mayer, 2002). Leone and Mayer (2004) proposed several ways school systems can reduce the risk for school violence and students’ behavioral disruptions. These recommendations are consistent with more recent calls for a trauma-informed multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS; Reinbergs & Fefer, 2018). School violence and behavioral disruptions can be reduced by retaining rigorous academic standards while increasing systems of support for at-risk students. Data-driven decision-making should guide both the type of supports provided as well as when and for how long to implement them. Furthermore, positive and

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proactive approaches to school discipline should be implemented (e.g., Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports, restorative justice). These changes in addressing challenging behaviors should be implemented in conjunction with a schoolwide, comprehensive social-emotional curriculum for all students. Finally, creating a culture of collaboration where there is respect for diversity and inclusion will result in a decrease in school violence and behavioral disruption. Regarding these latter recommendations, it is important to note that schools with larger percentages of Black students are more likely to use punitive versus restorative discipline measures and are also more likely to have zero-tolerance policies (Welch & Payne, 2010). Zero-tolerance policies account for 10% of racial disparities in discipline practices and are associated with a greater likelihood of a student’s eventual referral to the juvenile justice system (Curran, 2016). Additionally, low-income and minority students receive higher rates of exclusionary disciplinary actions such as suspension and expulsion (Welsh & Little, 2018). These findings are consistent across grades and settings and start as early as preschool (Skiba, 2014). Disproportionality in disciplinary action is often the result of discriminatory school policies and procedures as well as implicit and/or explicit bias in teachers and school administrators. Furthermore, exclusionary discipline practices have an adverse impact on school climate, mobility, and engagement as well as student achievement and behavioral outcomes (Skiba et al., 2014). These practices also serve to disenfranchise marginalized groups (Gordon et al., 2000). As such, it is imperative that efforts to address trauma in schools redress these disproportionalities and include efforts to support teachers and school administrators in understanding the implicit and possibly explicit biases operating within their school policies and practices. Community Health and Mental Health Services In low-income and minority neighborhoods, structural and sociopolitical constraints such as poverty, a lack of insurance, and poor availability of medical and behavioral health create barriers to seeking and accessing health care (Flores & The Committee on Pediatric Research 2010). Disenfranchisement with health care systems and under-recognition of mental health concerns in low-income and minority groups exacerbate these barriers (Flores & The Committee on Pediatric Research, 2010). Furthermore, low-income and minority youth are more likely than their White peers to be referred for child welfare and

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juvenile justice services than they are for behavioral health services (Alegria et al., 2010). SAMHSA (2014) guidelines for trauma-informed practice emphasize the need for collaboration not only between service providers and recipients but also among various service providers. TIS practices require collaboration with community service providers, particularly for the most vulnerable and challenged students. Neighborhood and Community Systems Community trauma can disrupt learning because of loss of instructional time, increased student and teacher absences, and disturbances in home and school routines. School proximity to the community-based traumatic event increases the adverse impact of those events. Students who experience community-based trauma show decreases in math and reading proficiency in the short run, and this effect appears to be stronger for racial minorities. However, for most students these negative effects do appear to decline as time passes (Gershenson & Tekin, 2018) Additionally, higher rates of child maltreatment have been found in neighborhoods with significant poverty, housing stress, and easy access to drugs and alcohol (Freisthler et al., 2006). Low community affluence, as reflected by parental difficulty finding and/or maintaining employment, parental incarceration, and parent/caregiver substance abuse, is associated with a greater prevalence of ACEs in children and teens (Wolff et al., 2018). Furthermore, residential instability, defined as living in multiple homes within the last year and/or renting versus owning one’s home, is also associated with greater experience of ACEs. However, contrary to many contemporary stereotypes, living in a community with a high concentration of immigrants seems to be a protective factor, and children in such communities report lower experiences with ACEs (Wolff et al., 2018). Some of the specific factors which appear to contribute to how living in an immigrant community serves as a protective factor will be discussed in the Macrosystems section. Mass Media Secondary traumatic stress (STS) can occur as a result of media exposure to traumatic events. Figley (1995) first defined STS as a syndrome occurring when professionals develop psychological symptoms that mimic PTSD after

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repeated exposure to the traumatic experiences of others. More recently, authors have expressed concern that media exposure to traumatic events also has the potential to induce STS reactions (Thompson et al., 2019). It appears that the more graphic the images and videos, the greater the post traumatic stress symptoms in those exposed to trauma via media (Jones et al., 2016). Furthermore, news coverage widens event exposure and risk with community-based trauma and mass trauma (Vasterman et al., 2005). There also seems to be a cyclical relationship between distress and media exposure in that distress leads to increased media consumption in those who are most anxious about the event. This increased media consumption results in higher levels of distress, which, in turn, leads to more media consumption and so on. Finally, most adolescents access social media daily (Lenhart et al., 2010). Excessive social media use is associated with higher rates of social isolation, as well as depression, anxiety (including social anxiety), and even addictive behaviors (McHugh et al., 2018). Students with excessive social media use are at increased risk for exploitation (Rose, 2010) and sexual risk behavior (Rice et al., 2015). Conversely, some vulnerable youth may find that online activity and support groups are useful resources when their immediate environment does not provide adequate mechanisms of support (e.g., LGBTQ+ youth), but it is also important to discuss the risks of social media with vulnerable youth to reduce the likelihood of exploitation or harm (Rose, 2010). Psychoeducational programming and classroom guidance activities designed to educate students about healthy media consumption and social media practices can help reduce these media risk factors. Military Children in military families can experience increased stress due to frequent moves, being separated from parents who are deployed, having parents with PTSD symptoms, and experiencing traumatic grief due to parental loss (Sharma & Nagle, 2018). Students from military families who develop mental health concerns may struggle with attachment and peer relationships as well as demonstrate academic, social, emotional, and behavioral challenges at school (Lyle, 2006). On the other hand, many children from military families demonstrate resilience because their life experiences require that they learn how to accept and cope with adversity and stress. When these students receive strong

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family and community support, they demonstrate higher levels of maturity and responsibility as well as positive peer relationships (Sharma & Nagle, 2018). The age and developmental stage of the child, gender of the child, caregiver mental health, and frequency/length of deployment all impact risk and resilience (Chandra et al., 2010). Extended and repeated deployment can lead to partner relationship difficulties (Knobloch & Theiss, 2012) and diminished academic achievement in the children of those deployed (Engel et al., 2010). However, frequent communication with the deployed parent and effective household management by the daily caregiver appears to enhance resilience and foster better adjustment after separations (O’Neal et al., 2018). Schools can support students from military families by providing groups and psychoeducation programs (e.g., coping, grief/loss) for vulnerable students and psychoeducation and community referral/collaboration for their families.

Macrosystems The systems discussed thus far all operate within the broader context of the macrosystem. The macrosystem includes societal norms, sociopolitical factors, cultural subsystem norms, governmental systems, economic factors, and in the case of natural or technological disasters, the environmental impact of that disaster. It is difficult to disentangle the macrosystems because they are highly interrelated. Critical race theory (CRT) has the potential to be one way we can understand the interrelationships between the various macrosystems. CRT was originally developed to inform and direct social change within the legal and political systems (Dixson, 2018) and has subsequently been applied to educational systems. The core idea behind CRT is that many laws, as well as public and educational policies, perpetuate societal norms that subordinate people of color and the poor (Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995). CRT also encourages us to understand how the intersectionality of race, class, gender, sexual identity, marital status, citizenship status, and ability can combine to intensify marginality for various cultural subgroups and further contribute to discrimination and bias for those who belong to more than one cultural subsystem (Crenshaw, 1989).

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Societal norms, sociopolitical factors, cultural subsystem norms, governmental systems, and economic factors CRT was developed as a way to identify and understand structural and institutional oppression (Dixson, 2018). Legal scholars in the mid-1980s began to identify the ways laws are often established in a way that perpetuates racial and class subservience to historically wealthy and empowered groups. CRT can be used to evaluate how institutional policies and practices have grown out of inequitable social and political systems built on the assumption that people of color and the poor are an inferior class (Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995). CRT within the realm of education investigates how educational policies and practices similarly sustain and perpetuate these inequities. The goal of CRT is to identify and eliminate sources of structural and institutional oppression to promote equitable social change. Contemporary racism has been more covert and hidden than in the past. For example, in educational research the emphasis on racial differences in terms of disparities and inequities doesn’t actually result in any structural or programmatic change, and the language used in this research (e.g., diversity, multicultural issues, and achievement gap) softens descriptions of racist educational practice (Kohli et al., 2017). As education professionals we need to actively identify and change policies and practices that have been created (sometimes consciously and sometimes unwittingly) by racially biased educational hierarchies and supported by institutional powers (Solorzano et al., 2002). At the macrosystemic level, it is important for educational professionals to advocate for the elimination of institutionalized racist educational practices designed to perpetuate the racial status quo (Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995). Specifically, we need to continue to challenge deficit thinking (Valencia, 2012), colorblind practices (Bonilla-Silva, 2006), and reward systems based on the belief that success is always due to individual merits (Au, 2013). It is also important to understand the role of intergenerational trauma in perpetuating challenges for marginalized students. The experience of intergenerational trauma is influenced by minority group socioeconomic disadvantages, parent–child relationship strain secondary to traumatic events (e.g., separations), and cultural subgroup narratives. The latter can include telling and retelling of stories related to past traumatic events impacting the group or active avoidance of those stories. These stories can create “memories” for subsequent

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generations, even when they didn’t directly experience the historical stressors (Hirsch, 2001). Active avoidance of sharing stories can perpetuate a sense of learned helplessness in younger generations. Additionally, it is important to recognize that Western European colonization and forced assimilation decimated many thriving cultures. Assimilation resulted in loss of cultural heritage, language, identity, group pride and kinship for many cultural groups (Bombay et al., 2009). Historical trauma and contemporary discriminative practices contribute to the process of intergenerational trauma transmission and increase many cultural subgroups’ vulnerability to post traumatic stress reactions. The current antiracist movement requires that we incorporate antiracist pedagogy within educational practice as one component of addressing intergenerational trauma (Blakeney, 2005). It is also important to note that students’ vulnerability to intergenerational trauma can be diminished by social support, strong cultural identification, and cultural subgroup community support (Ungar, 2004). Latinx immigrant resilience is one example of how culture can serve as a protective factor. Cardoso and Thompson’s (2010) research demonstrates that once immigrants arrive safely and gain legal status, immigration per se isn’t a risk for traumatic stress reactions. Engagement in cultural traditions which foster a sense of ethnic/cultural identity contributes to positive outcomes for those Latinx immigrant students who are able to gain entry to the United States. Specifically, strong cultural identity is associated with better mental health, decreased substance abuse, higher academic achievement, and positive adjustment to the new school environment. The collectivist nature of Latinx culture is consistent with the importance of family, peer, and community support for these students’ attainment of positive academic outcomes, self-esteem, maturity, motivation, and perseverance. Extended family and community support are especially important following migration to provide a buffer against discrimination, social isolation, and economic hardship (Cardoso & Thompson, 2010). The significant barriers to safe passage and legal access for many Latinx émigrés can exacerbate intergenerational trauma for this cultural subsystem. In recent years, there has been a sociopolitical backlash in the United States against many marginalized populations. In education it can be helpful to remember the legal roots of CRT and challenge laws related to educational practices that perpetuate racist practices and intergenerational trauma. Specifically, for real and meaningful change, educators can use CRT to inform

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curriculum and pedagogy, teacher attitudes and behaviors, distributive justice practices, school climate and culture, public policy, school finance practices, and community–school engagement (Ledesma & Calderón, 2015). Distributive justice shifts thinking from guilt and punishment to a fairness and remediation perspective (Harris, 1993). When assessing school cultures, we need to evaluate microaggressions as well as overt discriminatory practices. Finally, education professionals need to advocate for legislative change in school finance policies such as performance assessments and accountability systems designed to penalize urban schools while rewarding suburban schools (Alemán, 2007; Au, 2013), and school choice measures where working-class students/students of color are pushed out of choice schools due to being fined for disciplinary infractions and being levied with extra fees they can’t afford (Stovall, 2013). Health and Education Thornton et al. (2016) described the bidirectional influence of health and educational outcomes. Research investigating the relationship between education and health outcomes has repeatedly demonstrated that higher educational attainment (in terms of years in school and academic credentials) is associated with longer life expectancy and better overall health (Zajacova & Lawrence, 2018). However, it is only more recently that researchers have begun to look at the relationship of educational practices to student health. Unsurprisingly, those schools which focus on providing quality educational experiences—including health promotion as well as social-emotional curriculum in addition to academic supports—yield not only the greatest educational attainment but also short- and long-term positive health outcomes for their students (Zajacova & Lawrence, 2018). Additionally, several longitudinal studies support the long-term, positive relationship between early childhood educational interventions and later positive health outcomes (Thornton et al., 2016). Similarly, students with access to better health care demonstrate improved academic outcomes (Zajacova & Lawrence, 2018). Recall that marginalized students are more likely to experience complex trauma and toxic stress reactions, which result in increased vulnerability to medical and mental health concerns. As such, a robust and equitable health care system is needed to support student success.

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Environment Climate change has resulted in increased frequency and severity of natural disasters as witnessed in the daily news (Muttarak & Lutz, 2014). These disasters can have an impact on child health directly via injury and indirectly via environmental destruction, malnutrition from diminished food resources, and limited access to health care (Kousky, 2016). Natural disasters can also impact psychological health and academic functioning, particularly when there has been physical damage to schools and other community-serving organizations. The adverse impact of natural disasters can be mitigated by providing social safety nets. Muttarak and Lutz’s (2014) review of the literature suggests education is the best long-term defense against the adverse impact of climate change. Specifically, those who are educated are better able to understand the dangers of climate change and have the skills needed for the adaptive preparation for, response to, and recovery from disasters. Furthermore, Muttarak and Lutz’s (2014) findings are consistent with the Education for Sustainability (EfS) movement, which emphasizes that in order to live in a democratic society, we must understand how to live sustainability within ecologic, economic, and social systems (Higgs & McMillan, 2006). The K–12 National Associations Network for Sustainability (K–12 NANS) has developed standards (and are creating a crosswalk with the Common Core) for EfS grounded in the core belief that sustainability can only occur when we have “strong thriving and secure communities; and provide economic opportunities for the broadest number of people while preserving the life support system on which all current and future generations depend” (Rowe & Lang Winslade, 2012, p. 37). These EfS standards guide core curriculum in a way that educates students about the complex interplay of the systemic factors necessary to promote sustainability, with the goal of fostering sustainable values and behaviors in students’ personal lives and within their community. The EfS values are consistent with a bioecological model of trauma and trauma-informed school practice at the broadest level.

Mesosystems In Bronfenbrenner’s (1986) early model, mesosystems referred to the bidirectional relationships between the various microsystems within which a child

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operates. Later, Bronfenbrenner and Ceci (1994) expanded the notion of mesosystems to include the bidirectional relationships between successive levels of systems, as well as interactions between factors within each level. For example, a within-factors mesosystemic relationship might exist at the microsystemic level in terms of adult’s behavioral expectations for the child across the home, childcare, and classroom environments. Similarly, the relationship between two exosystems—the school and mental health systems—may be particularly important when it comes to TIS practices. For example, up to 70% of all youth receive some type of mental health care within education settings (Merikangas et al., 2011). This number is encouraging on the one hand because it suggests schools are an excellent setting within which to provide integrative and collaborative mental and behavioral health services. However, on the other hand, it is concerning because there are limited school mental health professionals in general and even more limited numbers with trauma-specific training. Collaborative school health care (medical and mental/behavioral) models have the potential to decrease health care access barriers, increase service quality, and decrease healthcare costs (Lyon et al., 2016). However, unless they are implemented in a coordinated fashion, they will result in fragmented and ineffective student support services. Finally, while it is important to understand within-level mesosystemic relationships, cross-level mesosystemic relationships also provide a valuable framework for understanding the complexity of trauma reactions. Specifically, a cross-level mesosystem relationship can be used to understand a particular student’s challenges. For example, the mesosystemic relationship between microsystems and exosystems might manifest as coordination challenges between a parent’s work schedule, childcare options, and the school schedule and could lead to diminished feelings of safety and security in a child trauma survivor. Furthermore, cross-level mesosystemic relationships could conceivably transcend all layers in complex and interwoven ways. As an example, macrosystem economic factors could interact with the exosystemic factor of decreased school system funding, which, in turn, might influence the microsystemic factor of an impoverished classroom environment. These interactions can contribute to functional challenges for an individual child in terms of their management of physiological stress reactions at the biophysical level. Chronic challenges in this manner could have a long-term adverse impact on the student’s development as described in the next section on chronosystems.

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Chronosystem and Developmental Processes Chronosystems, or life transitions and life course, were added in the Bronfenbrenner and Ceci (1994) bioecological model. Chronosystems are those developmental changes in a person which occur over time and are the result of changes to and factors within the environment. A key concept is the proximal processes or the enduring forms of interaction an individual has with the environment that serve as the building blocks of human development. Examples of proximal processes include things such as parent–child relationships, peer relationships, play and leisure activities, and learning paradigms. Adaptation to adverse childhood experiences is just one aspect of development that is expressed through these proximal processes. Furthermore, life events, including normative transitions, such as entering and leaving the education system, and non-normative events, such as ACEs, not only directly influence the developing child, but they also indirectly influence development via the effect they have on family processes and the community within which the events occur. That is, these chronosystem changes occur within multiple ecological contexts across the nested systems described herein. Therefore, a person’s reaction to a traumatic event can only be fully understood in the context of both the developmental processes described above and the ecosystems within which they function. For example, a school shooting often results in an increase in punitive school policy and procedures, teacher–student relationship strain, peer relationship strain, and a shift in economic resource allocation (Welch & Payne, 2010). All of these, in turn, have an impact on students, educational professionals, and families within the system across time. Additionally, Bronfenbrenner and Morris (2006) most recently articulated a time factor to the chronosystem that consists of three periods. Microtime, the smallest unit, refers to specific behavioral sequences. The next unit, mesotime, refers to consistent behavioral sequences over a period of days or weeks. Finally, the societal expectations within and across generations constitute macrotime. These temporal concepts can complement the understanding of the child’s individual response at the biophysical level in terms of microtime. Macrotime is reflected in the earlier discussion of intergenerational transmission of trauma. Finally, the concept of mesotime is consistent with the contemporary understanding of developmental traumatology.

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Recall that mesotime refers to the consistent behavioral sequences demonstrated across days and even weeks. These longer term behavioral sequences are reciprocally influenced by both internal and external developmental processes. The internal processes consist of the individual’s temperament biophysical, emotional, and cognitive reactions to the traumatic event. Furthermore, there appear to be critical life stages in terms of the impact of exposure to the trauma. For example, children who experience physical and sexual abuse prior to age 5 are significantly more likely to develop internalizing symptoms (Cicchetti et al., 2010) than those whose abuse occurs after age 5. Children whose trauma occurred before age 11 have three times a greater likelihood of developing PTSD than those with trauma experiences after age 11 (Davidson & Smith, 1990), and vulnerability to subsequent PTSD with later stressors is even greater when trauma before the age of 10 is accompanied by separation from one’s parents (Davidson et al., 1991). Twenty years ago, De Bellis et al. (1999) first articulated a model of developmental traumatology in which they began to describe the psychological and physiological effects of toxic stress on the developing child. Their model centers on the physiological and psychological mechanisms that contribute to the post traumatic stress symptom clusters as articulated in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). These stress reactions begin with exposure to a traumatic event as defined in the introductory section of this chapter. Adverse reactions to the event occur within four symptom clusters, which include (a) re-experiencing and intrusions (e.g., memories, flashbacks, nightmares), (b) avoidance (thoughts, feelings, situations, and reminders of the event), (c) negative alterations in cognition and mood (depression, anxiety, emotional numbing, social disengagement), and (d) heightened arousal and reactivity (irritability, risky behaviors, hypervigilance, easily startled, poor concentration, sleep difficulty). The way individual and systemic risk and protective factors interact with brain and body development serves as the basis for current models of developmental traumatology (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014). As described in the biophysical section, toxic stress during early-middle childhood results in dysregulation of the adaptive stress response–homeostasis cycle, leading to both structural and functional changes in the brain (Godoy et al., 2018; Johnson et al., 2013). Specifically, impaired development of the prefrontal cortex is manifested as

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diminished executive functioning and decision-making capabilities. Toxic stress also causes alterations in the functioning of several neurotransmitters and hormones. When combined with structural brain changes, dysregulation of these systems results in disruptive behaviors and attachment deficits. In adolescence, this dysregulation of the amygdala (or emotional processing center) and reward circuitry is manifested as continued disruptive behaviors, an inability to experience pleasure, and addictions. Left unchecked, adults with a significant trauma history will develop communication pathways in the brain that are blocked or shut down, meaning their capacity to return to a physiological and psychological resting state following initiation of stress responses is impaired (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014). In terms of developmental traumatology, it is important to remember that those students with early and complex trauma experiences are often in a chronic state of arousal and reactivity, which adversely impacts their mesotime behavioral sequences. As a result, they consistently struggle with cognitive and social functioning. Specifically, their social cognition patterns are characterized by negative thoughts/views of the world and negative internal/self-narratives. As discussed earlier, they are at increased risk for poor health outcomes in the form of immune system dysregulation, adverse brain functioning, and cellular aging (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014).

Conclusion Factors such as gender, family history, and intergenerational trauma lead to genetic/epigenetic and temperamental risk for increased vulnerability to more adverse biological stress reactions. Trauma-specific factors also increase risk for developing post traumatic stress symptoms and include factors such as age at exposure, duration of the experience, type of event, severity of the experience, and relationship to the perpetrator (in the case of abuse; Hodges et al., 2013). Social support appears to be one of the strongest protective factors (Ungar, 2004; Weaver et al., 2004). The interaction of these risk and protective factors with brain and body development can be utilized to inform our understanding of the impact of traumatic life events on the development and functioning of children and youth exposed to trauma (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014).

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The bioecological model of trauma presented in this chapter describes the complex and interrelated systems impacting trauma response. This information can be used to guide comprehensive, trauma-informed educational policy, practice, and advocacy. Furthermore, we can use the bioecological model of trauma to develop a multisystemic approach to fostering resilience in students, within educational communities, and across the educational system at large. Specifically, we can use this knowledge to develop prevention and intervention programming designed to help students attain successful outcomes despite the threats to development and adaptation presented by their traumatic life experiences (Masten et al., 1990) and, in this manner, foster resilience despite life challenges and traumatic experiences. We can enhance the likelihood that students will demonstrate resilience by establishing TISs and providing school supports which promote the capacity for emotional and behavior regulation, prosocial peer relationships, self-mastery, and a sense of purpose. We can also ensure students’ families have access to resources that enhance effective parenting while providing both student and family access to school and community resources (Masten, 2004). Furthermore, because resilience has multiple pathways, it is important to identify risk and protective factors within the context of culture, development, and history (Bottrell, 2009). The bioecological model described herein provides a comprehensive model for understanding the relationship between these factors and systems. This conceptual framework can be used to both understand individual student behavior and guide TISs and educational practices.

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Sharma, N., & Nagle, Y. K. (2018). Personality and resilience as determinants of psychological well-being among military children. Defence Life Science Journal, 3(4), 356–362. https://doi.org/10.14429/dlsj.3.13405 Skiba, R. J. (2014). The failure of zero tolerance. Reclaiming Children and Youth, 22(4), 27–33. https://reclaimingjournal.com/sites/default/files/journal-article-pdfs/ 22_4_Skiba.pdf Skiba, R. J., Arredondo, M. I., & Williams, N. T. (2014). More than a metaphor: The contribution of exclusionary discipline to a school-to-prison pipeline. Equity & Excellence in Education, 47(4), 546–564. https://doi.org/10.1080/10665684. 2014.958965 Skoluda, N., Strahler, J., Schlotz, W., Niederberger, L., Marques, S., Fischer, S., Thoma, M. V., Spoerri, C., Ehlert, U., & Nater, U. M. (2015). Intra-individual psychological and physiological responses to acute laboratory stressors of different intensity. Psychoneuroendocrinology,  51, 227–236. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2014.10.002 Sokol, R. L., Zimmerman, M. A., Perron, B. E. Rosenblum, K. L., Musik, M., & Miller, A. L. (2020). Developmental differences in the association of peer relationships with traumatic stress symptoms. Prevention Science, 21(6), 841–849. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-020-01125-3 Solorzano, D., Allen, W. R., & Carroll, G. (2002). Keeping race in place: Racial microaggressions and campus racial climate at the University of California, Berkeley. Chicano/Latino Law Review, 23(1), 15–111. https://escholarship.org/ uc/item/5b52m9r3 Stovall, D. (2013). Against the politics of desperation: Educational justice, critical race theory, and Chicago school reform. Critical Studies in Education, 54(1), 33–43. https://doi.org/10.1080/17508487.2013.739192 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. https://ncsacw.samhsa.gov/userfiles/files/ SAMHSA_Trauma.pdf Terr, L. C. (1991). Childhood traumas: An outline and overview. American Journal of Psychiatry, 148(1), 10–19. https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.148.1.10 Thompson, R. R., Jones, N. M., Holman, E. A., Silver, R. C. (2019). Media exposure to mass violence can fuel a cycle of distress. Science Advances, 5(4). https://doi. org/10.1126/sciadv.aav3502 Thornton, R. L. J., Glover, C. M., Cene, C. W., Glik, D. C., Henderson, J. A., & Williams, D. R. (2016). Evaluating strategies for reducing health disparities by addressing the social determinants of health. Health Affairs, 35(8), 1416–1423. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2015.1357

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Tyano, S., Iancu, I., Solomon, Z., Sever, J., Goldstein, I., Touviana, Y., & Bleich, A. (1996). Seven-year follow-up of child survivors of a bus-train collision. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 35(3), 365–373. https://doi.org/10.1097/00004583-199603000-00019 Ulrich-Lai, Y. M., & Herman, J. P. (2009). Neural regulation of endocrine and autonomic stress responses. Nature Reviews. Neuroscience, 10(6), 397–409. https:// doi.org/10.1038/nrn2647 Ungar, M. (2004). A constructionist discourse on resilience: Multiple contexts, multiple realities among at-risk children and youth. Youth & Society, 35(3), 341–365. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X03257030 Valencia, R. R. (Ed.). (2012). The evolution of deficit thinking: Educational thought and practice. Routledge Falmer. Vasterman, P., Yzermans, C. J., & Dirkzwager, A. J. E. (2005). The role of the media and media hypes in the aftermath of disasters. Epidemiologic Reviews, 27, 107–114. https://doi.org/10.1093/epirev/mxi002 Visser, M. J. (2004). Implementing peer support in schools: Using a theoretical framework in action research. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 14(6), 436–454. https://doi.org/10.1002/casp.788 Walsh, B., & Muehlenkamp, J. J. (2013). Managing nonsuicidal self-injury in schools: Use of a structured protocol to manage the behavior and prevent social contagion. School Psychology Forum, 7(4), 161–171. http://www.nasponline.org/ publications/periodicals/spf/volume-7/volume-7-issue-4-(winter-2013)/ managing-nonsuicidal-self-injury-in-schools-use-of-a-structured-protocolto-manager-the-behavior-and-prevent-social-contagion  Weaver, I. C. G., Cervoni, N., Champagne, F. A., D’Alessio, A. C., Sharma, S., Seckl, J. R., Dymov, S., Szyf, M., & Meaney, M. J. (2004). Epigenetic programming by maternal behavior. Nature Neuroscience, 7(8), 847–854. https://doi.org/10.1038/ nn1276 Wei, J., Zhong, P., Qin, L., Tan, T., & Yan, Z. (2018). Chemicogenetic restoration of the prefrontal cortex to amygdala pathway ameliorates stress-induced deficits. Cerebral Cortex, 28(6), 1980–1990. https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhx104 Welch, K., & Payne, A. A. (2010). Racial threat and punitive school discipline. Social Problems, 57(1), 25–48. https://doi.org/10.1525/sp.2010.57.1.25 Welsh, R. O., & Little, S. (2018). The school discipline dilemma: A comprehensive review of disparities and alternative approaches. Review of Educational Research, 88(5), 752–794. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654318791582 Wolff, K. T., Cuevas, C., Intravia, J., Baglivio, M. T., & Epps, N. (2018). The effects of neighborhood context on exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACE) among adolescents involved in the juvenile justice system: Latent classes and contextual effects. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47(11), 2279–2300. https:// doi.org/10.1007/s10964-018-0887-5

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Wolke, D., & Lereya, S. T. (2015). Long-term effects of bullying. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 100(9), 879–885. https://doi.org/10.1136/archdischild-2014-306667 Wolpow, R., Johnson, M. M., Hertel, R., & Kincaid, S. O. (2016). The heart of learning and teaching: Compassion, resiliency, and academic success. Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. https://www.k12.wa.us/sites/default/ files/public/compassionateschools/pubdocs/theheartoflearningandteaching. pdf Yearwood, K., Vliegen, N., Chau, C., Corveleyn, J., & Luyten, P. (2019). When do peers matter? The moderating role of peer support in the relationship between environmental adversity, complex trauma, and adolescent psychopathology in socially disadvantaged adolescents. Journal of Adolescence, 72, 14–22. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2019.02.001 Zajacova, A., & Lawrence. E. M. (2018). The relationship between education and health: Reducing disparities through a contextual approach. Annual Review of Public Health, 39, 273–289. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-pubhealth-031816-044628

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Trauma, Adversity, and the Classroom Teacher

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CHAPTER 2

Trauma, Adversity, and the Classroom Teacher: Systematically Planning for Safety and Resiliency Doyle Pruitt and Peter Kozik

Ideally, schools have served as a reprieve from what can be a chaotic home or community environment. However, the alarming increase in (threatened) violence in schools has compromised this sanctuary. When school is no longer a safe haven, child trauma survivors are more likely to be triggered and shift from a present-oriented growth and enrichment mindset to a developmentally regressed, survival mode. Thus, it is imperative that educators are prepared to recognize and manage these triggers by developing systematic approaches that can be individually tailored to student education. Integrating a trauma-informed care (TIC) approach to the planning of curriculum units focused on literature that expresses themes of trauma serves to reduce actual or potential triggers, which, in turn, facilitates academic performance. This chapter discusses how curricular materials can be scrutinized and presented through a TIC lens and the implementation of responsive classroom strategies.

Trauma and Adversity Trauma is classified into two broad categories: direct and indirect. Direct trauma tends to be interpersonal in nature and is inclusive of war, terrorism, and community violence. Indirect trauma tends to be natural disasters and medical

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trauma (National Child Traumatic Stress Network, 2017). The experience of trauma can be a single incident or a condition. Adversity includes experiences that cause distress but are not necessarily identified or experienced as traumatic (e.g., peer rejection, having a disability; Courtois & Ford, 2009). Chronic and cumulative exposure to adversity can result in trauma.

Recognizing Trauma in Students Trauma can impact the physical, psychological, cognitive, and social aspects of a victim’s life (Chapman, 2014). These effects can be acute or prolonged, depending on the individual’s resiliency and risk traits, physiological makeup, developmental stage, coping skills, support system, and the degree to which they are believed and supported when disclosing (Chapman, 2014; Faust et al., 1995; van der Kolk et al., 1996). This is an expansive repertoire of trauma reactions across domains to be sure.

Impact of Trauma on Cognitive Processing Cognitive processing disruptions tend to develop after a traumatic event. These include (a) intrusive memories; (b) avoidance; (c) affect dysregulation; (d) trouble concentrating, distractibility, and difficulty in discriminating stimuli; and (e) transformation of personality and coping (Terr, 1990; van der Kolk et al., 1996). Prolonged exposure has a neurobiological effect on multiple areas of the brain, causing a structural and chemical change (Silberg, 2013). This can result in a simplistic level of cognitive performance, inflexibility in thinking, and defective problem-solving (Bloom, 2013). This compromised state of cognitive processing can negatively impact a child’s ability to regulate their emotions and to learn in an academic setting (Silberg, 2013).

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Impact of Trauma on Behavior Trauma is reflected in behavior in innumerable ways, including no noticeable variation. The intersection of emotional, physical, and interpersonal consequences coupled with the alterations to individual ego development foster derivative behavior unique to that victim. Here, ego is understood as the personality structure created by the experiences one endures in their interpersonal and intrapersonal world, along with the meaning and world view one derives from them (Manners & Durkin, 2001). Posttraumatic reenactment or posttraumatic play may occur (Herman, 1997; Terr, 1990).

Trauma Themes in Common Core Suggested Readings Careful consideration of the literature and approaches to learning should be undertaken for its impact on trauma survivors. To increase student engagement with literature and honor a more culturally diverse and aware population of learners, suggested reading lists for the Common Core highlight a wider diversity of characters and more contemporary thematic focuses. Examples include Adem’s Cross by Alice Meade (1996) about the horrors of the Kosovo War, Hush by Jacqueline Woodson (2003) about the aftermath of a police shooting, and Wonder by R. J. Palacio (2012) about a fight for acceptance of a person who is physically disfigured; these examples chart important and intricate moral dilemmas through events that can resonate as traumatic for some students. This trend is not limited to texts intended for young adults. As early as first grade, required school readings risk triggering students. It Could Always Be Worse: A Yiddish Folk Tale (Zemach, 1976) is about a family living in extreme poverty and an overcrowded, chaotic house. Me and My Family Tree (Sweeney, 1999) teaches children how to map out and connect different family members, but neglects to touch on birth, foster, and adoptive family systems

An Example From the Common Core The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros (1984), suggested reading for students at the eighth-grade level, can provide a relevant case study in dealing

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with traumatic events and their potential effects on students. The book, set in a Chicago barrio, follows the growth and maturation of Esperanza, a 13-year-old Latina who aspires to become a writer. Through a series of poignant vignettes, she negotiates situations with family, friends, and strangers that inform her search to be free of the narrow perspectives imposed by traditional hierarchies, stereotypes, and cultural norms. In several scenarios, Esperanza confronts oppression and physical and sexual abuse either of her or of someone with whom she is close. The scenarios serve to illuminate the limitations of Esperanza’s aspirations while demanding the development of her own strength and resilience in the story and the commitment to her chosen craft. Themes of compromised innocence, female subordination, and hypermasculine culture permeate Cisneros’s novel. Early in the text, it becomes clear that women must subordinate their lives to the expectations of men as Cisneros catalogues several female acquaintances of Esperanza’s who are in relationships with domineering fathers and boyfriends. Esperanza herself must face the reality that her own brothers will talk to her inside their home but refuse to engage with her in public, eliciting feelings of betrayal. The relationships explored in the book, however, can also elicit memories of similar circumstances for students and trigger traumatic responses. For example, feeling awkward and uncertain on her first day at a new job, Esperanza is invited to kiss an older coworker “happy birthday” on his cheek, but he seizes her face instead and forcibly kisses her on the mouth. As she matures over the course of a year, Esperanza struggles to understand the limited choices available to her and to the women around her as they face increased threat and harm. Her friend Alicia fears “fathers” because she is forced to care for hers after her mother dies. Her friend Sally is battered by her father and misses school for days because he sees her talking to a boy. While waiting for Sally at an amusement park, Esperanza is forced into a sexual encounter with several Caucasian boys, bringing up the issue of power not only through sexual assault but also race. As with much good young adult literature, there can be a balance between understanding cultures and cultural responsiveness and considering the effect of certain scenes as triggers for trauma. Any of these selected scenarios from The House on Mango Street (Cisneros, 1984) can risk retraumatizing individual students. For example, class discussion(s) in which victim blaming, hostile

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masculinity, or insensitivity is expressed may be internalized by the student survivor as a reliving of some aspect of the trauma. This can apply to students who currently or historically experienced trauma and for those whose abuser is in the classroom or school. Best intentions of exposing students to worthwhile literature may inadvertently awaken memories that leave students reliving harm through traumatic associations. The following are additional examples: • As I Lay Dying (William Faulkner, 1930): speaks to the death of a parent and the chaos this can have on a family system, its relationships, and the functioning of individual family members • Billy Bud, Sailor (Herman Melville, 1970): touches on jealousy, abuse of power, and strict adherence to law over common sense, resulting in the death of an innocent person • Dragonwings (Laurence Yep, 1975): a young boy is reunited with his father in this story of immigration plagued with natural disasters, poverty, and racism • Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte, 1847): follows the protagonist Jane through her life as she faces inequality, oppression, and a search for belonging from her first days as an orphaned baby • The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Mark Twain, 1876): is the story of a young orphan who secretly witnesses a murder when he and his friend are disobeying their parents. The navigation of adolescence is mired by secrets, fear, murder, deviation from family and community norms, and running away. Classroom teachers can help students to feel safe and make the classroom a place of support by anticipating and planning for the portrayal of traumatic events in literature, by acknowledging the potential responses to these portrayals, giving students ideas on ways to engage in self-care and permission to use these strategies, and collaborating with other staff to care for students.

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Trauma-Informed Care TIC is a framework that acknowledges the presence and impact trauma and adversity have on an individual. The goal is to ensure programming does not retraumatize the individual. Six principles are the quintessence of TIC: (a) safety; (b) trust and transparency; (c) peer support, (d) collaboration and mutuality; (e) empowerment, voice, and choice; and (f) cultural, historical and gender issues (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2014). Each element is required to achieve a TIC environment (Kusmaul et al., 2015). Embracing a TIC approach does not obligate teachers or staff to shift the focus off education or become therapists. Rather, staff remain cognizant of the fact that students are or may have experienced trauma, and that the impact resonates long after it ends. A TIC approach drives a concerted effort to promote resiliency and protective factors in students while minimizing the risk of retraumatization in the classroom (NCTSN, 2016). They are cognizant of the fact that behavior and learning may be influenced by past or current trauma which warrants alternative strategies and approaches. By facilitating a safe space that promotes growth and transformation, teachers and staff contribute to the multitiered response to help students heal their trauma (Cavanaugh, 2016; Wolmer et al., 2011). For a TIC approach to work in the classroom, several initiatives should be considered: (a) provision of resources and expectations that create a safe environment, (b) emphasis on positive interactions, (c) cultural awareness and sensitivity, (d) encouragement and provision of peer support, (e) organization support, and (f) individualized support for the student and their family (see Cavanaugh, 2016, for an in-depth explanation). Creating a TIC classroom requires buy-in, training, and resources (Blitz & Lee, 2015; Hummer et al., 2010).

The Critical Importance of a Trauma-Informed Care Approach TIC offers a framework for teachers to maintain an authentic and caring posture while incorporating dimensions of critical thought into classroom discussions about literature recommended by the Common Core. The value of managing classrooms where students feel safe and heard by the adults in charge

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cannot be underestimated (Terrasi & deGarlace, 2017). Broaching sensitive topics in straightforward and caring ways can model for students, those triggered by the experience and those who are not but who may have friends who have been traumatized, the means to manage trauma responses. Responsive Classroom© (RC) can assist in designing opportunities for teachers to make their classrooms more trauma-informed while preserving cultural sensitivity and equity.

Responsive Classroom and Trauma-Informed Care RC, through its six-facet structure, lends itself to implementing the TIC framework and to creating a classroom environment where trauma and responses to trauma can be acknowledged supported. The RC model is recommended for K–8 classrooms as a means to “create[ing] a safe, caring classroom environment to stimulate learning and promote community” (Horsch, Qie-Ji et al.,2002, p. 370). First developed by Ruth S. Charney in 1992 for the Northeast Foundation for Children (www.responsiveclassroom.org) in the book Teaching Children to Care: Management in the Responsive Classroom, RC has been replicated in hundreds of schools nationwide and is designated by the federal What Works Clearinghouse as an evidence-based practice. The goal of academic performance success is the focus of every classroom, yet any teacher will concede that academics cannot be implemented successfully without a degree of human engagement and personal concern. As elucidated by Charney (1992), RC engenders an academic environment in which students learn to care for themselves, their peers, and their community by, among other things, developing rules and expectations to which everyone in the classroom can agree. RC is a proprietary program for K–8 schools and requires training. The training is important because the model only shows substantial gains, particularly academically, when it is implemented with fidelity (Killion, 2015; Rimm-Kaufman et al., 2014). Charney (1992) relies on John Dewey as one of her intellectual touchstones to illustrate the through line from self-control to positive experiences and outcomes. Teaching self-control means teaching, among other things, respect and compassion for others. Students learn directly from the immediate school environment because that is a context of their experience. Therefore, the content

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of the classroom includes “the squabbles and rejections, the fears and failures” that all of us in classrooms experience every day. As Charney (1992) writes, “the process [of school] engages all children, and all of us, in the course of a lifetime” (p. 12). Students, by making choices, setting rules and expectations, listening well, interacting respectfully, and seeing a model of self-awareness and positive regard in their teacher, can confront the life of the classroom and life. Hence, Charney’s emphasis on self-agency through choice and reflection on experience, expressed in the processes of Morning Meeting, Rules and Logical Consequences, Classroom Organization, Guided Discovery, Classroom Organization, Academic Choice, and Assessment and Reporting to Parents can suggest a road map for a teacher navigating TIC. Table 2.1 A Crosswalk Between the Principles of Trauma-Informed Care and the Structure of Responsive Classroom© Responsive Classroom © Structure Morning Meeting Classroom Organization Rules & Logical Consequences Guided Discovery Academic Choice Assessment & Reporting to Parents

Trauma-Informed Care Principles Safety Trust & Peer Collaboration Empowerment, Transparency Support & Mutuality Voice, & Choice

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

Cultural, Historical, & Gender Issues

X

X

X

X X X

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Safety As all teachers know, functioning in loco parentis means ensuring that students are physically and emotionally safe in their care (Darling-Hammond & DePaoli, 2020). Planning with other professionals to discuss, describe, and assure safety for students who have been traumatized under any circumstances is critical (Chafouleas et al., 2016). When considering a roster of students, it may be important to recognize that trauma in the classroom can be known or unknown, disclosed, suspected, or a complete surprise. A helpful first step can be having the school guidance counselor or social worker, without compromising student identities, review a class roster in light of a Common Core work of fiction and its themes and alert the teacher to potential triggers that may exist among students. Engaging in grade-level and schoolwide conversations about required readings can anticipate occasions when texts may need to be removed from required curricula. Planning to address safety early and often during a unit of study can be important. This can include being conscious of one’s own respectful speech without lapsing into bias, stereotypes, or victim blaming and encouraging all students to do the same while helping hold the classroom community accountable. Finally, reinforcing the availability of support within the school community among other adult professionals will encourage students to seek assistance if they feel they need it (Chafouleas et al., 2016). Morning Meeting stands out as a venue within which students learn the importance of self-control and listening. Morning Meeting can also serve to address issues of trauma that may emerge while discussing a piece of literature during what Charney (1992) calls “the classroom news of the day” (p. 30). The ground rules for emotional safety, trust and transparency, collaboration, mutuality, and empowerment can be communicated during Morning Meeting. Hence, this critical component of the RC model offers a routine and structured means to settle children each day into the life a caring classroom and to anticipate the academic and social news of the day. In that news, or potentially in the first step of Morning Meeting when children review and discuss their present state, teachers can listen for trauma. For example, in describing a plan for the day, teachers can anticipate Esperanza’s assault in the chapter titled “Red Clowns” in The House on Mango Street (Cisneros, 1984) and field questions and concerns while beginning the part of the day focused more squarely on academic objectives.

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In building community with RC, students are encouraged to recognize and acknowledge the feelings of others; hence TIC can be applied as a process of normalizing emotions that, for some students, may seem difficult or foreign. Charney (1992) describes the “stretching” her students undertake when they are challenged to understand what for some of them may be abstractions like homelessness or domestic violence, and for others may be realities (p. 16). Being seen is a means to ensuring a student’s safety in the classroom. Seeing a child means acknowledging who the child is beyond what is observed in the child’s behaviors. To see a child is to understand children who may be outwardly expressing emotional states or thoughts that they are internally grappling with. Noticing, practicing positive regard, and connecting with all students work toward supporting that child.

Trust and Transparency Following these initial steps, it is important to help students anticipate characters and scenes that may serve to trigger traumatic memories and emotions. Without directing the discussion toward any individual in the class, a matter-of-fact depiction of the portions of the work of fiction that may serve as triggers should be planned and implemented at the beginning of the unit. Preteaching these portions of the book fully and taking the time to answer questions will eliminate the surprise of confronting events haphazardly as part of reading the text. Students for whom these portions may serve as triggers can then realize that their experiences are welcome in a safe space whether or not they choose to self-disclose. Continuing to stay in touch with counselors and mental health professionals will allow for support if self-disclosure occurs. The second principle of TIC, trust and transparency, is developed not only in the rulemaking on which everyone agrees or in the direct teaching and modeling necessary for a classroom to function but also in the subtle gestures and measured words with which adults in the classroom help students manage their activities and responsibilities. Students can create and include rules about handling sensitive topics and caring for one another. Charney (1992) points to the first 6 weeks of the school year as being a critical time for helping students develop a sense of agency regarding themselves, their peers, their learning, and their resources. Hence, language (students and their own) becomes a critical

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feature of interaction to which teachers must carefully attend. How teachers speak to students can (dis)empower all in the classroom (Johnston, 2004), so noticing good “sharing,” “listening,” and “problem-solving” helps define expectations and engages students as agents of their own making. Rules setting expectations for honesty, respect, acceptance, and inclusivity can support a more trauma-responsive environment. How teachers speak about trauma has lasting consequences for their students as well. Are we afraid of emotion or dismissive of student experiences? Do we cast blame or engage in judgment? Do we model listening attentively and speaking empathetically? The language of RC demands honesty on the part of both teacher and student so that trust and transparency become the de facto characteristics of the classroom. Thus, a discussion of The House on Mango Street (Cisneros, 1984) would require an honest interaction during which the teacher acknowledges and reflects authentically on the types of trauma depicted.

Peer Support Care and kindness in relationships, reinforced through direct instruction, modeled through teacher posture and discourse, and practiced regularly can create a platform from which students can confront trauma and its aftermath. The classroom community’s dedication to working to alleviate suffering and victimization can be a goal of teaching. Recognizing, too, that needs differ and personalities can chafe, a teacher can set the stage for respectful, sensitive, and compassionate communication. Regular morning and afternoon meetings with students can foster this communication (Horsch, Chen, & Wagner, 2002). An example the teacher might model is an event from their own life when a disagreement occurred in a civil manner and ended in a respectful resolution. Guided Discovery, a method by which the learning of Morning Meeting gets extended to the whole-classroom environment, can develop students’ capacity for listening, appreciating points of view, and acting cooperatively to create a classroom of support because students are actively engaged in this phase in the discussion and disposition of classroom materials and methods. Taking responsibility for teacher and student responses to trauma in TIC follows the same steps. As part of this process, students work cooperatively to determine the appropriate and best uses for various materials and methodologies introduced by

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the teacher (Horsch, Jie-Qi, & Wagner, 2002). In doing so, students understand not only their use of materials and methods but also their place in the classroom as being responsible for “stuff” and being accountable to one another to learning about the limits and lessons of being in community. The Classroom Organization phase of RC depends on students developing the skills of respectfully interacting with partners, with small groups, and with the whole class (Horsch, Jie-Qi, & Wagner, 2002). This development of responsibility to others translates well to the interactions necessary for a supportive TIC environment. Conversations about traumatic events in The House on Mango Street (Cisneros, 1984) can flourish in the context of Guided Discovery and Classroom Organization. With these models, the stage has been set for recognizing any individual as an important and valued participant in life and the life of the classroom and school. These RC principles depend on the modeling and the implementation of partner, small-group, and whole-group talk and work.

Collaboration and Mutuality Connecting the classroom community to wider levels of support at school and in the community can ensure students’ emotional and psychological well-being (Cummings et al., 2017). Informing administrators and parents of controversial topics in literature and inviting dialogue and feedback before a unit is taught can encourage confidence in a teacher’s judgment and broaden the conversation to include caring adults. Connecting with counselors, social workers, other teachers, and school nurses before, during, and after a controversial unit to brainstorm student supports and the methods by which to approach the unit can empower teachers to help students manage trauma. Maintaining a student-centered focus as part of fulfilling the school and district’s mission can create a framework within which pushback from any stakeholder can be negotiated. Peer support blends well into collaboration and mutuality as hallmarks of the TIC approach to classrooms. Students learn to be responsible to and for one another and to teachers and other professionals. Rules for working in groups are expressly reviewed and repeated (Charney, 1992) and can be posted. Reciprocity, the ability to take turns, is taught and valued. In today’s cotaught classrooms, collaboration among professionals also serves to model relationships based on mutuality and respect (Rimm-Kaufman, 2006). Thus, with RC,

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students are routinely engaged in collaboration in various configurations and tasks, each time mindful of the language of mutuality taught and modeled by the teachers. The language of agency, that is, seeing others in positive and empowering ways, supports the development of collaborative groups. Students’ exposure to collaboration among adults reinforces their experiences of working together and caring for each other. The speaking of and about trauma in this environment can feel less frightening, even hopeful.

Empowerment, Voice, and Choice Listening carefully to students through the planning, implementation, and evaluation of units of study is critical for engaging them fully and for creating their ownership of the learning process (Yonezawa, 2015). Inviting students to journal their responses to a given text and its impact on their thoughts and emotions can serve to help manage trauma. Discussing possible choices that characters in fiction can make given traumatic circumstances can serve to embolden students who have been or continue to be traumatized. In each case, active listening whereby students’ points of view are heard and validated with succinct paraphrases and the essential emotions in their statements can create greater transparency and safety. Encouraging student self-advocacy by having students propose alternative texts or points of view can enrich classroom discussion. However, teachers should avoid counseling or attempting any therapeutic intervention. Teachers can recognize that fear and uncertainty may be caused by the mere presence of a student known or suspected of causing harm. Teachers should keep in mind that this student, too, has likely been a victim themselves. In keeping this duality (victim and aggressor) of students in mind, teachers are able to both empathize with the hurt part of the student and simultaneously maintain safety for all individuals in the classroom. There is no need to engage in a discovery mission for truth or understanding to have empathy for this student. The fifth facet of RC, Academic Choice, invites an openness about how texts such as The House on Mango Street (Cisneros, 1984) should be viewed and treated. When the enterprise of learning in the classroom becomes shared among students and with the teacher, considering trauma in literature or in informational texts like social studies can become a process motivated by

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openness and honesty. The technique of “Center Circle” when students and teachers shake hands, elbow bump, or make eye contact allows for the periodic review and discussion of positive, negative, and neutral emotions in the classroom (Charney, 1992). The activity invites students to share the range of their emotions with one another and their teachers, empowering them to interact in an environment where emotions are described and appreciated. Having a Center Circle before and after a potentially triggering section is read can routinize support for every member of the classroom community. In the context of Academic Choice and the safety and trust of Center Circle, students can make decisions about what to divulge and the teacher is prepared to guide and instruct because healthy response is part of the classroom’s fabric.

Cultural, Historical, and Gender Issues Some discussion, description, and explanation of the cultures represented in Common Core readings, the historical norms for the characters, and the milieu in which issues of gender and race exist in the literature would be beneficial. In the case of The House on Mango Street (Cisneros, 1984), understanding the gender roles and the cultural importance of strictly observed family hierarchies would be important to consider. Developing predictions of events in the literature based on historical curiosity and cultural humility in discussing setting and character can pave the way for students’ anticipating the reasons for traumatic events occurring. Likewise, thoroughly researching the cultural and historical context for a piece of literature can help develop a teacher’s informed response, particularly regarding issues of power, sex, race, religion, and gender. Discussions about stereotyping and bias can also be made part of the classroom culture. The deeply rooted interaction of cultures in the United States has often created trauma of its own, and the educator who acknowledges and engages with issues of cultural trauma can more fully realize a classroom of informed care. Emphasizing the right of every individual to choose and to live unharmed with dignity and respect in whatever context works toward a vision of students’ own safety and security. RC is predicated in large measure on the “Golden Rule,” a tenet that supersedes historical and cultural boundaries. The premise of “clear positives” informs all the interactions the teacher has, including with caregivers. Knowing

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students holistically, including their histories and cultures, can help encourage their growth socially. As Rimm-Kaufman (2006) asserts, “knowing children’s families is essential to good teaching” (p. 3). Engaging nonoffending caregivers as partners is a critical step in the RC model. Engaging in conversations with students in an environment in which everyone is valued about cultural differences, particularly practices by the dominant culture and others that can lead to trauma can enhance independence and critical thinking. Therefore, conversations about The House on Mango Street (Cisneros, 1984), understood in the context of cultural humility, are possible in the alliance RC fosters between school and home. The development of the “Critical Contract” in the RC model among teachers, students, and caregivers incorporates the family life of students into classroom decision-making and reporting progress, which is collectively and individually observed and discussed.

Conclusion Scenarios and stories depicted in literature will impact survivors differently, as their experience of trauma, resiliency, and attributes are unique to them. What we offer is insight from our clinical and teaching experience as to how students may be triggered by readings or discussions about them and strategies to minimize harm to students who have (in)directly experienced trauma and their close classmates who may know of their trauma. The following steps can be taken to ensure a learning environment based on TIC: • Engage in a collaborative approach to teaching and the classroom environment. Work with parents, the community, and other professionals who are involved with the child and family to ensure trauma is acknowledged, understood, and resolved to the extent possible. • Be aware of biases, values, and judgments as educators. For many students, teachers are the only positive role model they have. Do our comments unintentionally blame the victim or dismiss their experiences?

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• Assume an authentic and caring posture in working with children. • Encourage trusting relationships and model support for personal rights. • Recognize power differentials. TIC is a framework centering compassion for those we work with. The structure and processes of RC crosswalk well with the framework of TIC. Like TIC, RC requires time and, more important, consciousness to implement. Teachers can achieve this via Morning Meeting, developing rules and logical consequences, incorporating choice into their classroom organization, and considering the lives of students. In the same way, teachers can develop an awareness of traumatic themes inherent in the Common Core curriculum and utilize the structures of RC to help students cope. The student–teacher connection can ensure that no child feels afraid, blamed, disempowered, or disenfranchised.

References Blitz, L. V., & Lee, Y. (2015). Trauma-informed methods to enhance school-based bullying prevention initiatives: An emerging model. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 24, 20–40. https://doi.org/10.1080/10926771.2015.982238 Bloom, S. L. (2013). Creating sanctuary: Toward the evolution of sane societies. Routledge. Cavanaugh, B. (2016). Trauma-informed classrooms and schools. Beyond Behavior, 25(2), 41–46. Chafouleas, S. M., Johnson, A. H., Overstreet, S., & Santos, N. M. (2016). Toward a blueprint for trauma-informed service delivery in schools. School Mental Health, 8, 144–162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-015-9166-8. Chapman, L. (2014). Neurobiologically informed trauma therapy with children and adolescents. W. W. Norton. Charney, R. S. (1992). Teaching children to care: Management in the responsive classroom. Northeast Foundation for Children. Cisneros, S. (1984). The house on Mango Street. Bloomsbury. Coufurtois, C. A., & Ford, J. D. (2009). Treating complex traumatic stress disorders: An evidence-based guide. Guilford Press. Cummings, K. P., Addante, S., Swindell, J., & Meaden, H. (2017). Creating supportive environments for children who have had traumatic events. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26(10), 2728–2741. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0774-9

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Darling-Hammond, L., & DePaoli, J. (2020). Why school climate matters and what can be done to improve it. National Association of State Boards of Education, 20(2), 8–11, 48. https://www.nasbe.org/why-school-climate-matters-and-what-canbe-done-to-improve-it/ Eyre, J. (1847). Jane Eyre. Penguin Classics. Faulkner, W. (1930). As I lay dying. Jonathan Cape & Harrison Smith: New York. Faust, J., Runyon, M., & Kenny, M. (1995). Family variables associated with the onset and impact of intrafamilial childhood sexual abuse. Clinical Psychological Review, 15, 443–456. https://doi.org/10.1016/0272-7358(95)00025-K Herman, J. (1997). Trauma and recovery: The aftermath of violence from domestic abuse to political terror. Basic Books. Horsch, P., Chen, J.Q., &Wagner, S. L. (2002). The responsive classroom approach: A caring, respectful school environment as a context for development. Education & Urban Society, 34(3), 365–384. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0013124502034003006 Horsch, P., Jie-Qi, C., & Wagner, D. L., (2002). The responsive classroom approach: A caring, respectful school environment as a context for development. Education and Urban Society, 34(3), 365–383. Hummer, V. L., Dollard, N., Robst, J., & Armstrong, M. I. (2010). Innovations in implementation of trauma-informed care practices in youth residential treatment: A curriculum for organizational change. Child Welfare, 89(2), 79–95. Johnston, P. H. (2004). Choice words: How our language affects children’s learning. Stenhouse. Killion, J., (2015). Fidelity of implementation proves key to achieving student results. Journal of Staff Development, 36(1), 62–64. Kusmaul, N., Wilson, B., & Nochajski, T. (2015). The infusion of trauma-informed care in organizations: Experience of agency staff. Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership, & Governance, 39, 25–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/233 03131.2014.968749 Manners, J., & Durkin, K. (2001). A critical review of the validity of ego development theory and its measurement. Journal of Personality Assessment, 77(3), 541–567. Doi10.1207/S15327752JPA7703_12 Meade, A. (1996). Adem’s cross. Farar, Straus, & Giroux Melville, H. (1970). Billy Budd, sailor: And other stories. Penguin Books. National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (2016). Creating trauma-informed systems. http://www.nctsn.org/resources/topics/creating-trauma-informed-systems Palacio, R. J. (2012). Wonder. Alfred J. Knopf Rimm-Kaufman, S. E., (2006). Social and academic learning study of the Responsive Classroom© approach. The Northeast Foundation for Children.

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Rimm-Kaufman, S. E., Larsen, R. A. A., Baroody, A. E., Curby, T. W., Ko, M., Thomas, J. B., Merritt, E. G., Arbry, T., & DeCoster, J. (2014). Efficacy of the Responsive Classroom approach: Results from a 3-year longitudinal randomized controlled trial. American Educational Research Journal, 20(10), 1–37. https://doi. org/10 3102/0002831214523821 Terr, L. (1990). Too scared to cry: How trauma affects children and ultimately us all. Basic Books. Terrasi, S., & de Galarce, P. C. (2017). Trauma and learning in America’s classrooms: all teachers confront the need to create safe and supportive environments for students who have had adverse childhood experiences. Phi Delta Kappan, 98(6), 35. https://doi.org/10.1177/0031721717696476 Twain, M. (1876). The adventures of Tom Sawyer. Harper & Brothers. Silberg, J.L. (2013). The child survivor: Healing developmental trauma and dissociation. Routledge. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach. https://store. samhsa.gov/product/SAMHSA-s-Concept-of-Trauma-and-Guidance-for-aTrauma-Informed-Approach/SMA14-4884 Sweeney, J. (1999). Me and my family tree. Dragonfly Books. van der Kolk, B. A., McFarlane, A. C., & Weisaeth, L. (1996). Traumatic stress: The effects of overwhelming experience on mind, body and society. Guilford Press. Wolmer, L., Hamiel, D., Barchas, J. D., Slone, M., & Laor, N. (2011). Teacher-delivered resilience-focused intervention in schools with traumatized children following the second Lebanon War. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 24(3), 309–316. https://10.1002/jts.20638 Woodson, J. (2003). Hush. Putnam Publishers. Yep, L. (1975). Dragonwings. Harper & Row. Yonezawa, S. (2015). Student voice and the Common Core. Teachers College Record, 117(13), 39–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016146811511701311 Zemach, M. (1976). It could always be worse: A Yiddish folk tale. Square Fish.

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CHAPTER 3

Integrated Theories for Integrated Childhoods: How Bioecological Systems Theory and Relational Cultural Theory Shape Trauma-Informed Care in Schools Joel Arvizo-Zavala, Yifat Levenstein, and Amira Y. Trevino I believe that when we each find the courage to look this problem in the face, we will have the power to transform not only our health, but our world.

—Nadine Burke Harris, MD, The Deepest Well

The purpose of this chapter is to understand classroom-based trauma-informed care through an integrative framework of bioecological systems theory and relational cultural theory (RCT), thus highlighting the inextricable connection within integrated theories, classroom-based trauma-informed care, and social justice education. We take this approach because, as scholars and educators from very diverse backgrounds, our integrated theoretical approach is a mirror that reflects our own lived experiences and our deep commitment to social justice through trauma-informed care. Our positions as diverse scholar-educators allow us to see the overlooked elements to trauma-informed care that are often devoid of intersectionality and, thus, offer to readers this integrated theoretical approach. We are diverse scholar-educators who come from myriad racial, ethnic, gender, and queered backgrounds. As a collective, we are Arabic–Jewish–Israeli, Cambodian–Thai–Mexican, and Indigenous Latinx.

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We are cisgender women and a queer Two-Spirit person. We are Americans and immigrants. We come from broad spiritual and religious belief systems, all identify as people of color, are all neurodiverse, and all are first-generation college students. These integrated identities therefore inform our integrated theoretical approach in this chapter and our commitments to social justice education.

Bioecological Systems Theory Bronfenbrenner & Morris (1999) emphasized the importance of paying close attention to a child’s bioecological environment as socialization is the way of becoming a member of society. The bioecological systems theory is a gene– environment interaction theoretical framework for human development that emphasizes the bidirectional relationship between a child’s development and their environment (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 1999). Bronfenbrenner argued that the goal of the educational system is to support optimal child development starting with early childhood care. This bioecological systems approach to childhood development offers a framework for examining the reciprocal relationship between a child and their immediate environment. In this sense the bio is defined as the child’s biological makeup and expression while the ecological is defined as the context where a child has their lived experiences such as classrooms, schools, and/or homes and the bidirectional interaction between the two in fostering human development. Additionally, schools and classrooms are two of many examples of these mediated environments for children that have an impact on children’s development and social behavior (Obaki, 2017). Bronfenbrenner & Morris (1999) organized the bioecological environment into five systems ranging from the most proximal (e.g., the family) to the most distant system of influence (e.g., sociohistorical) circumstances. According to the bioecological model, a child’s development is impacted by the different systems in the child’s life and their interconnected relationship with each other (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 1999). The child’s immediate family, neighborhood, parents’ place of employment, school, and even political climate work together to create an interwoven construct that facilitates the development of children. When a child grows up in systems that are not responsive to individual needs, the child has to develop coping strategies to survive this ill-attuned and possibly

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unpredictable system, leading to the observable trauma responses we may often see in our students (Hertel & Johnson, 2013). This chapter posits that by understanding the embedded systems that overarch childhood experience, we are able to contribute positively to systems and practices that promote recovery and resilience in children.

Relational Cultural Theory Relational cultural theory (RCT) posits that human growth develops through connections with others and is largely influenced by the context in which a person lives (Miller, 1976, 1986). Thus, RCT suggests that development is greatly influenced by a person’s relationships, sense of connectedness, and other environmental factors (Duffey & Somody, 2011). Subsequently, healthy growth and development occur within and through growth-fostering relationships (Duffey & Somody, 2011). How relationships are experienced is largely influenced by relational images, which are templates of what relationships are supposed to look like. These relational images are informed by past experiences and created over the lifetime (Miller & Stiver, 1997). While relational images may be difficult to change, particularly those that are informed by abusive experiences, it may be possible through healthy connections with others (Miller & Stiver, 1995). Briefly, connections are described as interactions that are mutually empowering and mutually empathic, whereas disconnections are moments of relational injury (e.g., conflict; Miller & Stiver, 1997). At the heart of trauma-informed care in schools is the necessity to shift the way we understand relationships. We are here to foster systems of connection and maintain these invaluable systems for students who face significant adversity (Langworthy, 2015), such as racial/ethnic oppression. What is the impact of disconnection on youth? Pathology or distress comes from a series of disconnections, resulting in relationships that are not growth-fostering and consequently hinder a child’s ability to grow (Duffey & Somody, 2011). In order to survive such relationships, children may develop strategies that are protective (in the moment), but later on in life may prevent them from forming healthy connections in new relationships (Hartling, 2004). Strategies of disconnection may include withdrawing from relationships, hiding

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how one truly feels, substance abuse and addiction, and aggression (Duffey, 2005; Hartling, 2004). Chronic disconnections may later lead to a feeling of defectiveness, shame, self-blame, and isolation (Duffey & Somody, 2011; Hartling, 2004). Given RCT’s focus on relationships, it is an effective theory to draw from when working with people of varying ages who have experienced relational trauma (Banks, 2006; Haiyasoso & Schuermann, 2018; Kress et al., 2017). Such instances of betrayal and abuse, particularly during vulnerable times (e.g., childhood), may lead the person to generalize their experiences from one abusive relationship to all relationships (Banks, 2006). It is important to acknowledge that how a child interacts with others may be a demonstration of the experiences they have endured (Duffey & Somody, 2011). Research supports the use of RCT in education settings through training (Lonn et al., 2014), mentoring (Lewis & Olshansky, 2016), and teaching (Edwards et al., 2013; Edwards & Richards, 2002; Ornstein & Moses, 2010; Ticknor & Averett, 2017). It is our goal to not only illuminate the multiple ways in which RCT can impact the creation of trauma-informed care systems in schools but also integrate this work within the bioecological systems that inform children’s daily lived experiences as well. By taking an integrated theoretical approach to trauma-informed education, researchers and educators are able to understand and address the gaps in teaching and learning that can ultimately help children grow through school. At the end of the chapter, we further emphasize the connections between these integrated theories and our commitment to creating more socially just experiences within ourselves and our classrooms.

Bioecological Systems Theory for Child Development When a teacher interacts with their students on the first day of class, a relationship approach emphasizes that each child has a story to tell about who they are, where they come from, their likes and dislikes, whom they love, and who loves them. While educators may acknowledge that each child exists within various spaces, a primary concern is to ensure that children properly navigate classroom rules and expectations in order to foster healthy academic and social development. According to the bioecological systems theory, child

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development is governed by the reciprocal relationship between a child and their environment, and the classroom is not separated from all other spaces a child exists within. According to bioecological systems theory, a child’s development is greatly impacted by their surroundings. Bronfenbrenner & Miller’s research has emphasized the importance of paying close attention to a child’s bioecological environment as socialization is the way of becoming a member of society. Hence, Bronfenbrenner argued that the goal of the educational system is to support optimal child development starting with early childhood care. Bioecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner &Miller, 1999) offers a framework for examining the reciprocal relationship between a child and their immediate environment within a larger social context and its impact on the child’s development. Bronfenbrenner organized the bioecological environment into five systems. The first category is the microsystem, which includes systems the child lives within and includes the child’s body, family, school, and the like. Each one of those systems includes a pattern of activities, roles, and interpersonal relationships experienced by the developing child. The second system is the mesosystem, which emphasizes the interrelationship between microsystems such as the home and school. The mesosystem can also be seen as a system of linkages between all the settings (microsystems) that a child participates in such as when a child’s adult figures come together for a parent–teacher conference. It is important to examine whether the different systems complement one another or whether the child experiences them as clashing pressures. We must ask ourselves, What is the joint influence of the interaction between the school environment and home environment on a child’s well-being? The third system is the exosystem, which is the link and the process between systems, such as cultural or societal attitudes and ideologies that are not related to the child’s immediate environment but, nevertheless, influence a child’s development. For example, a parent’s negative interaction with their boss at work can influence the quality of the interaction between parent and child if the experience is left unprocessed and brought home. When considering the lives of students and families of color these interactions occur within systems of injustice such as racism or classism. For working-class families who may have inadequate job stability or lack of sick leave, these experiences cause inequities in a parent’s ability to respond to the full needs of their children without potential consequences

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at work. If a parent is Black or Latinx, negative interactions at work may be influenced by racist ideals of professionalism, one’s perceived subordinate status, and more. The fourth system is the macrosystem, which is the overarching patterns governing the micro-, meso-, and exo- systems in a given culture, geographic location, and the patterns of social interchange embedded in each of these systems. The macrosystem is the societal blueprint. The final system is the chronosystem, which involves transitions, environmental events, and sociohistorical circumstances. Living through conflictual political climates (think the Black Lives Matter movement) or surviving a pandemic (such as COVID-19) are examples of the chronosystem that have impacts on a child’s development. Within the context of the United States, schools (and thus classrooms) are considered part of the microsystem and have far-reaching impacts on children’s experiences within all the other systems. From this perspective, educators have an instrumental role on the intellectual and social development of their students and must be proactive in contributing to a child’s healthy development and well-being. Preferably this should be done in collaboration with students’ families. Both students and educators, from the bioecological systems theory perspective, are embedded and impacted by multiple systems at any given moment. This system’s perspective can be used as a tool for educators to recognize their important role in healthy child development and the necessity to cultivate a compassionate and empathetic classroom environment. In order to drive home the necessity for a systems perspective on trauma-informed care in schools, we move our attention to a fictional student of color, Mariah, and her first day at school. Mariah, who is 7 years old, is sitting among the other children. She lives two blocks away from school, and both parents work full-time with three other siblings living at home. Although both her parents work, the family income is considered to be below the poverty line. Mariah lives in a small apartment, and she usually does homework in a shared space on the kitchen table. She loves spending time with her family but at times wishes she could have her own, quiet space away from the rest of the family. Her parents are warm and loving, but sometimes, Mariah overhears her parents arguing in the room nearby, usually about money. Mariah does not understand everything that is going on around her but notices that her parents look tired and sometimes mention “feeling stressed” when they come home from work in the evening, and there are days when they go to sleep without eating dinner.

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Mariah loves being in school because she enjoys classroom activities and believes that her teacher is kind. As a result, she is developing confidence in her academic abilities through the positive experiences she has at school. Looking to the bioecological systems theory to provide an interconnected systems approach to Mariah’s experience, a healthy and positive classroom environment can be a protective factor and a buffer for a child’s development. Even though educators do not have control over what a child is experiencing outside of the classroom, they hold a great deal of power in fostering healthy growth and development. This systems approach enables us to see how children’s environments are all interconnected and that separation between different environments doesn’t exist—especially if and when the child brings difficult behavioral responses into the classroom that may have their origin outside of school. When educators see children as whole people who navigate multiple and often conflicting relationships within different systems, they are able to see their students from a more compassionate, kind, and forgiving lens. For example, even though Mariah is a good student, she also came to school late recently and had trouble focusing in class that morning. Mariah was late because her mother—who usually wakes her up in the morning—had to leave for work earlier than usual in order to cover for a sick colleague. Mariah’s sister woke her up 30 minutes later as a result. Mariah was frustrated with her sister, left home without eating breakfast, and subsequently took this frustration with her to school that day. As the school day began, the teacher asks all students to turn in their homework. Mariah looks up at her teacher and says, “Leave me alone! I don’t want to talk to you!” This behavior could be defined as an act of defiance or we can see this is an example of how one system (e.g., the mother’s workplace) impacts Mariah’s home system and, now, the school system. Educators might view Mariah’s behavioral presentation in school that morning as necessitating correction. From that perspective, Mariah’s behavior is seen in terms of what is and isn’t acceptable behavior at school. Nevertheless, from a systems lens, there is an opportunity to view her behavior as interconnected within and among environmental influences. Shifting our lens from a behavioral perspective to a bioecological or relational perspective is what helps create a more trauma-informed approach for our students and for Mariah in particular. Mariah already had a rough morning. She woke up late, her mom

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was gone, and she had no time to eat breakfast before arriving late to class. Approaching Mariah’s behavior with compassion and bioecological understanding is what is necessary here especially when we are choosing to take a trauma-informed care approach with our students. When educators practice openness and curiosity towards their students during moments such as these with Mariah (a relational pedagogical approach), we open the opportunity for students to share their experiences which may diffuse some of the emotional difficulty they are experiencing (a pedagogy as psychology approach). This shift in focus from “what methods should I use to correct this unwanted behavior in school” to “how can I best support a child when they are struggling” is the epitome of a trauma-informed care approach. Correcting Mariah’s behavior without first understanding the cause or function of the behavior could have caused her to experience even more difficult and unwanted emotions—such as shame for acting out. This could potentially cause further dissonance in Mariah’s home environment (e.g., Mariah now blaming her sister and mother for being punished at school). Systems theory can expand our scope of how we view and interpret unwanted or problematic behaviors. This perspective helps educators to create a more supportive classroom environment by fostering a perspective of interconnectivity and interrelationship that centralizes the learning, health, and well-being of children. As such, a supportive classroom environment is rewarding not only for children but for educators as well and, thus, touches on the layered bioecological systems that take place in the classroom.

Relational Cultural Theory and the Child in the Classroom Take a moment to recall a time when you witnessed the ways in which children interact with each other at school or in their classrooms. Mariah’s story also has connections to better understanding RCT by situating her interactions with her teacher or her sister as part of a relational system. Now, visualize a line connecting these children. These lines of connection illuminate the relational system within the classroom. The frequency and/or width of these lines from child to child represent the strength and quality of the relationships they have formed with one another. When we take a step back and gaze on the lines that

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have manifested between children in your classroom, we’ll find an interconnected webbing of relationships. This is the heart of RCT in the classroom. We do not exist alone—we exist in relationships. And it is through the relationships over our lifetime that we grow into the multifaceted beings that we are today. This is the foundation for what we know as RCT (Miller, 1976). This relation-focused approach allows us to negotiate our individualism while positioning ourselves within the relationships that we have (and perhaps want to have) in our lives (Miller & Stiver, 1997). As educators, we have the wonderful opportunity to not only witness the birth of growth fostering connections between our students, but we also have the opportunity to lay fertile ground for healthy relationships to bloom.

The Growth-Fostering Relationship and Mutual Empathy RCT describes growth-fostering relationships as consisting of authenticity and mutual empathy (Duffey & Somody, 2011). Growth-fostering relationships are intimately tied to the feelings we have or express after leaving an interaction with someone. Indicators that signal if a relationship is growth fostering include (a) increased energy, (b) increased feeling of action and agency, (c) clearer sense of the identities of the people in the relationship, (d) increased self-worth, and (e) increased sense of connectedness and motivation to create more connections (Miller, 1986). Authenticity and mutual empathy are both important aspects of the growthfostering relationship. Mutual empathy is the key to promoting change and growth (Jordan, 2000). Mutuality in this sense means that all involved in relationships have the opportunity to help each other grow while also growing themselves. As educators, this is an opportunity for us to join students in relational growth. Mutuality, however, does not imply an equal sharing of power (Duffey & Somody, 2011). Educators hold significantly more power than students. The concept of mutual empathy speaks to how the educator can demonstrate empathy and provide opportunities for relational growth, whether with other students or the educator. Within the context of a trauma-informed classroom, mutual empathy can take on many forms, including (a) commitments to understanding the emotions of children and the origin stories behind these emotions; (b) taking time to understand how our emotions impact our

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teaching and sharing with our students when we need a moment to breathe, think, or process, therefore, giving permission for ourselves and our students to attune to our emotional realities; and (c) sharing our own “teacher stories” that highlight how we have overcome difficult experiences and utilize these as educative moments for and with our students. Engaging in mutual relational work supports the child in garnering feelings of being seen and understood (Duffey & Somody, 2011). Those who utilize RCT practices may, for example, disclose their own reactions to what the child has shared with them. In the following, we return to Mariah, who has just built a tower out of blocks when another child accidentally knocked it down. Mariah comes up to her teacher in tears and shares what happened. Teacher: “Thank you for telling me what happened. That makes me feel sad. I wonder if you’re feeling sad?” Student: “Yeah . . . and angry that he did that!” Teacher: “Yes, I can see why you’d feel angry. You worked really hard on your tower, and it got knocked down!” Student: [cries] “Yeah, I’m angry at Billy. He’s mean.” Teacher: “I wonder what we can do about your tower. Do you have any ideas?” Teacher, thinking to self: “Sometimes from sad and angry experiences, new things can grow. I wonder how we can use the feelings of this student to grow something new.” Teacher, taking action: The teacher walks Mariah back to her blocks and helps her rebuild her tower. Soon after, Mariah is happy again and is excited to build something new. The preceding interaction showcases how educators can demonstrate mutual empathy so that the child feels seen and heard. In this example, the teacher utilized interventions, such as validation and normalization, to demonstrate mutual empathy, leading to emotion regulation for the child (Zaki, 2020) and,

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ultimately, helping the child move towards a solution. The connection between the teacher and child can be described as a growth fostering exchange. And, as a result, the child feels visible and subsequently more willing to seek out other interactions that may also leave her feeling energized and understood.

Disconnections and Reconnections Relationships can still be growth-fostering even after disconnections (or ruptures) occur. It is the times when we fail to empathize with the other person and behave in hurtful ways that are considered disconnections (Jordan, 2001). Just like feeling connected, feeling disconnected is a normal and unavoidable aspect of all relationships. And, just as we grow through connections, we also have the opportunity to grow through disconnections. In the example of Mariah, another approach the teacher could have taken is to support the child in growing through her disconnection with Billy, the child who knocked down the tower. Through bringing the children together, children can use “I” statements (e.g., “I felt sad and angry when you knocked down my tower”), demonstrate empathy (e.g., “I would feel really sad and angry too if my tower got knocked down”), and be encouraged to come together to figure out a solution (e.g., “I’ll help you build a new one!”). When introducing conflict resolution from an RCT lens, the teacher can demonstrate this to the class through class activities and role-plays. When an actual conflict occurs between students, the educator may need to facilitate the interaction such as demonstrated above; modeling for students how this is done until it becomes part of the behavioral norms in the classroom. While RCT asserts that all people have the desire to connect with others, past experiences of unresolved disconnection may cloud interactions in our future relationships. Thus, we may enact strategies of disconnection in order to protect ourselves. For example, we may push others away to prevent ourselves from forming or strengthening our connections (Miller & Stiver, 1991). In our earlier example, what if Billy purposefully knocked down the building blocks? Indeed, we may witness disconnections between students that appear purposeful, such as intentional mocking, teasing, or bullying. Students may also exhibit strategies such as blaming others, isolating, and withdrawing from opportunities to connect (Hartling et al., 2004). This desire to connect and to

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protect ourselves is considered the central relational paradox (Miller & Stiver, 1997) that we hope to address by using RCT in the classroom. During times when children blame and thwart efforts to reconnect, the outcome of using these strategies of disconnection may be unclear. By noticing when these events occur, we can support children in growing through their disconnections towards reconnection. According to RCT, when an individual experiences chronic disconnection, this may lead to isolation (Miller & Stiver, 1997). When a child feels isolated in their relationships, they may not feel seen or heard. When they don’t feel seen or heard, they get the message that they don’t matter. These messages then turn into a cycle that is difficult for children to move out of. Learning how to reconnect after disconnections is often taught through modeling from important adult figures in the child’s life. However, if children are not receiving that support at home, the classroom is the next place that children get the opportunity to learn how to build relational resilience.

Moving Toward Connection in the Classroom The movement towards connection within the classroom can be seen on varying levels. If we take the bioecological systems approach and consider the additional spheres that influence what goes on in the classroom, we quickly see just how many different areas of the education system that extra attention can be given to in order to enhance efforts to build connection. Examples of areas that can help to foster connection in the classroom include the community level, administration level, school level, staff level, and, ultimately, the classroom. Here, we provide some examples of what can be done within a few existing structures of the education system to support growth fostering exchanges among students. Community Level When we consider the needs of youth who may be more at risk of experiencing traumatic events, we must also consider the impact of the community in which they navigate. Community building and involvement has been shown to be a protective factor against traumatic experiences (Greenfield & Marks, 2010). When we consider the communities and cultural backgrounds of students we work with, we also increase our comfort in discussing topics that may

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be culturally embedded. Trauma and other student experiences are not isolated in a vacuum—just as students are multicultural beings, their experiences, too, are situated within a multicultural context. As such, greater societal influences—such as the embedded systems understood through Bronfenbrenner and Morris’s Bioecological bioecological systems theory—help contextualize lived experience as a mirror for larger societal ideologies around relationships, trauma, and race, and culture. School Level Just as we have alluded to, growth-fostering exchanges are not limited to only students—they are possible for all people, including staff. Therefore, strategies that can be implemented to support growth-fostering exchanges among students can also start with the educators themselves. Activities that promote connection among staff vary and can include a focus on building relationships, an emphasis on understanding the context of students’ lives, and a commitment to supporting students in having their unmet needs met. Although many of the aforementioned activities are typically done away from the students’ view, there is a subsequent effect on the interactions staff have when in front of students. Thus, modeling growth-fostering exchanges in front of students may help aid their learning of how to move towards connections with their peers. Classroom Level When we consider all the ways that we can support a student in building connections, for the educator, all paths tend to lead to the classroom. Activities that emphasize social-emotional learning, think–pair–share, or honor developmentally appropriate peer work are all examples. Questions for discussions of mutual empathy can include (a) When was a time where you felt like someone really understood what you were trying to say? What did they do? (b) When was a time where you felt like someone really cared about how you felt? How did that make you feel? and (c) What is a way that you can help someone else when they are feeling down?

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Building Bridges Between Trauma-Informed Care and Educational Equity The approach taken in this chapter—to connect bioecological systems theory and RCT—is an equity approach to trauma-informed care. As mentioned in the introduction, there is a direct link between trauma-informed care and educational equity and justice. That connection is about offering—to our most marginalized and vulnerable students—pedagogical approaches that will help them be more successful in classrooms and schools. As scholars and educators from very diverse backgrounds, our integrated theoretical approach is a mirror that reflects our own lived experiences and our deep commitment to social justice through trauma-informed care. Our positions as diverse scholar-educators allow us to see the overlooked elements to trauma-informed care often devoid of intersectionality and, thus, offer to readers this integrated theoretical approach. It is through bioecological systems theory that we are able to understand the lived experiences and embedded environments that students interact with every day. By seeing the bioecological systems of students, we can ask questions and engage in pedagogical practices that allow us to be less judgmental and more nurturing in our approach toward students. When considering RCT, we understand that relationships are a central necessity for human well-being and that trauma-informed care requires a strategic investment in building, maintaining, and nurturing relationships. Oftentimes, we as educators may struggle to take an integrated and holistic approach to our work because our very training has taught us to home in on specific issues, but as we have demonstrated in this chapter, integrating theory, pedagogy, and trauma-informed care provides us with solid footing from which to address and support students in our classrooms. And it is this integrated approach to trauma-informed care that we label, too, as social justice education. Educators who wish to be more trauma-informed must also see their traumainformed practice as a significant and necessary contribution to social justice education. For any educator who has consistently been on the frontlines in the fight for inclusion and representation of marginalized students, it only makes sense to add trauma-informed care as an additional approach to ensuring students get the support, they need to be successful. As such, trauma-informed care is a pathway toward educational equity and justice. As mentioned in the

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positionality statement, the authors identify across the spectrum of race, class, gender, and sexual identities, and in many ways, these identities have shaped the integrated theoretical approach we use to define trauma-informed care. For many people whose identities are vast, diverse, and different, we know firsthand the risks and triumphs that can come with social justice work in education. We are adamant about seeing trauma-informed care as a form of compassionate and inclusive social justice work because through a trauma-informed approach, there are opportunities for us to work collaboratively and support students who have been impacted by systemic trauma. As educators learn skills in the field of trauma-informed care, we give ourselves an opportunity to be more interpersonal in our approach while having a shared responsibility in this work. The goal of any thoughtful trauma-informed practice is to hone in on our ability to be strong and resilient in the face of rupture, dissonance, and conflict within ourselves, between our students, or between us and our students. Ultimately, we have the capacity to use theories steeped in system-based thinking and relational approaches to become more compassionate and caring in our efforts to understand and mediate trauma in our students. Through this work we also have the opportunity to dismantle systems of educational inequity that have perpetuated the myth that traumatized students are looking for attention or are purposefully defiant. When we overlay the need for trauma-informed care and the need for social justice education we may actually come to understand the inextricable connection between the two to minimize the harm that is caused to our students by inequitable systems. Subsequently, we have an opportunity to maximize care and understanding as a form of social justice education.

References Banks, A. (2006). Relational therapy for trauma. Journal of Trauma Practice, 5(1), 25–47. https://doi.org/10.1300/J189v05n01_03 Bronfenbrenner, U., & Morris, P. A. (1999). The bioecological model of human development. In W. Damon & R. M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology (pp. 793–828). John Wiley & Sons. Duffey, T. (2005). Grief, loss, and death. In D. Comstock (Ed.), Critical contexts in human development (pp. 253–268). Brooks Cole Thompson Learning.

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Duffey, T., & Somody, C. (2011). The role of relational-cultural theory in mental health counseling. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 33(3), 223–242. https:// doi.org/10.17744/mehc.33.3.c10410226u275647 Edwards, J., Davis, J. M., & Harris, C. E. (2013). Relational cultural theory and field education. Field Educator, 3(2). http://www2.simmons.edu/ssw/fe/i/Edwards. pdf Edwards, J., & Richards, A. (2002). Relational teaching: A view of relational teaching in social work education. Journal of Teaching in Social Work, 22(1/2), 33–48. https://doi.org/10.1300/J067v22n01_04 Greenfield, E. A., & Marks, N. F. (2010). Sense of community as a protective factor against long-term psychological effects of childhood violence. Social Service Review, 84(1), 129–147. https://doi.org/10.1086/652786 Haiyasoso, M., & Schuermann, H. (2018). Application of relational-cultural theory with adolescent sexual abuse survivors. Journal of Child and Adolescent Counseling, 4(2), 164–177. https://doi.org/10.1080/23727810.2017.1381933 Hartling, L. M. (2004). Prevention through connection: A collaborative response to women’s substance abuse. In M. Walker & W. B. Rosen (Eds.), How connections heal: Stories from relational cultural therapy (pp. 197–215). Guilford Press. Hartling, L. M., Rosen, W. B., Walker, M., & Jordan, J. V. (2004). Shame and humiliation: From isolation to relational transformation. In J. V. Jordan, M. Walker, & L. M. Hartling (Eds.), The complexity of connection: Writings from the Stone Center’s Jean Baker Miller Training Institute (pp. 103–128). Guilford Press. Hertel, R., & Johnson, M. M. (2013). How the traumatic experiences of students manifest in school settings. In E. Rossen & R. Hull (Eds.), Supporting and educating traumatized students: A guide for school-based professionals. (pp. 27–44). Oxford University Press. Jordan, J. V. (2000). The role of mutual empathy in relational-cultural therapy. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56(8), 1005–1016. https://psycnet.apa.org/ doi/10.1002/1097-4679(200008)56:8%3C1005::AID-JCLP2%3E3.0.CO;2-L Jordan, J. V. (2001). A relational-cultural model: Healing through mutual empathy. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 65, 92–103. https://www.researchgate.net/ deref/http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1521%2Fbumc.65.1.92.18707 Kress, V. E., Haiyasoso, M., Zoldan, C. A., Headley, J. A., & Trepal, H. (2017). The use of relational-cultural theory in counseling clients who have traumatic stress disorders. Journal of Counseling & Development, 96, 106–114. https://psycnet. apa.org/doi/10.1002/jcad.12182 Langworthy, S. E. (2015). Bridging the relationship gap: Connecting with children facing adversity. Redleaf Press. 

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Lewis, C., & Olshansky, E. (2017). Relational-cultural theory as a framework for mentoring in academia: Toward diversity and growth-fostering collaborative scholarly relationships. Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 24(5), 1–16. https://www.researchgate.net/deref/http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F1 0.1080%2F13611267.2016.1275390 Lonn, M., Tello, A., Duffey, T., & Haberstroh, S. (2014). Relational-cultural theory as pedagogy: Preparing doctoral student leaders for the counselor education workforce. Journal of Counselor Leadership and Advocacy, 1, 140–151. https:// www.researchgate.net/deref/http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1080%2F23 26716X.2014.954164 Miller, J. B. (1976). Toward a new psychology of women. Beacon Press. Miller, J. B. (1986). What do we mean by relationships? (Stone Center Working Paper Series, Paper No. 22). Jean Baker Miller Training Institute at the Wellesley Centers for Women. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5caf54214d546e657 94e3d89/t/5cd486b74eb09300011cbabc/1557431992659/What+Do+We+Mean %3F+-+Miller.pdf Miller, J. B., & Stiver, I. P. (1991). A relational reframing of therapy: Writings from the Stone Center’s Jean Baker Miller Training Institute). https://www.wcwonline.org/pdf/ previews/preview_52sc.pdf Miller, J. B., & Stiver, I. P. (1995). Relational images and their meanings in psychotherapy: Writings from the Stone Center’s Jean Baker Miller Training Institute. https://www. wcwonline.org/pdf/previews/preview_74sc.pdf Miller, J. B., & Stiver, I. P. (1997). The healing connection: How women form relationships in therapy and in life. Beacon Press. Obaki, S. O. (2017). Impact of classroom environment on children’s social behavior. International Journal of Education and Practice, 5(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.18488/ journal.61/2017.5.1/61.1.1.7 Ornstein, E. D., & Moses, H. (2010). Goodness of fit: A relational approach to field instruction. Journal of Teaching in Social Work, 30(1), 101–114. https://doi.org/ 10.1080/08841230903479615 Ticknor, A., & Averett, P. (2017). Using relational cultural theory in education research design. Qualitative Research Journal, 17(4), 373–384. https://doi.org/10.1108/ QRJ-03-2017-0011 Zaki, J. (2020). Integrating empathy and interpersonal emotion regulation. Annual Review of Psychology, 71, 517–540. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-010419 050830

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CHAPTER 4

Ensuring the Success of Young Children: Trauma-Informed Practice in the Preschool Classroom Marla J. Lohmann, Johanna P. Higgins, and Jennifer Rossman

Today’s early childhood classroom includes children from a variety of backgrounds; 28% of children ages 0 to 3 have experienced at least one adverse childhood experience (ACE; U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 2014). ACEs are traumatic events, such as experiencing or witnessing violence, that occur during childhood (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2019). Other common ACEs experienced by young children include homelessness (Ondi et al., 2019), neglect or maltreatment (Melville, 2017), parental divorce (Atzl el al., 2019), poverty (Sanders et al., 2020), and having a caregiver with a mental health issue (Melville, 2017). When children experience ACEs in early childhood, it changes how their brain develops, leading to lifelong implications (Sciaraffa et al., 2018). About 12% of children have experienced more than three ACEs by the end of their kindergarten year (Jiminez et al., 2016), and 45% have experienced at least two ACEs by age 2 (Melville, 2017). ACEs in early childhood increase the likelihood that a child will (a) be below grade level academically (Blodgett & Lanigan, 2018), (b) have attention issues (Jiminez et al., 2017), (c) have problems with social development (Kerker, 2015), (d) exhibit aggressive behaviors (Jiminez et al., 2016), and (e) have other mental health concerns (Schalinski et al., 2016).

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In order to support the needs of young children who have experienced ACEs, teachers must engage in trauma-informed practices. Trauma-informed practices, defined as practices that demonstrate an understanding of the impact of trauma and designed to reduce the impact of trauma (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2020), are of high interest to early childhood professionals. Despite its importance for children and families, early childhood educators do not feel well-prepared for addressing trauma and ACEs (Corr et al., 2019). Trauma-informed practices in the preschool classroom can be accomplished through an awareness of signs that a child is experiencing or has experienced an ACE and using high-quality teaching practices.

Signs of Potential Trauma in Young Children In order to support the needs of children experiencing ACEs, preschool teachers must be able to identify the signs of potential trauma. Trauma impacts children in all developmental domains, including: (a) attachment, (b) physical, (c) affect regulation, (d) behavioral control, (e) cognition, and (f) self-concept (Center for Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation [CEMHC], 2019) and can be categorized as either reexperiencing, avoidance, or hyperarousal (DeYoung et al., 2011). Within the attachment domain, signs of potential trauma include issues with trusting others, social isolation, and trouble with separations from caregivers (CEMHC, 2019). Children with poor attachments may not speak to teachers or other children in the classroom, play alone and/or be unwilling to join group activities, and want to be near the teacher at all times (Seven, 2010). Physical signs of trauma include injuries, physical disabilities, and increased heart rate (National Child Traumatic Stress Network [NCTSN], 2020); almost 12% of preschoolers have experienced physical abuse (Lansford et al., 2010). Teachers might notice concerns with affect, including being easily upset and issues with communicating needs (CEMHC, 2019). By the time a child reaches preschool, he should be able to communicate his needs verbally (American Speech and Hearing Association, 2021), so when a teacher notices that a child is unable to do this, they should further investigate the reason. Behavior control issues might include developmentally inappropriate temper tantrums and aggression towards others (NCTSN, 2014). Cognitive impacts of trauma

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may include delays in language development and problem-solving, as well as struggles paying attention (Gregorowski & Seedat, 2013). Finally, children who have experienced ACEs may demonstrate delays in self-concept, such as low self-esteem and guilt over their experiences (CEMHC, 2019). It is important to note that how one child responds to an event may differ from another child’s response to the same event; an event may be traumatic for one child and not for another (Wright & Ryan, 2014). Teachers must remember that these signs do not necessarily indicate trauma but, instead, mean that a teacher should be aware that it is possible that trauma has occurred (Cummings & Swindell, 2019).

Building Relationships With Children and Families In order to support children who have experienced trauma, it is important to build relationships with children and families. A positive relationship with at least one caring and reliable adult is the most effective intervention for meeting the needs of children experiencing trauma (Sciaraffa et al., 2018), as these relationships increase children’s self-regulation skills and resilience (Post et al., 2020). Trusting relationships with adults offer protection and scaffolded support that help to protect children who have experienced trauma (Center on the Developing Child, 2020). Children who develop healthy attachments with adults have improved test scores and grades, demonstrate effective emotional regulation, and exhibit healthy risk-taking behaviors (Bergin & Bergin, 2009). Early childhood teachers should get to know each child as a unique learner. Teachers should know each child’s needs, interests, likes, and dislikes and use that knowledge to engage in conversations and interactions, as well as use children’s interests as a foundation for learning (Lohmann et al., 2018). Teachers should take the time to observe young children in order to learn their interests, play with children while letting the child lead the play, listen to the stories that children tell, compliment and praise children, and tell children what you see that makes each of them special (Joseph & Strain, 2010). Over time, these small actions will help build a relationship with each child in the classroom.

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Collaboration Between Stakeholders Second, we suggest intentional collaboration between stakeholders, including teachers, families, and other service providers. When cross-system collaboration occurs, the impact of ACEs may be reduced for young children (Crandal et al., 2019). Collaboration may occur within preschool team members who specialize in various developmental, mental health, and caregiver needs. In some cases, programs may benefit from employing, and then collaborating, with mental health professionals that can mentor and guide teachers as they address the needs of children in their classrooms (Cavanaugh, 2016). In addition, preschool programs may develop strong relationships with external providers in the community to support needs that are not addressed in the early childhood setting. Creating linkages across formal and informal supports in the community connects professionals specializing in different areas to address various child and caregiver needs. Through collaborative teaming, professionals in preschool programs, such as teachers, paraprofessionals, and related providers can work together to support young children who have experienced trauma with interventions that address their complex needs. Before collaboration can occur, it is critical that a trauma-informed climate exists within the program. This includes creating trauma-responsive policies, procedures, and structures that consider the impact of trauma on children’s behaviors and social-emotional needs and includes specific interventions designed to reduce the impact of trauma (Rishel et al., 2019). A trauma-informed early childhood classroom includes a variety of teacher behaviors and classroom routines that support the social-emotional development of all young children. In trauma-informed classrooms, teachers should use language that is respectful of all learners and should speak in a calm tone, even when they are frustrated or upset (Bartlett & Smith, 2019). An early childhood classroom should include music, dancing, and free play to allow young children to express their emotions in safe and developmentally appropriate ways (Cummings et al., 2017) and each child’s unique skills and strengths should be celebrated (Bartlett & Smith, 2019). Another recommendation is to have a toolbox of classroom materials, such as fidget toys and seating options, that support the diverse needs of children who have experienced trauma (Rishel et al.,

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2019). Finally, children must have a way to communicate to the teacher or other trusted adult in the school when they do not feel safe (Bartlett & Smith, 2019). To be successful with collaboration, preschool programs need to identify which teaming approach is appropriate for their classroom. Interdisciplinary collaboration is an approach in which professionals work together to meet children’s needs. Communication, cooperation, and openness to learning about the knowledge, roles and experiences of others are required components for this approach to be effective (Okamoto, 2001). Children who have ACEs respond well to stable routines and consistency; therefore, this teaming approach that addresses needs similarly across providers may be successful in providing trauma-informed care (Kinsella & Wood, 2019). The team should include relevant professionals who interact with the child daily and the caregivers of the child. It is critical for every team to identify how they will connect with and build relationships with the caregivers. When family engagement is used, children are provided with more consistency, which leads to better outcomes. Parent engagement, delivered through a strengths-based approach can also prevent ACEs from occurring (Blitz et al., 2013). A strengths-based approach is based on the idea that families try to do what is best for their children and will use the resources they have available to do so; schools should help parents use existing resources and treat families as partners in children’s education (Williams, 2019). Additionally, young children who have experienced ACEs can benefit from cross-system, interagency collaboration among providers that have a goal of providing a continuum of care across systems and services (Bai et al., 2019). Programs should acknowledge that the classroom is only one setting where growth and development occur. Preschool programs may explore developing formal relationships with social work or counseling agencies, domestic violence shelters, child welfare organizations, police precincts, or neighborhood child abuse prevention centers (Summers & Chazan-Cohen, 2012). They also may connect with foster care or programs that address the mental health issues of children (Harden, 2015). Additionally, informal partnerships may be developed with extended family or community members that advocate for the needs of young children. Educators must establish a system to engage in frequent, meaningful communication across identified partners, including regularly planned meetings and a tool used for back-and-forth communication. Teams should assess

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which methods of communication will allow team members to be connected and share information regarding interventions, goals, and supports. Children who have experienced trauma thrive on feeling safe (Greenwald, 2005), which is promoted by consistency and predictability; therefore, it is helpful to make sure that all community agencies involved in the children’s and families’ lives communicate to provide a similar structure, expectations, and supports. Additionally, communication can promote the early identification of issues before challenges occur. Additionally, preschool programs need to stay involved in local, regional, or national task forces or activities related to trauma-informed care, so they can advocate for the unique needs of the children they serve (Connell et al., 2019). This may include local infant mental health associations or national/global organizations such as the Alliance for the Advancement of Infant Mental Health or the World Association for Infant Mental Health. Staying involved and contributing to local and national advances to support trauma-informed care can help preschool programs build connections with other professionals that have similar initiatives as their own. The National Association for the Education of Young Children (2017) recommends that early childhood teaches can advocate for children and families by sharing their classroom stories with professional organizations and advocacy groups, calling elected officials regarding state and federal laws that impact young children, attending school board and city council meetings to speak on behalf of children, and using social media to share information about young children with others. Intentional collaboration within and across programs leads to the improved livelihood and functioning of preschool children impacted by trauma. It is critical for preschool programs to engage in teaming approaches and strategies that improve collaboration and lead to continuity of care for children across settings, providers, and caregivers. Strategies such as assessing community and caregiver resources, developing communication systems, and being involved in local, regional, or national stakeholder groups with similar priorities may influence a program’s ability to collaborate effectively.

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Whole-Child Instruction Third, we recommend a focus on meeting the unique needs of young children, in all domains, including social, emotional, mental, physical, and academic development. This whole-child approach to preschool classroom instruction is supported by research and leads to optimal outcomes for young children (Diamond, 2010). Meeting the needs of the whole child includes (a) cultural responsivity, (b) high-quality instruction, (c) individualized supports such as counseling, (d) play, and (e) social-emotional instruction.

Culturally Responsive Instruction Culturally responsive instruction involves teachers specifically addressing cultural barriers that exist in the classroom (Yuan & Jiang, 2019) and uses student culture to support learning and development (Ladson-Billings, 2009). In addition, cultural responsive teaching is a child-centered approach that celebrates differences and uses children’s cultures and backgrounds to empower them (McEvoy & Salvador, 2020). Children from diverse backgrounds and children living in poverty have an increased risk of experiencing ACEs (Roberts et al., 2012), so creating a culturally responsive classroom is critical. Teachers of young children can utilize a variety of culturally responsive strategies as outlined in Figure 4.1. (See following pages.)

Effective Classroom Instruction It is vital that early childhood teachers use effective teaching strategies to support the whole child. Classroom antecedent strategies can be implemented to help improve educational and relational outcomes for students who have experienced ACEs. Interventions such as sequencing events, pacing, chunking instruction into manageable pieces, presenting information in multiple formats, providing opportunities to repeat and rehearse instructions, offering ongoing support and encouragement, and giving reminders to stay on task are all strategies that can be used in the early childhood classroom (Wright, 2017). The consistent implementation of trauma-informed instructional practices has been shown to lower anxiety and create consistency, which is key to fostering healthy attachment (O’Gorman, 2018).

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Figure 4.1 Culturally Responsive Strategies in the Preschool Classroom Culturally Responsive Strategy

Implementation Tips

Examples of Implementation in Action

Build relationships with families

-Get to know what makes each family unique -Invite families to participate in the classroom -Ask families about their traditions and routines -Communicate with parents

Mrs. Rosa’s classroom includes students from a variety of cultural, ethnic, and religious backgrounds. In order to better understand each child and family, she invites families to come to circle time and teach the class about their background and beliefs. During the presentations, she asks questions of both the families and the children. Over the course of the school year, Mrs. Rosa uses what she learned as a basis for her interactions with families and children.

Develop and teach classroom expectations

-Create classroom expectations that reflect the student, teacher, and school culture -Create expectations that are specific to community culture; do not assume that expectations at other schools are appropriate for student population -Explicitly teach the expectations to children -Reward students for meeting expectations

Mr. Matt teaches in a school primarily comprised of young children from a Somali background. He has taken time to learn about the Somali cultural beliefs and expectations for schooling and has incorporated that into the norms for his classroom. Mr. Matt has learned that the Somali culture views the role of school as training children in both academic skills and character formation. Knowing this, Mr. Matt connects each classroom expectation to a specific character development skill.

Model and teach empathy

-Self-reflect on own cultural bias and assumptions -Be responsive to children’s needs and request -Smile when communicating with children -Read books to children about kindness and compassion -Discuss differences and the importance of appreciating each other’s differences

Ms. Isis wants to help the children in her classroom to show empathy and compassion to one another, so she incorporates instructional activities aimed at empathy into her daily class routines. As the children prepare for nap time each day, she reads books that demonstrate caring for others. The children in her classroom have many favorite books about caring for others, including “The Rabbit Listened” by Cori Doerrfeld and “Last Stop on Market Street” by Matt de la Pena.

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Consider children’s perspectives

-When evaluating behaviors, consider why child might be engaging in behavior -Use affective statements to discuss behavior with young children

Teach problem solving skills

-Use circle time to discuss classroom conflicts -Engage children in discussing conflicts and finding solutions -Avoid shaming and blame

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Mr. Phiri has noticed that Aarush has been exhibiting some challenging behaviors recently, particularly when the topic of family arises. Mr. Phiri decides to have a conversation with Aarush . He sits down with Aarush and says “It makes me sad to see you getting so angry in our classroom. I have noticed that you seem to be hurting when we talk about our families. Can you share with me why this might be?” Mr. Phiri learns that Aurush’s dad has just moved out of the house and Aarush is missing him. Armed with this information, Mr. Phiri can better support Aarush’s needs. Mrs. Wilma has noticed that Penelope and Ara have been arguing with one another frequently. She wants to help the girls to resolve their conflict, so after their most recent disagreement, she sits down with them to discuss what is going on. She learns that Penelope has been teasing Ara about the fact that she lives in a foster home. Mrs. Wilma talks to Penelope about the classroom expectations and reminds her of the characters in the books the class has been reading. She reminds Penelope what it looks like to care for others and helps Penelope better understand how to be a friend to Ara, while appreciating their differences.

(Price & Steed, 2016)

Play as Therapy Another aspect of the whole-child approach to teaching in early childhood is the use of play. Play is a critical part of early childhood learning (Rushton et al., 2010). For young children who have experienced ACEs, play can be used to reenact the trauma they have experienced, as well as act out alternative scenarios, which can help children process their experiences (Cummings & Swindell, 2019). Using play, children can express their feelings, their memories of the trauma, and their desires for how things will turn out (Sossin & Cohen, 2011). Structured playgroups or individual play with a counselor and child may be used as a form of therapeutic intervention for young children who have experienced trauma (Ondi et al., 2019). It is important to note that play therapy

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should be conducted by a trained therapist and teachers should not attempt to do this without the support of a clinician (Evans, 2020) In addition to structured play that is designed to be therapeutic, early childhood teachers must allow time for free play, which should offer young children choices regarding what play activities they engage in and with whom they play (Hewes, 2014; Wood, 2014). A portion of each school day must be dedicated to individual and group play that is both initiated and facilitated by children with little or no teacher interaction. Teachers should, however, observe children’s play and intervene when problems or disagreements arise that young children cannot solve without assistance (Aras, 2016). When classrooms include time for free play, children build better relationships with adults in the classroom (Morales-Murillo et al., 2020), gain social-emotional competencies (Hewes, 2014), and learn skills such as collaboration and problem solving that are critical for development (Markström & Hallden, 2009).

Social-Emotional Instruction A final component of whole child instruction for supporting the needs of young children experiencing ACEs is the use of social-emotional instruction. Social-emotional learning involves a child’s ability to (a) build relationships with adults and peers, (b) regulate and express emotions in socially appropriate ways, and (c) explore his/her environment (Yates et al., 2008). Young children are considered to be socially and emotionally ready for kindergarten when they are able to pay attention to a task for an extended period of time, persist when tasks become challenging, follow directions, interact with classmates in developmentally appropriate ways, and control their own emotions (Miller & Goldsmith, 2017). Because there is a direct correlation between ACEs in childhood and adult mental health and social-emotional challenges (Sanders et al., 2020), interventions that directly address social-emotional needs can support young children who have experienced trauma. Research-supported social-emotional intervention programs include Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies, Kids in Transition, I Can Problem Solve, and Tools of the Mind (McClelland et al., 2017). Additionally, the Incredible Years, Fun FRIENDS, and Kids Making Healthy Choices are effective for supporting young children’s social-emotional development (Hughes & Cline, 2015). Young children who

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have experienced trauma, such as violence or family instability, may have limited experiences with positive interpersonal relationships, so explicitly teaching these skills is critical for these children but will support the development of all learners in the classroom (Sanders et al., 2020). Critical components of social-emotional instruction include clear classroom guidelines and expectations that are explicitly taught (Dunlap et al., 2013), predictable and consistent consequences (Stormont et al., 2005), instruction on problem-solving skills (Hughes & Cline, 2015), and conversations about feelings and the management of emotions (Conners-Burrow et al., 2017). Teachers and schools can purchase a variety of social-emotional curriculums to implement, including those mentioned above. Alternatively, teachers can use resources that are available for free or low-cost online (located at the end of the chapter), but it is critical that the chosen social-emotional instruction is evidence-based and supported by research.

Individualized Interventions In addition to the supports provided to all students in the classroom, some children will require individualized interventions in addressing the ACEs they have experienced. In these situations, teachers should connect with both school mental health professionals and school administrators. Furthermore, it is critical to partner with the family to ensure the child receives the needed interventions. Teachers may need to implement individualized interventions that address young children’s social-emotional needs and challenging behaviors. Many learners require behavior-specific praise, which focuses on praising young children for meeting an expectation and specifically noting that expectation in the praise statement (Markelz & Taylor, 2016). Likewise, the use of corrective feedback, which reminds young children of what is expected in a calm and respectful manner, may benefit some children who have experienced trauma (Conroy et al., 2019). Individualized social-emotional instruction may be appropriate for some children. This may include the use of video modeling (Smart et al., 2016), role-play (Chessler & Fox, 1966), and/or instructional aids such as puppets or visual cues (Kemple et al., 2019). Teachers may also consider the use of mindfulness techniques such as daily yoga, which has proved to have a positive effect on both children and teachers

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who have experienced trauma (Razza et al., 2019). Finally, for some children and families, home visits may be an appropriate individualized intervention; during these home visits, teachers or other professional support parents in gaining positive parenting skills that will help their children (Mogil et al., 2015).

Conclusion Many young children have experienced ACEs that impact them in all domains, including (a) attachment, (b) physical, (c) affect regulation, (d) behavioral control, (e) cognition, and (f) self-concept (Center for Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation, 2019). In order to support all children in the early childhood classroom, teachers must understand the signs of trauma and utilize trauma-informed practices, such as building relationships, professional collaboration, and utilizing a whole-child approach to teaching that includes the use of play and social-emotional instruction. Through these evidence-based practices, early childhood teachers and preschools may be able to mitigate the impacts of trauma on young children.

Resources for Supporting Social-Emotional Instruction in the Early Childhood Classroom • Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/ • Center for Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation https://www.ecmhc.org/index.html • National Center for Pyramid Model Innovations https://challengingbehavior.cbcs.usf.edu/ • Erikson Institute https://www.erikson.edu/professional-development/sel-initiative

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CHAPTER 5

Understanding the Impact of Trauma on School-Aged Children and Their Families Jennifer Foster and Aneesh Kumar

Childhood trauma does not occur in isolation; it affects the entire family (Montgomery et al., 2019). In some cases, the child’s family is a source of support following adverse experiences, whereas, in other cases, the family is the cause of the suffering (e.g., familial abuse and neglect). Additionally, parents’ or caregivers’ (hereafter referred to as parents) reactions to disclosure of abuse or neglect can have a lasting effect on children. When children are believed and supported, they can begin the healing process. Conversely, when parents respond to a child’s disclosure of abuse with disbelief or blame, the child is further traumatized (Foster, 2014). For some parents, a child’s disclosure of trauma triggers memories of their own experiences of maltreatment, and they may feel powerless, overwhelmed, and unprepared to help their child. Schools regularly work with children who have been abused, as well as parents with abuse histories. While the primary goal of schools is to educate children, schools also function as a safe haven for those who have been abused, a connection to mental health resources, and a place where healing can begin. When an entire family experiences healing, there is potential to positively impact generations to come. Schools must take a two-pronged approach to address trauma with students and families that involves both prevention and intervention. Prevention initiatives are needed to stop abuse and neglect from occurring, and interventions are needed when trauma is disclosed or discovered. In order to be successful,

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prevention and intervention strategies require both school and community-based services and resources. Although some educators may be tempted to stay out of a family’s personal business, when it comes to the safety of students, it is morally and ethically necessary to act. Together, educators and parents must shoulder the shared responsibility of keeping children safe from abuse and stopping it from continuing. This chapter helps educators utilize a family systems lens to understand the ways in which relationships are altered in the wake of trauma and how relationships can be utilized to foster the healing process. The chapter begins with an overview of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and other forms of victimization and their impact on families. Second, generational traumas and intergenerational transmission of abuse are explored. Third, cultural considerations for working with diverse families are shared. Fourth, current literature related to family strengths and resilience is reviewed. The chapter concludes with a brief review of evidence-based strategies for working with families within the school context.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and the Family Impact of Trauma Despite advances in the field of traumatology, there is no single agreed-on definition of trauma. Most scholars agree that trauma evokes fear and results in a deep emotional wound that has the potential for long-lasting effects (Foster & Hagedorn, 2014). Unfortunately, most definitions of trauma and related research solely focus on the individual, and the ripple effect on the family is not considered. The landmark ACE study was one of the first to consider both individual and familial factors (Felitti et al., 1998). For children, those most common adversities often occur at home and include physical abuse (28%), familial substance abuse (27%), emotional neglect (25%), parental separation/divorce (24%), sexual abuse (21%), having a family member with mental illness (20%), and witnessing domestic violence (13%; Nickerson & Jimerson, 2015). Trauma is not evenly distributed. For example, in historically marginalized and economically disadvantaged communities, children are even more likely to experience multiple adversities. Additionally, although some children

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experience a single traumatic incident, others endure maltreatment over an extended period. Abuse caused by known persons, such as family members, is considered complex or betrayal trauma (Kessler, 2000; Lindblom & Gray, 2010), which significantly increases the risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Children with complex trauma histories often have difficulty trusting others and possess a negative view of self (Duckworth & Follette, 2011; Lawson, 2017). Furthermore, the experience of complex trauma (e.g., sexual abuse) increases the risk of other forms of victimization (Lawson, 2017; Wolfe, 2018). While only one family member may be the victim, the entire family system is affected, and members react in their own ways. Many parents of children who have experienced trauma also have their own history of maltreatment (Madigan et al., 2019). Thus, it is important for educators to understand the cyclical nature of some traumas and the possibility of intergenerational transmission of abuse.

The Legacy of Trauma There is a growing body of research exploring how ACEs in one generation can influence the next. Although many have posited that familial abuse can be passed down, it is important to examine the rigor of such research. A meta-analysis of 142 intergenerational studies identified a modest association of parent-to-child transmission. The study found support for several types of generational maltreatment, including neglect, physical abuse, emotional abuse, and sexual abuse (Madigan et al., 2019). The following sections explore conceptualizations of generational trauma, mother-to-child transmission, and parenting practices that may be influenced by experiences of adversity. Historical trauma and emerging research on protective factors that stop the transmission of abuse are discussed.

Generational Trauma There are two overarching conceptualizations of generational trauma, which are victim to perpetrator and victim to victim (Madigan et al., 2019). In both transmission types, the entire family necessitates counseling interventions that stop abuse from occurring and prevent future abuse.

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The first conceptualization, victim to perpetrator, explores the cyclical nature in which a child is first the target of abuse and later goes on to abuse others, which may begin in adolescence or adulthood. This is frequently observed in cases of domestic violence. Children who experience domestic violence are often the direct target of physical, emotional, sexual, or psychological abuse themselves (Callaghan et al., 2018). The victim-to-perpetrator cycle predicts that when a father abuses the mother, some sons will seek power and control in future relationships and abuse their own partners and/or children one day. It is important to note that many boys who experience domestic violence do not become perpetrators (Eriksson & Mazerolle, 2015). Little is known about why these differences exist, and research along with evidence-based strategies are needed to break the cycle of violence. A meta-analysis examined 15 victim-to-perpetrator empirical studies (Montgomery et al., 2019). The results indicated that parents who experienced abuse during childhood were more likely to abuse their children than parents with no trauma history. Furthermore, both the severity of the abuse experienced during childhood and the development of PTSD correlated with the subsequent abuse of one’s children. The authors suggested that parents’ abusive behaviors could be conceptualized as a trauma reaction, which should be considered when intervening with families and developing prevention strategies. While the victim-to-perpetrator cycle captures the experience of some families, it does not account for the many adults who were abused in childhood who do not abuse their own children. Unfortunately, their children are still at high risk for abuse, which is explored in the second conceptualization: victim to victim. The important distinction of this form of transmission is that the parents are not the perpetrators. A common example is a mother who is a survivor of sexual abuse discovers her own child has been sexually abused. Different theories have posited why generational transmission occurs, including disrupted maternal attachment as well as familial factors such as poor supervision, harsh discipline, poor boundaries, exposure to unsafe adults, and high levels of stress (Duncan, 2005). Parental history of maltreatment correlates with parenting practices and self-efficacy (Harel & Finzi-Dottan, 2018; Murphy et al., 2014). Effective parenting requires a number of skills, including emotional regulation, as well as the ability to form a secure attachment, which may be underdeveloped in parents who experienced childhood trauma.

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In order to break the cycle of abuse, parents need an opportunity to process their own lived experiences and learn new ways of relating to and connecting with their children. Unfortunately, parents who have abused or neglected their children are often vilified in educational systems. It is important to consider that the adults themselves likely never received the help that they needed as children. Educators can abhor their abusive behaviors while still viewing parents as human beings in need of help. Counseling can be effective with both perpetrators and victims of abuse, and schools can connect parents and their children with resources that promote familial safety and healing.

Historical Trauma One significant contextual variable in family work is historical trauma. This type of adversity is rooted in injury (emotional, psychological, physical, mental, and/or spiritual) from one people group to another, resulting in large-scale group trauma that affects both survivors and their descendants (e.g., Holocaust survivors). The United States has a long history of slavery, oppression, and discrimination of communities of color. For example, Native Americans have experienced intergenerational trauma, including genocide and colonization, which have resulted in significant losses and unresolved grief (Brave Heart & De Bruyn, 1998). Another example is the enslavement experienced by Africans in colonial America for more than 200 years, followed by decades of segregation and discrimination. Quantitative and qualitative research conducted by DeGruy (2017) has led to the development of the posttraumatic slave syndrome theory, which explores the lasting effects of multiple generations of slavery on African Americans. Researchers are investigating the question if trauma can be inherited through epigenetic mechanisms (Yehuda & Lehrner, 2018). Further research is required to understand the complex process of how abuse is transferred parent to child and generation to generation.

Protective Factors While a significant amount of research has been dedicated to risk factors of cyclical abuse, less attention has been given to protective factors. Protective factors are individual, familial, and community resources that buffer against the

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effects of traumas and adversities and increase health and well-being. Protective factors describe how some children who have experienced interpersonal trauma escape the cycle of violence whiles others do not. Emerging research has indicated that education and early interventions targeted at children and families are essential components to the development of protective factors. Prevention is not a task for mental health practitioners alone. To be successful, a systemic approach that involves families and communities is required.

Engaging in Culturally Competent Work With Families Families are microsystems under the ecosystems model that are influenced by culture at large (Bronfenbrenner, 1992). Every family has a style of communication, power dynamic, role expectations, and values that are shaped by their cultural norms and belief systems (Koerner & Fitzpatrick, 2002). Cultural practices may have a negative or positive impact on children (Tudge et al., 2000). While working with families, it is important for professionals to be culturally competent. Abuse is deep-rooted in some families and communities through cultural practices. In some communities, perceptions about the sanctity of the family and the value of children (e.g., parental property) have protected abusive families from inspection and intervention (Deb et al., 2016). The understanding of what practices are abusive differs among cultures. In most societies, children are taught to obey adults. Hence, when they are abused in any form, they are scared or hesitant to disclose. In some cultures, children express that parents have the right to physically abuse them, which is different than the use of corporal punishment (Kumar et al., 2013). The language about abuse and the patterns or styles of communication that exist within the community about abuse strongly influence perceptions of abuse (Kumar et al., 2018). Schools must respect the cultures of the families that they serve. The decision to make a report of suspected abuse or neglect is especially complex when working with families from diverse backgrounds (Tufford et al., 2019). Yet, when there is a conflict between cultural practices and the law, educators are required to report suspicion of abuse or neglect. Educators are often the first people outside of a family to recognize warning signs of abuse or neglect

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(Sharley, 2020). Thus, training in culturally competent abuse reporting is essential (Tufford et al., 2019). It is important to remember that while families may be the cause of trauma, they can also be the source of healing.

Building on Family Strengths and Resilience There are multiple protective factors that mitigate the effects of ACEs (Condon et al., 2019; Foster, 2018; Goodman et al., 2017; Vogel, 2017). A safe and nurturing family environment is a source of resilience and acts as a protective factor following trauma (Ungar, 2013). Building on family strengths enables families to be aware of and develop healthy practices. Moreover, strength-based approaches help in breaking intergenerational cycles that are abusive (Rodriguez & Tucker, 2011). Parents play a significant role in supporting school-aged children. Yet parents, particularly those from historically marginalized groups, experience discomfort interacting with schools (Oxford & Lee, 2011). This is an important barrier to address since parental involvement correlates with students’ social competence and achievement (Bower & Griffin, 2011). For parents of children who have undergone traumatic experiences, support from the school is paramount. Schools can encourage resiliency and help families cope through school-based support and referrals to interventions. Schools could be a major source of support for parents by training and creating awareness about how trauma affects children. This school–family partnership builds on strengths and increases resiliency.

Best Practices for Working With Traumatized Families There are a multitude of trauma-informed approaches that have been implemented in schools (see Thomas et al., 2019, for a review of 30 interventions). As schools consider what program may be appropriate for their students, families, and community, there are several guidelines to consider. To start, schools must ensure that the strategies employed are culturally responsive (Paris & Alim, 2017), strengths-based (Brunzell et al., 2016), and supported by empirical literature (Thomas et al., 2019). Each community has unique needs to address.

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Additionally, programs should include the following core components: reestablishing safety, teaching and modeling emotional regulation, and creating a trauma-sensitive environment (Navalta et al., 2018). Finally, a systemic approach that incorporates the school and home environments is recommended as it increases positive outcomes for children who have experienced trauma.

School Staff Training All adults who work or volunteer in the school need to understand the effects of trauma on individuals, as well as families, know the warning signs of abuse and neglect, respond proactively with reporting abuse when it is suspected, and maintain a safe environment for all children. To start, clear guidelines regarding safe boundaries and appropriate behavior should be delineated to prevent abuse from occurring within the school setting. Practical ways to enhance environmental safety include making sure students are in view of others at all times (e.g., not behind a closed door), supervised during unstructured times such as recess, and never in isolation with an adult or child. All employees and volunteers, including older children, should be expected to maintain appropriate verbal and physical interactions with students and follow building policies that keep children safe. In addition to clear safety standards, educators need training on current trauma-informed practices that target the whole family. Surveys could help gather baseline data and identify areas in which educators are knowledgeable and skilled, as well as areas in which there are gaps in their training. For example, teachers in one study reported lack of familiarity in helping children living with domestic violence and uncertainty in their role as mandated reporters (Münger & Markström, 2019). Given this information, the school could partner with experts in interpersonal violence to provide teachers with clear guidelines in their reporting role and enhanced understanding of the negative outcomes that children who live with domestic violence may experience. When there is a lack of expertise in an area, experts from the field can be invited into educational settings to provide consultation and training. Training can also address educators’ reluctance to talk about trauma. Talking about abuse, neglect, and other traumatic experiences can be uncomfortable, and a common response is avoidance. Trainers should acknowledge the sensitive

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nature of the topic and encourage self-care for participants who may be triggered by the content of training. Silence about abuse allows it to thrive, whereas open discussions give voice to the lived experiences of trauma survivors and foster healing.

Inclusion of Parents in Interventions In addition to programs for adults who work within the school, interventions aimed at parents are needed. Parents have a key role in keeping children safe (prevention) and providing support when children have experienced trauma (intervention). Training for parents should foster awareness about how trauma affects children, teach positive parenting strategies, and explore methods for coping with stress. Parenting a child in the wake of trauma is incredibly challenging, and research has indicated that establishing routines, engaging in spiritual or religious practices, and finding support are essential to the healing process (Kiser et al., 2008). Schools can provide referrals to community services to parents, including counseling for parents who disclose their own trauma histories. There are a number of challenges and barriers for families seeking counseling. These include knowing how to find services, transportation, convenience of location, time commitment, and cost. Some parents are wary of mental health practitioners, citing concerns regarding confidentiality and trust. Some parents have been dismissed or blamed by professionals in the past, which resulted in them being less likely to seek future services. Concerns related to language and cultural barriers were also cited. Together, these challenges decrease the likelihood parents will seek counseling for themselves or their children who have experienced trauma. School counselors and school-based mental health practitioners must examine how they can reduce barriers and build trusting relationships with parents. School-based services are one option that may make treatment initiation easier and increase the potential for successful completion (Kelchner et al., 2020).

Community Partnerships for Schools and Families Schools may choose to collaborate with community mental health when implementing evidence-based trauma-focused approaches. Having a trained clinician as a collaborator has several benefits, including their expertise in the

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area of trauma and the opportunity for a warm handoff for services to parents or students requiring counseling services. The clinician may also be able to provide referrals to trauma-informed family counseling (Champine et al., 2018) or trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), an evidence-based approach for child victims of trauma and their nonoffending parents (Cohen & Mannarino, 2015; Foster, 2014). Helping professionals may also refer children, as well as parents with trauma histories to group counseling. Groups that address trauma are cost-effective, reduce feelings of shame and isolation, and have been shown to reduce trauma symptoms in adult survivors of polyvictimization and complex trauma (Foster & DeCamp, 2019). Specialized trauma services in the community can meet the needs of families following a discovery or disclosure of trauma.

School-Based Counseling In addition to services in the community, schools also provide counseling to children and families. Helping professionals who work in the school context include employees of the district, such as professional school counselors, social workers, and school psychologists, as well as community-based agencies that work contractually to provide services during school hours on campus. While there are many helping professionals who work with students, few have received training in systemic family therapy or have expertise in trauma treatment. For families who have experienced trauma, school-based services are often advantageous, but it is important to consider any potential benefits and drawbacks before starting services. On one hand, school-based counseling may increase access for families that may have limitations related to transportation, time, or finances to pay for services. Attendance in counseling may be higher and dropout less likely when a child receives services at school compared to traditional outpatient work. On the other hand, trauma counseling can be difficult and evoke a multitude of emotions, which may make returning to classwork and peer interactions difficult. Additionally, parents may have difficulty participating in family sessions that are held during the school day, in the middle of traditional work hours. Furthermore, trauma counseling with children requires expertise that not all clinicians have as part of their training and should not commence without proper training and supervision.

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School-Based Family Counseling School-based family counseling (SBFC) is a new approach gaining attention in the empirical literature: “School-based family counselors are well positioned to understand the complexities of school systems while connecting and supporting school counselors, teachers, administrators, social workers, and families to ensure school and family successes” (Kelchner et al., 2020, p. 279). Emerging evidence indicates the effectiveness of SBFC, specifically at improving communication and satisfaction (Kelchner et al., 2020). Moreover, SBFC correlates with improved student academic performance, decreased emotional/behavioral problems, enhanced positive classroom participation, strengthened family– school relationships, lower substance use among middle school students, and improved at-home behavior (Gerrard, 2008; Stormshak et al., 2011). Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools While few trauma approaches include parents, another evidence-based option designed specifically for the school environment that has a parent component is Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS; Jaycox et al., 2018). The purpose of CBITS is to provide school-based mental health services for children who have experienced trauma with the goals of decreasing trauma-related symptoms, increasing coping strategies for managing stress, and fostering peer and caregiver support. The program consists of 10 small group sessions with one to three individual sessions embedded. Parents are included in two caregiver meetings and there are materials for a staff information session. CBITS targets students in upper elementary through high school who are presenting with behavioral and emotional problems and symptoms of PTSD. Additionally, an adaptation of the program called Bounce Back was developed for elementary aged children. The program is appropriate for a broad range of traumas, including those that are interpersonal and occurred at home to those in the community (such as witnessing violence) as well as natural and man-made disasters. The groups use cognitive-behavioral skill building and psychoeducation, as well as a narrative approach to process trauma. Although the task of engaging families in prevention and intervention initiatives is challenging, it is vital to the health of every community. Schools must consider specific ways they can assist parents, educators, and children in the wake of trauma. Research indicates that psychoeducational parent training is an

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effective strategy to prevent abuse (Foster, 2017; Gillespie, 2019; Montgomery et al., 2019), and educator training enhance empathy and teach trauma-informed strategies (Jaycox et al., 2018; Thomas et al., 2019). Schools must intentionally create an environment that increases students’ feeling of security and provides a safe environment to disclose abuse. Schools can support families when abuse occurs and provide resources, referrals, and school-based interventions, such as SBFC and CBITS for children and parents who experience trauma-related symptomology.

Collaboration Among Families, Schools, and Helping Professionals Following Disclosure When working with families in situations where abuse or neglect is suspected or has been disclosed, frequent and effective interprofessional collaboration is vital (Sharley, 2020). Many children disclose abuse at school to a teacher, nurse, paraprofessional, or professional school counselor. The abuse may be disclosed indirectly (e.g., a child writes about experiences of abuse in an in-class journal), inadvertently (e.g., a passing comment, “My dad does not hit my mom, he just kicks her”), or directly (e.g., a student tells a peer or adult about the abuse they are experiencing). Abuse discovery or disclosure is very difficult for children and must be handled with care. While counselors have training in handling disclosures and making referrals, educators may have limited experience responding to disclosures and making abuse reports. For educators, it is important to convey belief and support. It is essential for a child to hear, “What happened to you was not your fault,” and “I am glad you told me.” Conversely, asking leading questions, showing shock or disgust, or expressing doubt can be detrimental to the child as well as a potential follow-up investigation. Many educators do not know what to do when children disclose experiences of potential abuse from another child, and discriminating between typical and atypical sexual behavior can be difficult. It is important for educators to report concerns or suspicions and allow for child protective services to make a decision on next steps. It is possible that some educators, particularly those who have served in the field for a number of years, will believe that reporting will not do any good.

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They may have a lack of faith in child protective services or fear that a child will suffer more harm than good from a report (Hinkelman & Bruno, 2008). Additionally, some educators worry about the potential rupture in their relationship with a child or their parents following a report. Regardless of these concerns, educators are mandated reporters. It is educators’ duty to do all in their power to ensure the safety of students.

Conclusion Educators have long been aware of trauma within families as it directly influences every school and community. Intervening with children and parents requires empathy and action. Schools need to consider a family systems lens during prevention efforts and interventions for victims (Turney, 2018). Although some children’s traumatic experiences are documented in their student records, many children suffer in silence. Educators hold a vital role in identifying warning signs and reporting abuse when there is reason to suspect. Schools can collaborate with school-based and community mental health professionals to learn about the effects of familial trauma and provide services to families that are cost-effective, accessible, culturally relevant, and evidence-based. Trauma does not have to define children’s, parents’, or educators’ life trajectories. Together we can reduce the impact of trauma on children’s health and help families thrive in the face of adversity.

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Foster, J. M. (2018). Resiliency, positive coping, and posttraumatic growth in survivors of child abuse and neglect. In A. P. Kumar, T. S. George, & N. T. Sudhesh (Eds.), Character strength development: Perspectives from positive psychology (pp. 132-1500. SAGE.  Foster, J. M., & DeCamp, W. (2019). A quasi-experimental investigation of a group intervention for adult survivors of polyvictimization and complex trauma. Journal for Specialist in Group Work, 44(3), 152–169. https://doi.org/10.1080/01 933922.2019.1634780 Foster, J. M., & Hagedorn, W. B. (2014). Through the eyes of the wounded: A narrative analysis of children’s sexual abuse experiences and recovery process. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 23, 538–577. https://doi.org/ 10.1080/10538712.2014.918072 Gerrard, B. A. (2008). School-based family counseling: Overview, trends, and recommendations for future research. International Journal for School-Based Family Counseling, 1(1), 6–24. http://www.instituteschoolbasedfamilycounseling. com/docs/IJSBFC%20-%20Volume%20I(1)%20-%20Gerrard.pdf Gillespie, R. J. (2019). Screening for adverse childhood experiences in pediatric primary care: Pitfalls and possibilities. Pediatric Annals, 48(7), 257–261. https:// doi.org/10.3928/19382359-20190610-02 Goodman, R., Vesely, C., Letiecq, B., & Cleaveland, C. (2017). Trauma and resilience among refugee and undocumented immigrant women. Journal of Counseling and Development, 95(3), 309–321. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12145 Harel, G., & Finzi-Dottan, R. (2018). Childhood maltreatment and its effect on parenting among high-risk parents. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 27(5), 1513–1524. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0994Hinkelman, L., & Bruno, M. (2008). Identification and reporting of child sexual abuse: The role of elementary school professionals. The Elementary School Journal, 108(5), 376–391. https://doi.org/10.1086/589468 Jaycox, L. H., Langley, A. K., & Hoover, S. A. (2018). Cognitive behavioral intervention for trauma in schools (CBITS) (2nd ed.). RAND Corporation. Kelchner, V. P., Campbell, L. O., Howard, C. C., Bensinger, J., & Lambie, G. W. (2020). The influence of school-based family counseling on elementary students and their families. The Family Journal, 28(3), 273–282. https:/doi. org/10.1177/1066480720933537 Kessler, R. (2000). Posttraumatic stress disorder: The burden to the individual and to society. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 61, 4–12. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih. gov/10761674/ Kiser, L. J., Nurse, W., Lucksted, A., & Collins, K. S. (2008). Understanding the impact of trauma on family life from the viewpoint of female caregivers living in urban poverty. Traumatology, 14(3), 77–90. https://doi.org/10.1177/1534765608320329

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Koerner, F. A., & Fitzpatrick, M. A. (2002). Understanding family communication patterns and family functioning: The roles of conversation orientation and conformity orientation. Annals of the International Communication Association, 26(1), 36–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/23808985.2002.11679010 Kumar, A. P., Bhagyalakshmi, K. C., & Foster, J. M. (2018). Child sexual abuse: Evaluating the school-based prevention programs in India. In R. T. Gopalan (Ed.), Handbook of research on social, psychological, and forensic perspectives on sexual abuse (pp. 166-178). IGI Global. Kumar, A., Gireesan, A., & Deb, S. (2013). Students’ perception of abuse and neglect. Indian Journal of Health and Wellbeing, 4(6), 1360. Lawson, D. M. (2017). Treating adults with complex trauma: An evidence-based case study. Journal of Counseling and Development, 95, 288–298. https://doi. org/10.1002/jcad.12143 Lindblom, K. M., & Gray, M. J. (2010). Relationship closeness and trauma narrative detail: A critical analysis of betrayal trauma theory. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 24, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.1547 Madigan, S., Cyr, C., Eirich, R., Fearon, R., Ly, A., Rash, C., Pool, J., & Alink, L. (2019). Testing the cycle of maltreatment hypothesis: Meta-analytic evidence of the intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment. Development and Psychopathology, 31(1), 23–51. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579418001700 Montgomery, E., Just-Østergaard, E., & Jervelund, S. (2019). Transmitting trauma: A systematic review of the risk of child abuse perpetrated by parents exposed to traumatic events. International Journal of Public Health, 64(2), 241–251. https:// doi.org/10.1007/s00038-018-1185-4 Münger, A., & Markström, A. (2019). School and child protection services professionals’ views on the school’s mission and responsibilities for children living with domestic violence: Tensions and gaps. Journal of Family Violence, 34(5), 385–398. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-019-00035-5 Murphy, A., Steele, M., Dube, S. R., Bate, J., Bonuck, K., Meissner, P., Goldman, H., & Steele, H. (2014). Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) questionnaire and adult attachment interview (AAI): Implications for parent child relationships. Child Abuse & Neglect, 38(2), 224-233. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j. chiabu.2013.09.004 Navalta, C., McGee, L., & Underwood, J. (2018). Adverse childhood experiences, brain development, and mental health: A call for neurocounseling. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 40(3), 266–278. https://doi.org/10.17744/mehc.40.3.07 Nickerson, A., & Jimerson, S. R. (2015). Supporting students experiencing childhood trauma: Tips for parents and educators. National Association of School Psychologists. https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources-and-podcasts/ school-climate-safety-and-crisis/mental-health-resources/trauma/supporting students-experiencing-childhood-trauma-tips-for-parents-and-educators

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Oxford, M. L., & Lee, J. O. (2011). The effect of family processes on school achievement as moderated by socioeconomic context. Journal of School Psychology, 49(5), 597–612. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2011.06.001 Paris, D., & Alim, H. S. (Eds.). (2017). Culturally sustaining pedagogies: Teaching and learning for justice in a changing world. Teachers College Press. Rodriguez, C. M., & Tucker, M. C. (2011). Behind the cycle of violence, beyond abuse history: A brief report on the association of parental attachment to physical child abuse potential. Violence and Victims, 26(2), 246–256. https://doi.org/ 10.1891/0886-6708.26.2.246 Sharley, V. (2020). Identifying and responding to child neglect within schools: Differing perspectives and the implications for inter-agency practice. Child Indicators Research, 13, 551–571. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-019-09681-z Stormshak, E. A., Connell, A. M., Véronneau, M. H., Myers, M. W., Dishion, T. J., Kavanagh, K., & Caruthers, A. S. (2011). An ecological approach to promoting early adolescent mental health and social adaptation: Family-centered intervention in public middle schools. Child Development, 82(1), 209–225. https:// doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01551.x Thomas, M. S., Crosby, S., & Vanderhaar, J. (2019). Trauma-informed practices in schools across two decades: An interdisciplinary review of research. Review of Research in Education, 43, 422–452. https://doi.org/10.3102/0091732X18821123 Tudge, J. R., Hogan, D. M., Snezhkova, I. A., Kulakova, N. N., & Etz, K. E. (2000). Parents’ child‐rearing values and beliefs in the United States and Russia: The impact of culture and social class. Infant and Child Development: An International Journal of Research and Practice, 9(2), 105–121. https://doi.org/10.1002/15227219(200006)9:23.0.CO;2-Y Tufford, L., Bogo, M., Katz, E., Lee, B., & Ramjattan, R. (2019). Reporting suspected child maltreatment: Educating social work students in decision making and maintaining the relationship, Journal of Social Work Education, 55(3), 579–595. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2019.1600442 Turney, K. (2018). Adverse childhood experiences among children of incarcerated parents. Children and Youth Services Review, 89, 218–225. https://doi.org/10.1016/ j.childyouth.2018.04.033 Ungar, M. (2013). Resilience, trauma, context, and culture. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 14(3), 255–266. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838013487805 Vogel, J. M. (2017). Family resilience and traumatic stress: A guide for mental health providers. National Center for Child Traumatic Stress. Wolfe, D. A. (2018). Why polyvictimization matters. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 33(5), 832–837. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260517752215 Yehuda, R., & Lehrner, A (2018). Intergenerational transmission of trauma effects: Putative role of epigenetic mechanisms. World Psychiatry, 17(3), 243–257. https://doi.org/ 10.1002/wps.20568

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Helping the Helpers in Education Jody A. Kunk-Czaplicki and R. Jason Lynch

By the time U.S. children reach the age of 18, nearly two in three have experienced at least one traumatic life event (Merrick et al., 2018). These events may include parental divorce, the death of a loved one, sexual assault, neglect, poverty, mental illness, suicidal ideation, hate-crimes, or bias-related incidents and many others (Lynch, 2017). Intergenerational racial trauma decreases physical, cognitive, and emotional health outcomes; students cannot learn with compromised health (Sotero, 2006). While there are a number of community-based resources for students and families to seek help, schools are often the first place they look for support. Unfortunately, the current U.S. education system is severely under-resourced to appropriately address these concerns, yet education professionals continually go above and beyond in providing initial, and, in many cases, ongoing, support for students and families experiencing trauma. Although significant research and attention have been given to the impact of traumatic life experiences on the development and success of students, the wellbeing of those charged with supporting these students is often neglected. Consider the emotions a classroom teacher brings home after a student discloses that they are experiencing abuse, the ongoing impact on a school counselor with a caseload of 400 students and families, the strain on a principal leading their community through the healing process after a student death, or the expectation of the entire professional staff to serve as human barricades during active shooter drills. These are but a fraction of the examples of situations educators find themselves dealing with in the modern U.S. school.

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While one-off trainings and professional development events may be offered to equip educators with tools to support their students, few, if any, resources are offered to help educators manage their own trauma responses. This lack of support has a number of implications, including potentially contributing to high attrition rates (Harris & Adams, 2007). Trauma exposure, workload, school locale, and shifting expectations may contribute to newer professionals exiting the profession (Borman & Dowling, 2017). For educational organizations to truly become trauma-informed spaces, stakeholders must consider the holistic impact of trauma on all members of the school community, including teachers, staff, and administrators. The purpose of this chapter is to offer educators a starting place for understanding their potential reactions to supporting students through traumatic life events, as well as offer recommendations for how educators and educational leaders can ensure that students are appropriately supported without sacrificing the health and well-being of teachers, staff, and administrators.

Consequences of Trauma Exposure Due to the day-to-day demands of their jobs, educators often have little time to reflect on how their support has impacted their own wellness. Formal and informal professional socialization within the field often dictates that student learning and well-being should always come first. These conditions create a perfect storm for issues, such as secondary trauma and compassion fatigue. In the following sections, we provide a description of how these phenomena occur and how to recognize indicators of secondary trauma and compassion fatigue.

Secondary Traumatic Stress Secondary traumatic stress, or secondary trauma, is “the stress resulting from helping or wanting to help a traumatized or suffering person” (Figley, 1999, p. 10). As other chapters in this book describe in more detail, secondary traumatic stress has been shown to disproportionately impact individuals possessing marginalized identities, such as people of color, women, and LGBT individuals (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). When conceptualizing secondary

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trauma, a useful metaphor is visualizing a stone thrown into a pond (van Dernoot Lipsky, 2009). The stone may represent a traumatic event, while the first ripple in the pond may represent the primary trauma. The next ripple represents those closest to the primary trauma victim, who may also exhibit similar trauma responses as a result of their help or support. Consider this interview with a former high school teacher who described her experience of the death of a student: Early in my career, I had a student who was murdered by a sibling. . . . The news left me hysterical and I sobbed the rest of the night. . . . I had a parent–teacher conference with the parents along with the student on the afternoon of the incident. . . . I cried silently near the door, waiting for the crisis team to arrive since I knew not to talk about it with the kids. . . . I was asked to keep the day as normal as possible. I don’t remember if they asked whether I would like to go home for the day. Either way, I wouldn’t have left the kids. . . . The weeks after, were incredibly difficult. The student’s name was everywhere. . . . For at least three months after the death, the database system did not remove the name from my class roster. Every day, I had to skip over it while taking attendance in the software program. . . . To date, it was one of the saddest moments in my life. (J. Lynch, personal communication, February 9, 2020)

This former teacher went on to describe the impact this event continued to have on her. She spoke of anger, guilt, depression, and anxiety. Without any mechanism of support from the school, she described how she was encouraged to put on a brave face to maintain normalcy for her students despite finding it difficult to even get out of bed in the ensuing weeks. While some educators deal with more acute traumas such as the one described here, many educators will find themselves supporting students through an accumulation of less acute or chronic traumas. Although the context among exposure to an acute or chronic trauma may differ, Hydon et al. (2015) found common trauma responses among K–12 teachers included fatigue, emotional detachment, behavioral changes, diminished concentration, interpersonal withdrawal, existential questioning, and poor work performance. Educators may avoid reminders of the students or families they have supported; they

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may miss meetings with those families or have excessive absences. Or, on the other hand, trauma responses may manifest as involuntarily thinking about the student; this may result in anger, irritability, withdrawing from colleagues or family, or losing sleep. Table 6.1 provides a summary of common trauma exposure responses. Table 6. 1 Sixteen Trauma Exposure Responses (van Dernoot Lipskey, 2009) Feeling hopeless/helpless

Dissociative moments

A sense that one can never do enough

Sense of persecution

Hypervigilance

Guilt

Diminished creativity

Fear

Inability to embrace complexity

Anger & cynicism

Minimizing

Inability to empathize/numbing

Chronic exhaustion/physical ailments

Addictions

Deliberate avoidance

Grandiosity or inflated sense of importance related to one’s work

Compassion Fatigue Although feeling fatigued is a normal part of helping work, compassion fatigue occurs when an educator holds onto the suffering of the person they are working with and over time feels emotional detachment both to that person and in other areas where emotional reactions and responses are warranted (Figley, 1999). Compassion fatigue describes the broad experience of reduced empathetic capacity or interest in bearing the suffering of others. When considering compassion fatigue in the helping professions, van Dernoot Lipsky (2009) poignantly reflected, There is a difference between feeling tired because you put in a hard day’s work and feeling fatigued in every cell of your being. . . . The kind of tired that results from having a trauma exposure response is a bone-tired, soul-tired, heart-tired, kind of exhaustion. (p. 110)

When considering compassion fatigue within the context of trauma, Barnes (2013) conceptualized compassion fatigue as the interplay between burnout and

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secondary trauma. Consider an experienced school counselor in a high-need environment who has spent years attending to the emotional needs of students experiencing traumas, such as parental abuse, substance abuse, and poverty. In addition to supporting these students, school counselors are required to maintain an academic advising load, respond to other student behavioral needs, meet with teachers and parents to maintain legal compliance for disability services, and often engage in emotional labor for peers who view them as a trusted colleague to process through challenging situations. After a while, the stressors of the work environment combined with the stressors of constant trauma support diminish their capacity to experience and project the necessary empathy to effectively function in their job. Unfortunately, compassion fatigue may not be recognized by peers and supervisors, who may ultimately interpret the counselor’s fatigue as poor job performance. Not being able to demonstrate compassion toward those who have experienced trauma separates the professional from the person they are serving. Over time, it limits access professionals have to their full range of feelings which can result in significant distress.

From Traumatic Stress to Post-Traumatic Growth When considering research and interventions regarding trauma support work, most discussion has centered on the potential negative consequences on educators. However, recent research has introduced an alternative outcome that may be broadly labeled as post-traumatic growth, or the resiliency, strength, and self-understanding gained from enduring traumatic experiences (Collier, 2016). In the sections that follow, we discuss two manifestations of post-traumatic growth: compassion satisfaction and trauma resiliency.

Compassion Satisfaction Educators who find themselves supporting traumatized students can experience deep satisfaction through their helping. This feeling of compassion satisfaction is the joy and pleasure professionals experience when they can help others via effective demonstration of their professional responsibilities (Stamm, 2010). Demonstrating one’s skills during these situations may increase feelings

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of satisfaction. Satisfaction helps build a professional’s sense of self-efficacy. Trauma-informed training is a key component to help professionals feel a sense of self-efficacy by developing and refining trauma-informed skills (Wilson & Kunk-Czaplicki, 2021). One of the many trauma-informed skills that educators can refine is empathetic listening. This type of listening allows helpers to gather information in a way that limits re-traumatizing. Another trauma-informed strategy is by providing psychological first aid (Raphael & Newman, 2000). Specifically, the professional helper engages with the traumatized person to (a) stop the emotional bleeding; (b) reorder the chaos that exists in the traumatized person’s world; (c) accurately assess the situation to prioritize the most troubling concern articulated by the person experiencing trauma; (d) help the person identify and mobilize their resources and make referrals, as needed; and (e) follow-up with the person (Greenstone & Leviton, 2002). Although classroom teachers may not fully implement all the aspects of this strategy, it may be helpful to understand the broader framework to appropriately refer a student to the proper professional. Effectively using these strategies in day-to-day work may result in both satisfaction of a job well done and reduce the fatigue of the emotional demands of helping work. However, there remains a debate among scholars whether professionals must experience compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue exclusively or if both may be felt at the same time (Conrad & Kellar-Guenther, 2006). Yet scholars have agreed that fostering increased compassion satisfaction can mitigate the degree to which an individual may experience compassion fatigue (Conrad & Kellar-Guenther, 2006; Stamm, 2010). But how do helpers go from experiencing compassion fatigue to compassion satisfaction? Consistent with coping mechanisms associated with secondary trauma and compassion fatigue, the development of compassion satisfaction may be built through self-awareness, self-care, and boundary setting. Those who are engaging in trauma-support work must consistently take time to pause to assess their own thoughts and emotions, as well as have an active plan to replenish their energies. They must also be willing to set and enforce boundaries, particularly concerning their ability to engage in trauma support work. Although a simple concept in theory, boundary setting can be difficult, especially for professionals with marginalized identities—racially minoritized, women, LGBT, disabled, and others—are often put in positions where they

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are unable to exercise boundary setting, are exhausted by the constant need for boundary setting, or not allowed space for self-care. In trauma and other helping work, these professionals are more often called on to provide support, particularly for students with shared identities. With this in mind, it is incumbent on school leaders to foster organizational cultures that promote reflection and actively intervene to encourage and support self-care in teachers and staff.

Trauma Resiliency In addition to the development of compassion satisfaction, emerging research has presented several models for developing trauma resiliency. Demonstrating resiliency skills and having a resilient mindset is not extraordinary; anyone can adopt this mindset and refine these skills. However, both individual characteristics and institutional supports can help educators in their goal of practicing resilience. Individual Level For individuals seeking to increase their resilience, they may consider incorporating the SAVES model (Eells, 2017) into their professional practice. SAVES is an acronym standing for Social connection, Attitude, Values, Emotional acceptance, and Silliness/humor. Although this model was developed with high achieving students in mind, the elements of the model can also apply to educators. Social Connection. The model begins by highlighting the importance of being and feeling connected to others. Human beings need social interaction to thrive. This may be particularly important for educators as connecting with others who do similar work can help remind them they are not alone. A feeling of professional community provides the social connectedness educators need to remain connected to oneself and others. Although the instinct may be to practice self-protection due to the emotional effort of being vulnerable and experiencing social rejection, the model recommends leaning into the feelings of vulnerability. By leaning into vulnerability, educators keep hold of their social fabric. Social connectedness fights off feelings of social isolation. One example of incorporating social connectedness into professionals’ daily lives is to openly process their day with others. These conversations can occur in the faculty/staff lounge during lunch, at a Zoom meeting with a teacher colleague

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at another district, or with a friend during a walk around campus. Although these choices may be challenging to incorporate daily, setting weekly goals to fully experience the connection and care of others may help educators keep focused on building their own network of supportive colleagues and friends. Attitude. Choosing an optimistic attitude can serve as another choice toward developing trauma resilience skills. To be clear, we do not advocate practicing toxic positivity, or “the faulty belief that people should only feel ‘good’ emotion and that a positive attitude will solve one’s problem” (Razzetti, 2021, p.1). Rather, we suggest that the power of hope, possibility, and focus on agency can be a powerful tool in resisting the despondence created by pervasive trauma exposure. Seligman (1990) highlighted three ways that an optimistic attitude can be learned: permanence, pervasiveness, and personalization. Through the lens of permanence, educators may feel that the negative aspects of their work may be permanent; therefore, it is important to first not only acknowledge the realities of the negative but also reframe this perspective to take time to intentionally highlight when things go right or when positive events take place. Additionally, through the lens of personalization, educators may come to internalize the trauma of their students, thinking they failed their students in some way. As educators work with students experiencing trauma, it is important they intentionally articulate the outside circumstances that have led to the student’s trauma and their sphere of influence in supporting the student. Finally, educators who work in high trauma environments may find their trauma responses pervading other areas of their life, such as relationships with friends and family. Through this lens, it is important that educators take time to create internal boundaries that allow them to compartmentalize their work and personal lives. Allowing themselves to experience joy, fulfillment, and support in their personal lives, educators will be better equipped to face the challenges of trauma-support duties at work. Values. Defining values is important to build resiliency skills. Through defining and adhering to a set of moral principles, professionals can stay focused on how their behaviors uphold those values. It is also important that educators reflect on the ways in which their current work environment allows for moral congruence or perpetuates moral injury, or the psychological distress resulting from acting against one’s moral beliefs and expectations (Shay, 2014). As educators consider values in which to ground themselves, gratitude is a value

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most often associated with resilience. By incorporating the value of gratitude throughout daily life, professionals can train themselves to focus on a positive interpretation of challenging events that can positively affect their overall functioning. Eells suggested two strategies that professionals can practice increasing their gratitude: writing a letter to a person for whom they are grateful and gifting it to them and keeping a daily gratitude journal that highlights at least three good experiences throughout the day. Emotional Acceptance. To determine the degree of emotional investment in a situation, deciphering the issue either as a sunset situation or a math problem can be helpful (Eells, 2017). A sunset situation is an occurrence that one cannot control; it is external and can either be admired outside the scope of what an individual can control or accepted as true. The only option for a sunset problem is to accept the sunset as real. A math problem, on the other hand, implies a solution. Often, deciphering these levels of emotional investment and acceptance is one of the most challenging calibrations. If emotional acceptance is not achieved, educators may begin to experience emotional numbness as a consequence of compassion fatigue. Emotional numbness may beget a stunted attitude, perhaps even a pessimistic one. To reduce pessimism, focusing on one’s attitude can help. Attitude frames the way we see the world and is primarily constructed in two ways: through learned optimism (Seligman, 1990). Silliness. By incorporating silliness/humor throughout the day, professionals can take a step away from the serious work of helping. Laughing and being silly can improve memory and reduce the levels of cortisol—the stress hormone (Bains et al., 2014). For example, a nighttime routine of watching silly cat videos on YouTube can create laughter and reduce tension. A silly cat video can cause a fit of giggles and it may also allow the principal of a 500-student middle school to take a mental break from the part of their identity of always being in charge. Being silly and finding humor affords people with a gift of lightness by allowing them permission to experience joy. Organizational Level Through practicing a growth mindset and learned optimism, we highlight an individual responsibility of building resiliency skills. Organizations, too, are just as responsible for promoting the well-being and resiliency of their employees. Consistent exposure to trauma can threaten or reduce educators’ resiliency

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and coping strategies (Hobfoll, 2001). If educators experience reduced resiliency and lack effective coping strategies, they experience a loss. According to Hobfoll, this loss may take the form of a professional experiencing reduced confidence, a lack of trust in their skills or in others, and, more personally, a shifting outlook on life. When professionals experience a loss like this on top of the emotional work of caring for traumatized others, losses may begin to accumulate. If the educator has persistently high demands during the important time of recuperation, this may result in another loss: not receiving the necessary recuperation. Hobfoll (2001) described continuous losses as a loss spiral. Organizations can combat these loss spirals in their employees by investing in the employee through increased job resources, such as increased autonomy, social support, feedback, opportunities for development, and coaching (Demerouti et al., 2001). Autonomy. Autonomy is the degree of flexibility, control, and decision-making an employee has in their job (Bakker & Demerouti, 2014). Habe and Tement (2016) found autonomy and variety enhanced workflow. Workflow is an operational mental state where an employee is fully engaged in their job with energized focus and feelings of success in the work process (Csíkszentmihályi, 2002). Another critical element of creating and maintaining a professional identity is being able to make judgments autonomously after acquiring specific professional skills (Hirschy et al., 2015). A common example of loss of autonomy in educational settings is when administrators override decisions made by teachers and student-support staff. In these situations, leaders undermine their staff as professionals, leading to resentment and decreased self-efficacy. Another example may include county- or district-level mandates of classroom curriculum that do not take into account the experience, education, and professional autonomy of teachers. Social Support. Providing intentional and regularly scheduled time among educators to process through their experiences of supporting students through trauma can help normalize their reactions and provide a community of support. Simply having at least one other trusted individual with whom professionals can confide can actively mitigate the impact of compassion fatigue and burnout on educators (Cohen & Schechter, 2018). Organizations can enact socially supportive structures in their staff meetings, professional development sessions across districts or institutions to encourage broader social connections. Supervisors and building leaders can

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validate their supervisee’s competence in one-on-one meetings, in meetings with parents, and at larger scale events. This validation can heighten their employees’ feelings of self-efficacy (Lee & Ashforth, 1996). Another important yet overlooked area of social support is through honoring specific celebration or closure traditions at the beginning and ending of each school year. Social support from various sources (e.g., supervisors, colleagues, friends) can mitigate the toll that emotional exhaustion may take on those who do trauma helping work. Positive Feedback. Within the educational organization, feedback may often come in the form of critique. While constructive critique is important in competency development, including positive feedback is also important in engendering feelings of competency, connection, and job satisfaction (Treworgy, 2010). Within the education setting, feedback could come from any person or entity, including, but not limited to, administrators, colleagues, students, or families. For instance, in formal evaluation settings, administrators should make a genuine effort to highlight specific and meaningful examples of the positive impact teachers and staff members make, as well as the ways the individual helped achieve that impact. Informally, programs can be set up for students or school alumni to provide stories about the positive impact specific teachers or staff had on their lives. Opportunities for Development. Opportunities for development, or the ability to develop skills in non-related helping roles (Bakker & Demerouti, 2014), are associated with high levels of work engagement and low levels of burnout (Bakker & Bal, 2010). As with other helping professionals, educators who are called to consistently help others in trauma may experience the negative effects of helping (Hydon et al., 2015). When educators have opportunities to reflect on their own ability to cope with trauma and develop other professional skills independent of trauma helping, they are more likely to remain engaged and less likely to experience burnout or experience strong trauma responses. Coaching. Whereas feedback is broader, coaching is goal-oriented, individualized, and supportive information given to a colleague or peer from a trusted other. Coaching can come from a direct supervisor (Demerouti et al., 2001). However, in a K-12 setting, instructional coaches often serve in this role. Through classroom observations and conversations with teachers, instructional coaches provide teachers support, guidance, and strategies to achieve specific goals (Knight & van Nieuwerburgh, 2012).

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Receiving appropriate coaching from supervisors can not only help professionals meet the day-to-day expectations of their job, coaching can also help professionals’ transition to a new role or develop their skills. By asking for and receiving coaching from their supervisors, professionals can improve their professional helping skills and process through challenging trauma helping experiences. However, supervision and coaching needs and experiences change over time. For a mid-level professional, coaching toward specific goals may help sustain career commitment (Wilson et al., 2016). Salson and Figley (2003) found that constant, consistent, and high-quality supervision and appropriate spaces to process trauma experiences were critical in lessening the negative effects of professional helping. This suggests that organizational support and appropriate coaching are critical in helping those who are in professional positions of helping others.

From Theory to Practice This chapter introduced and illustrated various personal responses to engaging in trauma support work within the context of education. However, we hope educators and educational leaders will look beyond merely recognizing these impacts and move toward creating support mechanisms for teachers, staff, and administrators who experience trauma responses, as well as creating policies and practices to prevent negative trauma responses before they occur. The following sections provide strategies to address the impact of trauma on education professionals from three perspectives: professional socialization and preparation, the district or organizational level, and the individual level.

Professional Socialization and Preparation Professional preparation programs have a critical role in assisting educators in developing and refining trauma resiliency. Through professional socialization, preparation programs and national organizations can serve as the harbinger of cultural change. By acknowledging the potential impacts of trauma exposure in an honest and vulnerable way, preparation programs and national organizations can begin to hold higher the value of community through shared experience

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rather than isolation. Additionally, talking about the consequences of trauma exposure in a direct and proactive way adds to the resiliency of emerging educational professionals. For example, through formal professional mentoring programs at a district level or while in teacher-preparation programs, seasoned educators can be matched with a newer professional to specifically navigate the emotional challenges of working in the field. These mentoring programs can support professionals through offering social support, trusted feedback, and cultivation of wellness practices and habitual self-care. Newer professionals benefit from a different perspective, especially if that perspective is from outside their specific institution; older professionals may benefit from the intergenerational relationship through directly observing the skills and passions of newer professionals. Professional preparation programs and professional socialization standards at a K–12 level can support and increase training for their professionals and establish standards of best practices. For example, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) training is a powerful intervention for assisting those who are helping professions learn specific mindfulness techniques (Hayes et al., 2006). The overarching goal of ACT is to “promote psychological flexibility, the ability to contact the present moment more fully as a conscious human being, and to change or persist in behavior when doing so serves valued ends” (p. 7). A variety of ACT strategies (e.g., values clarification and identification and aligning professional values to personal ones) can be employed at professional and institutional levels.

Institutional School leadership and district leadership also have an important role in igniting a cultural shift to talk more about the effects of trauma exposure on their educators. Districts and schools often employ formal and informal mentorship programs to support new personnel through their transition. These formal and informal mentorship programs often focus on the day-to-day responsibilities of the job within the specific culture. Adding an expressed ethic of care by resiliency capacity building in these mentorship relationships is a way to institutionally support helping professionals.

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Another way that institutions can manifest an ethic of care is through clear, supportive, and strong supervision. In many helping professions, consistent, compassionate, and strong supervision has served buffer of high job demands (Salson & Figley, 2003). Supervisors who advocate for their employees to take time off to lower cortisol levels, to be given paid rest after particularly challenging cases, be supported to seek counseling, and to fully participate in life outside of work allows educators to recalibrate their exposure to trauma as one part of their professional life (Raphael & Newman, 2000). Although this may not be the cultural norm at some educational institutions, other helping professionals (e.g., police officers, emergency medical technicians, social workers, and higher education professionals) have adopted these best practices. The first two suggestions have a low-cost threshold. However, perhaps the most helpful suggestion for classroom educators and school counselors may come at a higher cost for the institution: partnering with social workers. Social workers have specific training in trauma helping and trauma resiliency, and they know and are connected to community-based resources. Employing social workers to support students through their educational journals not only provides students with a consistent helping professional but also gives educators more time to focus on instruction while serving as a secondary helper when needed. Social workers in the classroom can also help build empathy and social-emotional skills. Some school districts have adopted a curriculum such as Responsive Classroom, Second Step, Zones of Regulation, Lions Question, and Therapeutic Crisis Intervention Systems.

Individual From the perspective of the individual educator, reflection and awareness are the first steps in building trauma resilience and managing their wellness. This may be done through informal mechanisms, such as journaling, or may be more formal by taking self-assessments, such as the Professional Quality of Life Measure, which measures three constructs, including secondary trauma, compassion fatigue, and burnout (Stamm, 2010). Having a baseline and then revisiting these tools may help professionals better understand their personal reactions to trauma helping and trauma-support duties.

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Another way to self-assess is journal-keeping which is associated with many positive outcomes, including building trauma resiliency (Gibson, 2018). Periodically reviewing journal entries can help educators see their own themes regarding their trauma response and other positive and negative consequences. As an individual, it is also important to build and maintain social support, particularly within the work environment. Trauma, and secondary trauma, can lead to feelings of isolation, guilt, and hypervigilance. Having a regular structured time to debrief these emotions with trusted colleagues can help normalize responses and serve as an outlet for pent-up negative emotions. Finally, educators can seek out their district’s compensation specialist to better understand how health insurance may cover counseling. Seeking help to process built-up negative emotions due to trauma-support work is not only beneficial but may also be considered an ethical imperative. Seeking help is not a sign of weakness or a sign of selfishness. Asking for and seeking help is a sign of strength. Seeking help allows educators to better help those they serve.

Conclusion Schools have come to represent more than institutions of learning. In part, these expectations have come to include the social-emotional support of students experiencing trauma. Unfortunately, educator preparation programs and in-service training do not include adequate training or support for how to navigate this aspect of the profession. Additionally, while districts continue to demand more from educators, they continue to fail to provide the necessary funding and human resources to sustain educators. Combined, these circumstances put educators at high risk of secondary trauma and compassion fatigue. Through this chapter, we hoped to equip educators with the language to articulate this aspect of their work, as well as tools to potentially mitigate secondary trauma and compassion fatigue. We also call on educational leaders and policymakers to recognize that they also have a role to play in creating sustainable work environments that meet the holistic needs of students without harming educators. Only through practicing trauma-informed care for all education community members, will schools be able to adequately address the needs of the 21st-century education environment.

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CHAPTER 7

Research and Teaching Methods for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma Meghan A. Kessler and Michele M. Miller

Over 28 million children in the United States (approximately 40%) have experienced one or more types of trauma (Data Resource Center for Child and Adolescent Health, 2019). The National Child Traumatic Stress Network identifies 12 distinct types of trauma (e.g., various forms of abuse, bullying, community violence, medical trauma, natural disasters, traumatic grief). Not only has research on child traumatic stress demonstrated that children’s exposure to traumatic events is common, but it also informs us that the epidemiology of trauma is complicated. Exposure to trauma early in brain development alters neural circuits involved in emotional health, causing effects like those of individuals suffering from psychopathology (Thomason & Marusak, 2017). Research supports that exposure to trauma is a strong predictor of developing a psychiatric illness with child maltreatment cited as the leading preventable cause of mental illnesses such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020). Considering these alarming statistics, educators are rightly concerned with establishing programs of support. However, structures take time, and many educators may be concerned with developing a more immediate understanding of trauma-responsive teaching. This chapter provides educators with a summary of the current neurodevelopmental research on childhood trauma and then offers suggestions for daily trauma-informed classroom practices.

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Part I: Research on Childhood Trauma and Adversity: What Educators Need to Know Not all stress exposure is negative and maladaptive. Skilled educators use scaffolding, appropriately adjusting their support based on the child’s skill level, to guide children slightly out of their comfort zones and experience a small amount of stress. Allowing young learners to experience an optimal amount of stress can act as a catalyst for learning new skills and behaviors (Yerkes & Dodson, 1908). Sometimes, however, when the stressor is overwhelming, the support of a caring adult is needed for children to learn how to manage and tolerate their stress (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2005/2014). Toxic stress, on the other hand, is not normative, adaptive stress of failing a test or losing a game; when a child is exposed to toxic stress, the personal safety of the child and/or the child’s primary caretaker is threatened, and they are concerned for their survival. Toxic stress is associated with trauma and refers to experiences that are chronic, uncontrollable, and lack emotional support from caregivers (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2005/2014). When exposed to multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) during childhood or adolescence in the absence of trusted, supportive caregivers and safe, stable living conditions, a traumatic toxic stress response is likely to follow. Living with toxic stress can negatively affect hormones, immunity, brain development, and regulatory systems (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020). In school-aged children, exposure to toxic stress can compromise their immune systems, which increases the risk of viral infections, pneumonia, and asthma (Aces Aware, 2020). Toxic stress is detrimental to mental health as well. For example, many children who experience trauma will develop PTSD as a result (Herringa, 2017). Pediatric PTSD is associated with abnormalities in the structure and function of the prefrontal brain areas associated with emotional regulation and threat reactivity similar to those found in adult PTSD (Herringa, 2017). For example, threat reactivity may manifest as constant hypervigilance (e.g., a heightened focus for making it through another day, protecting themselves, and protecting the individuals they depend on to care for them). Arrested emotional regulation may manifest as aggressive and/or inattentive behavioral issues. The presence or absence of certain environmental influences permanently modifies both the structure and function of the brain (Miguel et al., 2019). The

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brain is rapidly growing in early childhood, especially in the frontal and temporal cortex areas, which are highly involved in thinking, planning, memory, and language (Gilmore et al., 2018). The brain is approximately 30% of its adult size at birth, increasing to 70% by age 2 and 90% by age 5. The developing brain is plastic, highly susceptible to changing in both organization and function in response to environmental experiences (Stiles, 2017). Synapses that are formed and used are strengthened, while those that are seldom used are pruned. The incredible role of experience in brain development is categorized into two types: experience-expectant and experience-dependent (Kuther, 2020). Experience-expectant brain development describes how, in development, the brain depends on certain stimuli for optimal growth. Experience-dependent brain development refers to the growth that results from lifelong learning experiences that are unique for everyone. While this has remarkable implications for learning and growth when experiences are positive and nurturing, the brain is equally susceptible to damage when experiences are traumatic. Early brain development of children who experience trauma can be permanently altered as trauma shifts the brain’s focus from learning to survival (Ford, 2009). A “learning brain” is engaged in exploration and is responsible for the early formations of memory, attachments, emotion regulation, attention, cognitive growth, and personality (Ford, 2009). This is the healthy, typically developing brain that we expect and are very familiar with in our school-aged children. It is the brain that teachers are easily able to shape with novel learning experiences. Unfortunately, and often unknowingly, this is not always the student brain with which teachers are working. The exposure to various types of abuse and other forms of trauma can force children to use their brains in another way. For their own protection, children exposed to trauma develop a “survival brain,” which utilizes developmental resources needed to withstand trauma and limits the ability for structural development in areas such as learning and memory (Ford, 2009). When exposed to typical stressful stimuli, a variety of hormone and neurochemical systems are activated throughout the body. Specifically, the adrenal gland produces stress hormones (i.e., adrenaline and cortisol) to help the body prepare to cope with the stressor. When released suddenly and for a short amount of time these stress hormones mobilize energy stores, enhance certain types of memory, and activate immune responses essential for survival (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2005/2014). Prolonged

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exposure to chronic, toxic stress compromises a child’s immune system since the body’s stress response system is continually activated. The consistent and heightened secretion of stress hormones can impair the immune system, compromise the child’s physical health, and can permanently alter areas in the brain responsible for learning, memory, and self-regulation (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2005/2014). This “survival brain” operates automatically, consumed with identifying and escaping from threats, which compromises the processes of emotional regulation and information processing (Ford, 2005).

Emotional Regulation and Trauma Emotional regulation is the ability to monitor and modulate one’s emotional responses and behaviors to appropriately fit the demands of the environmental context (Blair & Raver, 2012). Strong emotional regulation skills are necessary when the intensity or duration of an emotional experience is either insufficient or too overwhelming to meet the child’s social goals. In a school-aged child, exhibiting appropriate emotional regulation occurs when they find an appropriate outlet for feelings of anger. Developing emotional regulation is a complex process, which begins in infancy but rapidly matures in the early childhood years. In the absence of trauma exposure, the developmental skill of emotional regulation strengthens throughout the school years and into adolescence, enabling the child to focus and learn. However, if significant threats to survival are experienced early in development, this neural pathway is likely to be altered by stress reactivity (i.e., the “survival brain”). This impairs the child’s ability to effectively regulate their emotional states. Moreover, emotions and bodily states are more likely to be viewed as threats in and of themselves (Ford, 2009). The brain’s emotion regulatory network is an affected neural pathway of particular concern in trauma exposure. Traumatic experiences disrupt the development of using self-awareness to guide emotional regulation. Instead of attending to a range of emotional states and using self-reflection for guidance, the child is overwhelmed with scanning the environment for real and potential threats (Ford, 2009). For the school-aged child, this emotional dysregulation often manifests as internalizing (e.g., depression, anxiety), externalizing (e.g., oppositional defiance disorder, attentional or impulse control disorders), and

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psychosomatic (e.g., eating disorders, sleep disturbances) diagnoses (Cook et al., 2005). Emotional regulation is an important component of attachment and cognition/learning. The emotional dysregulation resulting from exposure to trauma can cause serious disruption in the development of both fundamental areas.

Learning and Emotional Regulation Strong regulatory skills enable high-quality relationships between students and teachers, which is important for both the student’s emotional health and educational attainment. Researchers have discovered a link between young children’s emotional competence, which is the ability to understand and regulate emotions, early academic success, and later scholastic achievements in elementary school. Having a poor relationship with a teacher increases the probability that a child will be referred for special education (Pianta et al., 1995) and is a strong indicator of later school dropout (Alexander et al., 1997). Conflict in the teacher–child relationship during early school transitions (kindergarten through Grade 3) is also associated with faster rates of increasing externalizing behavior problems even when controlling for negative parenting and prior externalizing behavior. Moreover, decreases in externalizing behavior are correlated with teacher–child closeness (Silver et al., 2005). The issues with brain development discussed earlier make it difficult for children to appropriately meet the essential demands of schooling, primarily paying attention and organizing and comprehending classroom material (Cole et al., 2005). The traditional, formal school setting places higher demands on attention, interest, and behavioral control compared to the home (Goldsmith et al., 2001). Distraction and interruption are also typical components of the traditional classroom context to which children must adjust. Moreover, children need to learn how to successfully navigate various transitions throughout the school day (Keogh, 2003). Children who lack effortful control struggle to effectively meet these classroom demands, as they have difficulty regulating attention, emotion, and behavioral impulses. These children will likely not transition to school smoothly due to problematic and disruptive behavior in the classroom (Eisenberg & Morris, 2002; Olson et al., 2005). Some children’s classroom disruptions may stem directly from having experienced trauma. For example, exposure to violence, directly and indirectly, contributes to externalizing behavior issues that can

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severely disrupt the classroom (Fleckman et al., 2016). Regulation is required for academic success. Teachers often interpret negative or disruptive behaviors that may arise in response to triggers as disinterest and apathy toward learning (Crosby et al., 2019). Additionally, teachers may view uninhibited, poorly regulated children as problematic and are likely to engage in negative, conflictual relationships with them (Eisenberg et al., 2003). A trauma-responsive classroom is essential for helping children learn self-regulation skills and ultimately achieve social and academic success.

Social and Emotional Learning According to the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL, 2020), social and emotional learning (SEL) involves the acquisition and effective application of the information and skills necessary for identifying and managing emotions, setting and completing positive goals, expressing empathy, establishing and maintaining positive relationships, and making responsible decisions. SEL is generally broken down then into five categories: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making (CASEL, 2020). Well-designed and well-implemented SEL programming in elementary schools shows both immediate and long-term positive outcomes in academic achievement and prosocial behavior, as well as reductions in conduct problems, emotional distress, and substance abuse (Dusenbury & Weissberg, 2017). The benefits of school-based SEL programming persist for years after the intervention takes place. A meta-analytic review of 82 different interventions involving more than 97,000 students from kindergarten to high school found that the academic performance of students exposed to SEL was 13 percentile points higher over 3 years later compared to their non-SEL peers (Taylor et al., 2017). Impressively, children who are exposed to social-emotional interventions early and throughout their schooling years are more likely to obtain a college degree and find employment and less likely to abuse substances or be in trouble with the law as an adult (Jones et al., 2015). The classroom provides daily opportunities to learn about emotions directly through interactions with teachers and peers and indirectly by observing the socialization of others. Supportive reactions from teachers can help children

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learn that emotional responses are useful and manageable. When teachers validate the emotional responses of their students, the entire classroom is more positive and prosocial (Karalus et al., 2016). Engaging in emotion-related discussions in the classroom helps children identify why they may be experiencing negative emotions and learn how to manage and express them constructively (Ahn, 2005). Incorporating SEL opportunities into classroom instruction is essential for creating a trauma-responsive classroom.

Part II: Daily Instructional Strategies That Support TraumaResponsive Classrooms Immediately actionable classroom practices are of great importance given the research on trauma’s effect on children, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. In general, a trauma-informed classroom is one where teachers (a) expect the unexpected from their students and respond with patience and grace; (b) employ positive, thoughtful interactions; (c) are intentional about relationship building; (d) enact a predictable and consistent environment; (e) allow dysregulated students to take thought breaks or engage in moments of pleasantly engaging activity to help them move on from distracting or painful thoughts and memories; (f) give supportive feedback; (g) provide students with opportunities to let their strengths shine; and (h) limit exclusionary practices to promote an overall sense of belonging and security (Minahan, 2019). The following classroom practices are offered in alignment with these principles with an appreciation for the fact that teachers work in a variety of school contexts, some more trauma-responsive than others. Craig (2016) supported intentional integration of these trauma-responsive strategies: (a) building a safe, supportive (trauma-sensitive) classroom environment; (b) integrating productive collaboration for prosocial behaviors (i.e., collaborative and social-emotional skills); and (c) providing opportunities to identify emotions and practice regulation. Although not an exhaustive description of potential practices, perhaps these may inspire teachers to try a few new practices that will support the creation of a learning environment that is sensitive and to the needs of students who have experienced adversity.

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Building a Safe, Supportive, Positive Classroom Environment Simple behavioral tactics such as rewards and punishments may provide some immediate results but can be ineffective and harmful to student agency and motivation in the long term (Smith et al., 2015). Research has found that teachers utilizing restorative practices may have more positive relationships with students; these may even contribute to more equitable school disciplinary practices (Gregory et al., 2016). At its most foundational level, restorative practices are disciplinary procedures that do not rely on exclusion or harsh consequences. While an exhaustive exploration of classroom restorative practices is beyond this chapter, teachers can think of these as disciplinary or management techniques grounded in dignity, dialogue, and affirming relationships. Smith et al. (2015) note that this could include classroom circles as a place to dialogue about tough topics or issues, individual conferences about students about behavior infractions with caring stakeholders, and an emphasis on teaching over punishing or rewarding. The process of restorative discipline in the classroom, at the very least, should involve students in productive dialogue and reflection about their conduct. Students should know that they are not labeled by their teachers and mentors. Rather, they are active agents in their own personal development. After the outbreak of COVID-19, students who previously experienced trauma or adversity may be fearful of another major disruption. The immediate and long-term shutdown of normal likely exacerbated existing issues. It is even more important that teachers take time to get to know their students well and establish a safe, supportive, positive classroom environment. Students who have experienced traumatic events in their lives must feel that school is a place where they can be safe and be themselves. While safety may look and feel slightly different from one child to the next, there are a few things that teachers can do to communicate that their classroom is a safe and nurturing space. There are many things outside of an individual teacher’s immediate control (e.g., policies and external influences). However, small steps can make a big difference. The following are a few ways in which teachers can enact safe, supportive, positive environments and avoid retraumatization of students.

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Affirming Identities On a fundamental level, safety means affirming student identities. Culturally affirming and equitable practices can provide some buffer against the historical and systemic inequities that many students face (Blitz et al., 2016). Especially for students who have Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) and LGBTQIA or nonbinary identities. A culturally responsive pedagogy may include integrating community assets into curricular materials by partnering with parents and families. One way to promote safety in the classroom is through positive, transparent classroom management. Trauma-informed, restorative responses to misbehavior in the classroom best align with the brain science behind childhood trauma and are more likely to be culturally affirming. Although traditional definitions of classroom management may center on traditional, behaviorism-style rewards and punishments, a more trauma-sensitive orientation is put forth by Cassetta and Sawyer (2013), who asserted that the focus should be on “building relationships with students and teaching social skills along with academic skills” (p. 16). Indeed, punitive discipline is problematic. Exclusionary discipline practices or “zero tolerance” policies have been shown to be ineffective and discriminatory against children of color (Skiba & Knesting, 2001). In fact, many traditional classroom management practices and school discipline policies exacerbate the racial and ethnic disparities common in academic achievement (Gregory et al., 2010), furthering the risk of disengagement that may occur for children who have experienced trauma. Teachers should also take care to identify and address behaviors of bullying or peer maltreatment of students within their classroom community. For example, children in the primary grades who experienced bullying, demonstrated externalization and internalization issues, reduced prosocial behaviors, and overall unhappiness with being at school (Arseneault et al., 2006). Therefore, teachers should take care to enact a classroom culture that is universally safe for all children.

Predictability and Consistency Trauma-responsive teachers intentionally enact procedures and schedules that are consistent and predictable, utilizing the same verbal and visual cues for

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transition and attention each day to promote a feeling of safety (Craig, 2016). Daily reliance on consistent and predictable procedures helps students feel grounded and less jolted by surprise expectations for conduct. Behavioral expectations that are transparent and succinct are trauma-responsive. Involving students in co-construction or discussion of expectations early on can provide students with a sense of ownership. When students co-construct expectations with their teacher and classmates, teachers are more likely to see student buy-in and ownership (Smith et al., 2015). Co-constructing behavioral expectations with older students may look like this: (a) The teacher asks students to do a 3- to 5-minute freewrite about a classroom experience that helped them feel productive and safe; (b) students then share their stories in small groups. After sharing, students conduct a thematic analysis of their stories, jotting down similarities in content or theme; (c) finally, the students come together as a whole class, sharing the commonalities from their small groups with the teacher, who interprets group contributions into positively worded behavioral expectations (e.g., “mutual respect”) and adds in other necessary ideas. With younger students, the teacher may take a more active facilitative role, asking guiding questions about what it looks like, sounds like, and feels like to be in a fun classroom. Furthermore, expectations should always be phrased positively (e.g., “Demonstrate respect for yourself, your space, and your classmates by acting with kindness and patience”), should be displayed prominently in the classroom, and should be reviewed by the teacher and/or students during transitions or relevant moments in the day or lesson.

Building Positive Relationships Because childhood trauma impacts a child’s capacity to self-soothe and regulate emotions, a safe classroom environment and a warm relationship with adults in the school can help. In fact, empirical research supports the conclusion that a positive, supportive relationship with an adult can have a buffering and healing impact on a child who has experienced trauma (Ludy-Dobson & Perry, 2010). Teacher care has long been theorized as a foundational pedagogical element, one that encourages reciprocation of care and trust from students (Noddings, 2013). Emotionally supportive teachers have a strong positive

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impact on student motivation, engagement, autonomy, and positive relationships with peers (Ruzek et al., 2016). The 2 by 10 Strategy McKibben (2014) posited that engaging positively with a student for just 2 minutes a day for 10 consecutive days can reap behavioral, social, and emotional benefits for the student. By integrating just a few more minutes of positive interaction each day, teachers will foster a more reliably warm, emotional tone and encourage a culture of collective responsibility and communal belonging. Student Asset Inventories In his well-regarded book The Energy to Teach (2001), Graves suggested a powerful exercise to encourage the development of positive one-on-one relationships in the classroom. First, he instructs teachers to list out their full class roster from memory. Then, next to each student’s name, the teacher should record one asset (i.e., a strength, experience, or interest) of that student. After listing the asset, then the teacher should place a checkmark next to each student’s asset if the teacher believes that the student knows that their teacher is aware of this asset. An unchecked asset is an indication that it is unclear whether the student knows that they are appreciated for their strengths. Student Reflection and Writing According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (2017), traumaresponsive teachers should also build in opportunities for ongoing monitoring of student wellness and emotional status. Daily journaling can also provide an opportunity to exercise social-emotional skills.

Integrating Productive Collaboration and Prosocial Behaviors Peer friendships have been found to have a positive impact on academic achievement in young students and students with disabilities (Meyer & Ostrosky, 2014), and the impact of prosocial behaviors is also found to stand with older students over long periods (Wentzel & Caldwell, 1997). The integration of focused collaborative skills can also support students’ critical thinking and academic development. While supporting students’ skills for sharing ideas, responding

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to proposals, practicing active listening, and asking probing questions, students are compelled to express understanding (or lack thereof) and evaluate claims (Kaendler et al., 2015). Collaborative Talk Stems Rather than assume students have the prior experience and skills necessary to successfully engage in collaborative activities, teachers can provide explicit, consistent directions for what good collaboration looks like. The popular teaching resource site, Edutopia (2018), provides even more ideas for the integration of talk stems in academic settings. Feedback from these activities can be used to support teachers’ development of future instructional design (Cohen & Lotan, 2014). Building a Prosocial Classroom Through SEL Universal interventions can improve a student’s capacity to be supportive community members. Ludy-Dobson and Perry (2010) stated that “the presence of familiar people projecting the social-emotional cues of acceptance, understanding, compassion, and empathy” (p. 26) can calm an individual’s stress response and support regulation. SEL can also support an empathic and relationally rich classroom environment. To encourage a classroom culture that values empathy and positive relationships, trauma-responsive teachers can engage students in activities like the “Circle of Concern” (Making Caring Common Project, 2020). In this activity, which can be adapted for virtual or face-to-face learning environments, students are asked to reflect on people in their lives who are within or beyond their Circle of Concern. The exercise continues with an extensive reflection about what it might look like to expand the Circle of Concern, and how it feels to be within and outside of another’s circle. Students conclude their reflective activities by planning to widen their Circle of Concern. Collaborative skills can also relate to the development of strong emotional regulation. These skills relate to impulse control, stress management, self-motivation, goal setting, self-discipline, and organization (CASEL, 2020). Such skills are crucial for successful social interaction and emotional/behavioral health. While simple strategies like preteaching expectations and proximity are common standards in many classrooms, teachers may integrate practice for

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emotional regulation. To support emotional regulation, teachers may consider integrating mindfulness or similar reflective practices into their classrooms. Mindfulness or reflective self-soothing after stressful moments can help facilitate the development of strong emotional regulation (Craig, 2016). Mindfulness practices have been found to benefit K–12 students (e.g., Cheang et al., 2019; Etherington & Costello, 2019; Schonert-Reichl et al., 2015) and teachers alike (e.g., Klingbeil & Renshaw, 2018; Jennings et al., 2019) in a variety of settings and age groups. When coupled with SEL, mindfulness has been found to promote student well-being and thriving (Schonert et al., 2015), and can even help mitigate the depression and anxiety caused by systemic inequities and racism (Liehr & Diaz, 2010). When combined with the other strategies cited earlier, wraparound support for the development of emotional regulation is possible within a classroom that might not be situated within a larger ecosystem of multitiered supports.

Conclusion A trauma-informed classroom integrates the above principles and practices with intensive attention and thoughtful preparation. This is a practice that requires cultivation over a long period and, when possible, the collaborative support of colleagues and others outside the classroom. However, teachers can be a calming, buffering force in the lives of children who have experienced trauma and therefore a powerful ally in recovery and long-term success. Although classroom strategies are important, a systemic, schoolwide approach to trauma-responsive teaching and learning is the preferred intervention for students who have experienced traumatic stress. Teachers inspired by this chapter may consider using it to advocate for a systemwide approach and foreground conversations about professional learning needs in their schools and/or districts. They may also recruit the support of community and family members as partners in this work to maintain a connection to the assets and cultures relevant to children in a district or school building. Finally, it is most important that any teachers working to educate themselves, their colleagues, and improve daily practices for trauma-responsiveness do so with self-compassion and grace. This work is more about planting seeds

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than reaping harvests, and a kind, patient, resilient attitude is just as important to cultivate for oneself as it is for the students whom one serves.

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Gregory, A., Clawson, K., Davis, A., & Gerewitz, J. (2016). The promise of restorative practices to transform teacher-student relationships and achieve equity in school discipline. Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation, 26(4), 325–353. https://doi.org/10.1080/10474412.2014.929950 Gregory, A., Skiba, R. J., & Noguera, P. A. (2010). The achievement gap and the discipline gap: Two sides of the same coin? Educational Researcher, 39(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X09357621 Herringa, R. J. (2017). Trauma, PTSD, and the developing brain. Current Psychiatry Reports, 19(10), 69. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-017-0825-3 Jennings, P. A., Doyle, S., Oh, Y., Rasheed, D., Frank, L. J., & Brown, B. L. (2019). Long-term impacts of the CARE program on teachers’ self-reported social and emotional competence and well-being. Journal of School Psychology, 76, 186–202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2019.07.009 Jones, D. E., Greenberg, M., & Crowley, M. (2015). Early social-emotional functioning and public health: The relationship between kindergarten social competence and future wellness. American Journal of Public Health, 105, 2283–2290. https:// doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2015.302630 Kaendler, C., Wiedmann, M., Rummel, N., & Spada, H. (2015). Teacher competencies for the implementation of collaborative learning in the classroom: A framework and research review. Educational Psychology Review, 27(3), 505–536. https://doi. org/10.1007/s10648-014-9288-9 Karalus, S. P., Herndon, K., Bassett, H. H., & Denham, S. A. (2016). Childcare teachers’ socialization practices and beliefs on children’s social emotional competence and the moderating contribution of classroom age. Unpublished manuscript. Keogh, B. K. (2003). Temperament in the classroom: Understanding individual differences. Paul H. Brookes. Klingbeil, D. A., & Renshaw, T. L. (2018). Mindfulness-based interventions for teachers: A meta-analysis of the emerging evidence base. School Psychology Quarterly, 33(4), 501–511. https://doi.org/10.1037/spq0000291 Kuther, T. L. (2020). Child & adolescent development in context. SAGE.  Liehr, P., & Diaz, N. (2010). A pilot study examining the effect of mindfulness on depression and anxiety for minority children. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 24(1), 69–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnu.2009.10.001 Ludy-Dobson, C. R., & Perry, B. D. (2010). The role of healthy relational interactions in buffering the impact of childhood trauma. In E. Gil (Ed.), Working with children to heal interpersonal trauma: The power of play (pp. 26–43). Guilford Press. Making Caring Common Project. (2020, April). For educators: Circle of concern strategy. https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/resources-for-educators/circle-concern-strategy McKibben, S. (2014). The two-minute relationship builder. Education Update, 56(7). http://www.ascd.org/publications/newsletters/education_update/jul14/ vol56/num07/The_Two-Minute_Relationship_Builder.aspx

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Meyer, L. E., & Ostrosky, M. M. (2014). Measuring the friendships of young children with disabilities: A review of the literature. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 34(3), 186–196. https://doi.org/10.1177/0271121413513038 Miguel, P. M, Pereira, L. O., Silveira, P. P., & Meaney, M. J. (2019). Early environmental influences on the development of children’s brain structure and function. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology, 61(10), 1127–1133. https:// doi.org/10.1111/dmcn.14182 Minahan, J. (2019). Trauma-informed teaching strategies. Educational Leadership, 77(2). http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/oct19/ vol77/num02/Trauma-Informed_Teaching_Strategies.aspx National Child Traumatic Stress Network, Schools Committee. (2017). Creating, supporting, and sustaining trauma-informed schools: A system framework. https:// www.nctsn.org/sites/default/files/resources/creating_supporting_sustaining_ trauma_informed_schools_a_systems_framework.pdf National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. (2014). Excessive stress disrupts the architecture of the developing brain (Working Paper 3). (Original work published 2005) www.developingchild.harvard.edu Noddings, N. (2013). Caring: A relational approach to ethics & moral education (2nd ed.). University of California. Olson, S. L., Sameroff, A. J., Kerr, D. C. R., Lopez, N. L., & Wellman, H. M. (2005). Developmental foundations of externalizing problems in young children: The role of effortful control. Development and Psychopathology, 17, 25–45. https:// doi:10.1017/S0954579405050029 Pianta, R. C., Steinberg, M. S., & Rollins, K. B. (1995). The first two years of school: Teacher-child relationships and deflections in children’s classroom adjustment. Development and Psychopathology, 7, 295–312. https://doi:10.1017/ S0954579400006519 Ruzek, E. A., Hafen, C. A., Allen, J. P., Gregory, A., Mikami, A. Y., & Pianta, R. C. (2016). How teacher emotional support motivates students: The mediating roles of perceived peer relatedness, autonomy support, and competence. Learning and Instruction, 42, 95–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2016.01.004  Schonert-Reichl, K. A., Oberle, E., Lawlor, M. S., Abbott, D., Thomson, K., Oberlander, T. F., & Diamond, A. (2015). Enhancing cognitive and social–emotional development through a simple-to-administer mindfulness-based school program for elementary school children: A randomized controlled trial. Developmental Psychology, 51(1), 52–66. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038454 Silver, R. B., Measelle, J. R., Armstrong, J. M., & Essex, M. J. (2005). Trajectories of classroom externalizing behavior: Contributions of child characteristics, family characteristics, and the teacher-child relationship during the school transition. Journal of School Psychology, 43, 39–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. jsp.2004.11.003

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Smith, D., Fisher, D., & Frey, N. (2015). Better than carrots or sticks: Restorative practices for positive classroom management. ASCD. Skiba, R. J., & Knesting, K. K. (2001). Zero tolerance, zero evidence: An analysis of school disciplinary practice. In R. J. Skiba & G. G. Noam (Eds.), New directions for youth development: No. 92. Zero tolerance: Can suspension and expulsion keep schools safe? (pp. 17–43). Jossey-Bass. Stiles, J. (2017). Principles of brain development. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Cognitive Science, 8(1–2), e1402. https://doi.org/10.1002/wcs.1402 Taylor, R. D., Oberle, E., Durlak, J. A., & Weissberg, R. (2017). Promoting positive youth development through school-based social and emotional learning interventions: A meta-analysis of follow-up effects. Child Development, 88(4), 1156–1171. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12864 Thomason, M. E., & Marusak, H. A. (2017). Toward understanding the impact of trauma on the early developing human brain. Neuroscience, 342, 55–67. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroscience.2016.02.022 Wentzel, K. R., & Caldwell, K. (1997). Friendships, peer acceptance, and group membership: Relations to academic achievement in middle school. Child Development, 68(6), 1198–1209. https://doi.org/10.2307/1132301 Yerkes, R. M., & Dodson, J. D. (1908). The relationship of strength of stimulus to rapidity of habit formation. Journal of Comparative and Neurological Psychology, 18, 459–482. https://www.ida.liu.se/~769A09/Literature/Stress/Yerkes,%20 Dodson_1908.pdf

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CHAPTER 8

Relationship Over Reproach: One School’s Efforts in Fostering Resilience Through Trauma-Informed Practices Carrie Giboney Wall

Although stress is part of the human experience, trauma is harmful and has lasting adverse effects on an individual’s physical, social, and mental well-being and development (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 2014). Trauma is defined as the inability to respond in a healthy manner to acute stress that compromises the welfare of a victim (Wolpow et al., 2016). It results from circumstances that are “experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life threatening” (SAMHSA, 2014, p. 7). Trauma-impacted individuals live in a “constant state of emergency” in which their stress response systems to fight, freeze, or take flight are activated for prolonged periods, resulting in changes to the brain’s structure and functioning (Alexander, 2019; Craig, 2008; Jensen, 2000; McInerney & McKlindon, 2014; Wolpow et al., 2016). Trauma that occurs in childhood can have a powerful and overwhelming impact on a child’s ability to engage, learn, and succeed in school (McInerney & McKlindon, 2014) and must be addressed by educators. Childhood exposure to abuse, violence, and/or household dysfunction, often referred to as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), is strongly related to many psychological and physical disorders (Felitti et al., 1998). ACEs can be grouped into two categories: (a) personal trauma, such as physical abuse, psychological abuse, and/or sexual abuse, and (b) household dysfunction such as familial substance abuse, domestic violence, incarceration, and/or mental illness (Felitti et al., 1998). Between half and two thirds of all children in the United

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States have experienced a minimum of one ACE before the age of 17, with this percentage being even higher in impoverished communities (McInerney & McKlindon, 2014). Although trauma is pervasive among children in the United States, educators are often unprepared to provide optimal support to trauma-impacted students. Some traditional models of classroom management are well-intending behaviorist approaches that use rewards such as sticker charts or point systems, but they can unintentionally reinforce the concept that relationships exist for personal benefit instead of to build mutual trust and affection. Furthermore, other discipline models can be punitive and involve “criminalizing” students that can exacerbate problems (Alexander, 2019; McInerney & McKlindon, 2014). A more constructive and healing model is the trauma-informed approach (TIA), which has been gaining momentum. The TIA is “a safe, supportive community that enables both students and teachers to feel safe, build caring relationships, regulate their feelings and behavior, as well as learn” (Alexander, 2019, p. 86). It shifts the focus from “what’s wrong with you” to “what happened to you” (McInerney & McKlindon, 2014, p. 2) and seeks to minimize harm, maximize learning, and foster resiliency. In order to better understand the TIA and provide a context for its exploration, this chapter highlights the multipronged, holistic approach of Heartcare Elementary (a pseudonym) as an example of a school that has effectively embraced a TIA. The purpose of this chapter is threefold: to explore the physical, academic, and social-emotional manifestations of trauma from educators’ perspectives; to examine Heartcare’s trauma-informed practices; and to ascertain the impact of a TIA on student functioning at Heartcare. Although research has documented the power of trauma-informed practices, little empirical attention has been given to investigating this approach from the perspective of those on the front lines working with trauma-impacted children—teachers. Although “school personnel have a front row seat to the behavioral, academic, and socioemotional issues that trauma-impacted students encounter” (Crosby, 2015, p. 228), their observations, experiences, and insights are rarely shared. Therefore, it is hoped that this description of Heartcare’s implementation of a TIA and the insights of its educators will be valuable in informing the work of educators and school staff as they support trauma-impacted students.

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This chapter begins with an explanation of the study’s research methodology followed by an overview of Heartcare Elementary and its TIA. Next, descriptions of student manifestations of trauma, Heartcare TIA supports, and related literature are reported within three categories: physical, academic, and social-emotional. Then, a brief overview of Heartcare educators’ perspectives on the impact of the TIA on student functioning is followed by implications for facilitating schoolwide professional learning and skill building in the TIA.

Research Methodology In order to investigate trauma-informed practices at Heartcare, data were gathered over a 3-year period through attendance at school events, questionnaires completed by educators, interviews with educators and parents, and publicly available school-level data. To focus investigative effort specifically on the impact of trauma and the TIA, questionnaires were administered at a staff meeting that inquired about (a) how students manifest the impact of trauma in classrooms; (b) how participants have modified instruction, classroom management, and/or student support in response to student trauma; and (c) how they have seen student behavior, learning outcomes, and engagement change as a result of the TIA. Of the 15 teachers at Heartcare, 13 completed the questionnaire, along with the principal and the community liaison. Nine of the participants engaged in 1-hour follow-up interviews that were recorded and transcribed. Pseudonyms were assigned, and the researcher’s university internal review board approved the study. Table 8.1 (see following page) provides relevant interviewee information.

Overview of Heartcare Elementary and Its Trauma-Informed Approach Heartcare Elementary is a California Title 1 public school where approximately 78% of its students are considered economically challenged (as determined by enrollment in the free and reduced-price meal program), and many are traumaimpacted. The school enrolls approximately 400 students—77% of whom classify

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Table 8.1 Interview Participant Information Participant

Gender

Grade Taught

Years at School

Ethnicity

Nina

Female

2/3

7

European American

Carol

Female

3

5

European American

Helen

Female

2

5

European American

Maude

Female

K–5 aide

21

European American

Bruce

Male

4

20

European American

Eric

Male

4/5

12

European American

Sue

Female

4/5

19

European American

Kristen

Female

Principal

4

Asian American

Maria

Female

Community liaison

17

Latinx

themselves as Latinx, 18% as White, 2% as Asian, and 1% as Black. According to Principal Kristen, because trauma is “the students’ biggest learning-related issue,” Heartcare embraced a TIA about three years ago. She explained: Students from poverty often deal with abuse, domestic violence, etc. and as a result, their brains develop differently. Students have learned a “fight or flight” response and often aren’t intrinsically motivated because they are busy surviving. Teachers must build relationships with these students and avoid punitive or harsh punishment.

Abandoning traditional discipline models that can exacerbate the impact of trauma, Heartcare adopted a schoolwide TIA that emphasizes cultivating relationships, providing social-emotional instruction, and embracing a growth mindset. Heartcare’s ongoing TIA professional learning (PL) is organized into three strands that equip educators and staff on (a) trauma-informed practices, (b) social-emotional learning, and (c) self-care and community building. Strand 1 is provided by Professional Education Systems Institute (PESI) and is designed to help educators understand the negative impact of trauma on behavior and learning, as well as learn trauma-informed strategies such as

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how to create a calm, supportive learning environment; how to avoid student triggers to flight, flight, or freeze; and how to foster positive coping skills. Strand 2 on social-emotional learning is provided by FranklinCovey’s Leader in Me program, an evidence-based whole-school program that integrates leadership principles and social-emotional learning across curriculum, classroom management, and schoolwide systems. Heartcare is a Leader in Me Lighthouse school infusing Sean Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Happy Kids” throughout the curriculum. The habits equip students with essential life skills and decision-making strategies to promote personal and interpersonal growth (Covey, 2008). Strand 3 is provided by Leading Together, a research-based customized program that seeks to strengthen relational trust, collaboration, and empowerment within schools. Because individuals who work with trauma-impacted families can experience compassion fatigue, Leading Together provides PL on self-care as well as team cohesion, respectful communication, and conflict resolution for all student-facing employees schoolwide. Central to the effectiveness of Heartcare’s TIA is that it is a schoolwide initiative with buy-in at all levels of student support from administrators to educators to office staff to cafeteria workers to custodians. Teacher Carol explained, “It’s taken awhile for us to step away from that ‘just suspend’ model, but the more that we collaboratively implement the TIA across the board, the more success we’ve had.” The following sections provide educator descriptions of student physical, academic, and social-emotional manifestations of trauma, as well as explanations of Heartcare’s TIA.

TIA Interventions That Address Physical Manifestations of Trauma Some trauma is physical in nature and can impact a child’s physical wellbeing. Because 78% of Heartcare’s population is economically challenged, many students experience physical challenges related to food insecurity, insufficient sleep, unmet medical needs, and inadequate housing. Child abuse, as well as familial substance abuse, violence, incarceration, and/or fear of deportation, is also common. Carol explained, “We have many families living 15 people to an apartment. Students have seen parents or siblings arrested at gunpoint or get out of jail and have ankle bracelets on.”

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Physical TIA supports mentioned by participants include frequent “brain breaks” (pauses from cognitive engagement allowing students to move or interact), “emergency” snacks, naps, flexible seating, “chill-out” spaces in classrooms, walks outside, mindfulness activities, and sensory-soothing environmental structures such as turning off lights or playing music. Teachers avoid sensory overload (Nealy-Oparah & Scruggs-Hussein, 2018) by responding calmly, giving more physical space to those with escalating emotions, and not blocking potential escape routes between the child and the door. Additionally, Heartcare has attended to its physical environment by planting trees to provide beauty and shade, creating a butterfly garden, and painting exterior walls with cheerful images of the seven habits. Furthermore, Heartcare has invested in flexible seating to give students a degree of choice over their environment and allow them to move while they learn. Heartcare’s teachers believe that physical needs must be addressed before learning can take place, focusing on “conversations over consequences.” For example, instead of reprimanding a boy who was sent to her office for misbehaving, Principal Kristen first allowed him to punch an empty box until it was destroyed before working through the issue with him. In another example, after noticing another disruptive student was struggling to keep his eyes open, Kristen left him alone in her office. When she returned, he was sound asleep under a blanket. Swiftly Responding to Physical Signs of Dysregulation Not only can traumatic experiences be physical in nature, but they also can have physical and physiological manifestations. When a child is traumatized, the executive functions of the brain that influence emotional regulation and reasoning are put on hold (Alexander, 2019; Craig, 2008; Nealy-Oparah & Scruggs-Hussein, 2018), while the lower level brain associated with motivation and emotion takes over. The result is an increase in heart rate, blood pressure, and urgency to seek safety and a diminished capacity to inhibit impulses and modulate behavior (Alexander, 2019; Frydman & Mayor, 2017; Jensen, 2000). Similar reactions can also be triggered by stimuli that remind them of painful past experiences (Wolpow et al., 2016). Some triggers are external such as a siren, a touch, dimming of lights, or yelling, while others are internal such as hunger, rejection, or fear (Alexander, 2019). Trauma-impacted children can struggle to modulate behavior when triggered, resulting in what Siegel (2012)

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termed “flipping their lid” (p. 286) or losing behavioral control. Carol, Sue, and Helen relayed stories of students who “flipped their lids,” requiring evacuation of classrooms because students were throwing things, hitting, cursing, and becoming violent. Bruce explained, “Trauma is changing the way I teach. . . . At any point, something or someone will go off.” To avoid escalation, teachers emphasized the importance of listening to individual’s spoken and underlying messages, detecting patterns in physical behavior to identify triggers, and taking action either to avoid triggers entirely or to swiftly respond to signs of dysregulation. Physical signs of dysregulation may be fluctuations in facial expression, eye contact, tone of voice, speech, breathing rate, movement, or emotional intensity (Alexander, 2019). Heartcare teachers have had to shift their paradigm in viewing difficult behavior (Alexander, 2019; Berardi & Morton, 2017), understanding that “students aren’t [intentionally] giving us a hard time,” but rather “are having a hard time” can help (Alexander, 2019, p. 108). For example, Carol shared that when she would ask one student to get off the computer, he would go into a “complete destructive space and we would have to evacuate.” In order to “not get there in the first place,” Carol noted his trigger and either turned the computer off or removed batteries from the wireless mouse before class. Differentiating responses to physical indications of students’ emotional escalation is essential. Although teacher support is critical in the TIA, the ultimate goal is to empower students themselves to regulate their own escalating emotions and behavior. The TIA equips students to (a) become aware of their triggers, (b) recognize physical signs such as rapid breathing or a stomach ache that signal dysregulation, and (c) take swift action to step away from the trigger or move to a “calm zone” (Wolpow et al., 2016, p. 89). For example, Carol’s student who “shuts down” when confused by a concept now hands her a card to signal that he would rather work during recess instead of at that moment when his anxiety is increasing. Helen’s student who would form fists and act out when anxious recently placed a sticky note listing de-escalation strategies on her desk and now makes a sign-language b for “break” when needing space. Such examples are important steps in empowering students to recognize physical signs of emotional dysregulation, manage their own emotions, and proactively communicate their needs. Heartcare also attends to behavioral indicators of emotional dysregulation within groups reasoning that “if one student is making a poor choice, then they

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all do. It’s a domino effect.” For example, fifth-grade teachers Eric, Sue, and Bruce promptly address “red flag” behaviors such as students drawing on their bodies (which can lead to cutting), taking pencil sharpeners apart and using the blades as weapons, and permitting students to go to the bathroom at a certain time to meet up with others. Their constant communication allows them to swiftly detect and terminate harmful group behaviors. Heartcare’s attentiveness to student physical needs, awareness of triggers, and swift response to behavioral manifestations of trauma are positive steps in supporting students’ emotional regulation and promoting classroom learning.

TIA Interventions That Address Academic Manifestations of Trauma When living in chronic trauma, survival can take precedence over academic engagement, making it difficult to sustain attention, follow instructions, and retain information (Cole et al., 2005; Jensen, 2000). This can result in lower grade point averages, increased absenteeism, decreased graduation rates, lower test scores, higher representation in special education, and higher rates of suspension and expulsion (Alexander, 2019; Craig, 2008; Crosby, 2015; Jensen, 2000). Additionally, trauma-impacted children often struggle with long-term goal setting and attainment. Nina explained, Our students have trouble thinking long-term. They have a lot going on in their lives in the short-term and don’t know what tomorrow holds, so they struggle to plan long term. We have to heavily scaffold long-term projects to set them up for success.

Teachers extend this scaffolding support to their classroom routines, seeking to maintain stability and consistency. Nina explained, “Overall, students like to know what is coming. Structured routines, clear expectations, and predictable schedules help students feel more comfortable.” Because altered routines may unsettle students, Heartcare teachers warn students when schedules will be modified to empower students to anticipate changes, adapt, and transition successfully (Nealy-Oparah & Scruggs-Hussein, 2018). Although Heartcare teachers hold classroom routines constant, their student support varies with student needs. Many teachers underscored the

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importance of “treating every kid differently” and differentiating discipline, instruction, assignments, and mode of output (e.g., typed, videoed, handwritten). Nina further explained, My mindset has shifted a lot. Prior to coming to this school, my curriculum was set before school started. Now, I wait until the kids come through my door to figure out what they need. If you have kids with trauma, you have to give up some control.

Helen added, “My approach is not one-size-fits-all, but unique for each student.” Alexander (2019) calls this “just right” instruction (p. 156) in which learning is maximized within the child’s instructional level so as to minimize discouragement. Fostering Student Agency Because trauma-impacted children can feel powerless (Wolpow et al., 2016), the TIA seeks to give them agency to negotiate, share opinions, and allow their voice to be considered (Crosby, 2015; Wolpow et al., 2016). Avoiding authoritarian approaches that often replicate those of perpetrators of trauma in students’ lives (Crosby, 2015), Heartcare teachers give options and share control while still upholding the final goal. For example, rather than giving an ultimatum, educators offer choices, such as “Would you rather do a little more research or begin writing your rough draft?” Nina reflected, “When I allowed students to self-regulate on their timeline, they were more willing to work and their learning skyrocketed. I now have more energy at the end of the day since I’m not a controlling task master.” Overall, Heartcare educators seek to respond with “yes” instead of “no,” but often follow it with “when you” or “after you” to strengthen emotional connections while holding to boundaries (Alexander, 2019). When she first arrived, Helen thought behavior could be “fixed” with a sticker and a prize. Nina initially assumed an authoritarian role as the “sage on the stage” who rigidly transmitted content. Early on, Bruce forced students who dropped under their desks to “sit back in their seats and learn.” However, after learning about the TIA, Helen found that establishing relationships was more effective than rewards. Nina learned that giving up control using a flexible “guide on the side” approach was

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more helpful. Bruce now keeps teaching when students go under their desks, assuming they will listen better and spend more energy on learning when they feel safer. Cultivating a Growth Mindset Heartcare actively cultivates a growth mindset that concentrates more on academic improvement than achievement. Nina explained, Holding our students to a benchmark goal that’s impossible to reach is actually quite harmful to them. With the growth mindset, it’s okay that you’re not quite on grade-level. You’ve gone up 300 points and that’s huge! When teachers focus on student successes instead of deficiencies, students become more vulnerable and trusting because you are not always judging them or expecting them to get everything right.

Heartcare teachers observed that when students know they only need to get better and not be perfect, their willingness to take academic risks and academic proficiency increased, while their anxiety decreased. Additionally, pre- and posttests help older students quantitatively measure their progress and are a source of encouragement to students and teachers alike. By maintaining predictable classroom routines, differentiating student support, extending agency, and cultivating a growth mindset, Heartcare teachers increase student motivation, learning, and academic success.

TIA Interventions That Address Social-Emotional Manifestations of Trauma Students at Heartcare face a plethora of social-emotional challenges related to trauma. The community liaison, Maria, explained that linguistic challenges, cultural unfamiliarity, and/or loneliness can often result in students’ “deep emotional hunger.” Because some Heartcare parents come to the United States first to get a job while the children stay with relatives in their native country, when children finally arrive years later, they are strangers to the United States, a new culture, and, to some degree, their own parents. However, as children

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learn English and acculturate to U.S. dominant culture, parents grieve the lack of parent–child emotional connectivity, the loss of traditional values, and the cultural deprivation. Additionally, Nina and Carol observed that some students are burdened by their parents’ stress and actively seek to alleviate it. One student missed a long-awaited field trip to care for his sick mom. Another was absent because she was in court with her father seeking to renew his visa. Another had panic attacks worrying about his mom who was distraught over losing a job. Observing this phenomenon, Berardi and Morton (2017) explained that trauma-impacted adults can struggle to make healthy attachments with their children, “using the child to appease personal feelings of inadequacy or loneliness” (p. 12). Trauma-impacted children can also struggle with poor self-esteem and pervasive shame that they deserve the trauma and that they are bad (rather than that something bad happened to them). Because trauma often is inflicted on children by authority figures, children can be distrustful of others, have difficulty empathizing with others, and struggle to build mutually healthy relationships (Cole et al., 2005; Frydman & Mayor, 2017; Wolpow et al., 2016). Furthermore, because caregiver behavior can be inconsistent, trauma-impacted children can be “misattuned” in reading the emotional cues of others, respecting boundaries, modulating the intensity of their emotions, and knowing when to stop undesired behaviors (Alexander, 2019; Cole et al., 2005; Craig, 2008; Frydman & Mayor, 2017; Wolpow et al., 2016). Given these social-emotional difficulties with emotional modulation, self-esteem, and friendship formation, Heartcare is intentional about nurturing student social-emotional growth and health. Facilitating Social-Emotional Learning Heartcare addresses emotional and behavioral issues in proactive ways through adopting several programs. Conflict resolution skills are taught through the use of “Kelso’s Choice,” a program that offers healthy problem-solving options to solve “small” problems. Examples of strategies are to apologize, walk away, talk it out, make a deal, take turns, tell them to stop, or wait and cool off. Additionally, Heartcare infuses “The 7 Habits of Happy Kids” throughout its school, which are (1) be proactive, (2) begin with the end in mind, (3) work first, then play, (4) think win–win, (5) listen before you talk, (6) cooperate to problem solve, and (7) cultivate life balance. These habits are woven into daily

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problem-solving and throughout the curriculum, such as identifying which habits were exhibited by particular U.S. presidents or how characters in a novel cooperated to solve a problem (Habit 6). Student social-emotional learning is exhibited at the annual Leadership Day at which students welcome guests with a handshake, sing the “Seven Habits” song, perform skits, and give classroom tours that display projects integrating the seven habits. Furthermore, since “teachers cannot teach what they do not embody” (Nealy-Oparah & Scruggs-Hussein, 2018, p. 15), Heartcare educators seek to be attuned to their own dysregulation and frustration, observe their own triggers, and proactively regulate their own emotions (Alexander, 2019; Nealy-Oparah & Scruggs-Hussein, 2018). Eric reflected, “We can’t control the students’ situations, but we can control how we respond to them. We seek to be firm, fair, friendly, and nonreactive to earn their trust.” Helen explained her emotional regulation process: It’s hard not to respond when you feel attacked. Your emotions escalate, your adrenaline flows, your heart beats, and your body shakes. I try to “channel my inner flight attendant” by remaining calm, staying neutral, and not mirroring students’ escalating emotions. I’ve learned it’s helpful to be a little detached.

Not only do educators teach de-escalation strategies, but they also seek to model them for their students. Helen explained to her students, “I was so frustrated, but then I took some deep breaths to calm myself down before speaking.” She reported that her students often follow up with her on her problems and ask how things are going. By modeling effective emotional modulation, educators provide positive examples of problem-solving, decision-making, and prosocial skills. Building Relationships At the core of Heartcare’s TIA is having healthy relationships among students, educators, staff, and families. Student–student relationships are strengthened through class meetings, affirmation times called “filling buckets,” teaching polite responses like “congratulations” or “thank you,” and enforcing “the 7 Habits.” Nina allows students to share by passing around a stuffed bear so that she can

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discern students’ emotional states and adjust as needed. She noted it is particularly important on Monday mornings after weekends in which students are “fully immersed in trauma.” Helen cultivates compassion and discourages comparison by helping students celebrate one another’s successes and reminding them that everyone has a unique journey. She has observed a shift in the behavior of students performing above grade level from once being critical of their trauma-impacted peers’ academic or behavioral issues to now celebrating their accomplishments and acknowledging life’s complexities. Student–teacher–staff relationships are also critical. Community liaison Maria hosts a “Science Lunch Bunch” at which students receive emotional support, attention, and care while informally learning about science. The custodian, Oscar, developed such warm relationships with students that there is now a waitlist to pick up trash (originally designed as a punishment for poor behavior) with Oscar. Moreover, Carol sometimes allows students to go “hang out” with Oscar when they become dysregulated. Oscar calms the students, saying things like “Wait a second. That’s not the kid I know. What happened?” Carol observed that cleaning with Oscar is more about conversation than consequences and about “being with someone who cares about students and relationship-building.” A strong teacher–teacher relational network is also cultivated through an “our students,” not “my students” mentality. Grade-level teachers are in constant communication through a group text, not only to document areas of concern but also to receive personal support. Teachers find comfort in realizing “it’s not me,” but rather, the child who was having a difficult time and are consoled that “we’ll get through this together.” Although initially worrying that asking for help would reflect poorly on her, Carol now realizes “it’s OK for it to not be going right.” Heartcare teachers frequently spoke of the support their colleagues offered in combatting compassion fatigue and discouragement. Helen reflected, Sometimes I wonder, “Did I cause this reaction? Is the student upset because of me?” I know I can’t personalize it, but it’s hard for me to not always be liked. It’s comforting to talk to colleagues who will say, “They were like that with me too.” or “I saw them getting out of the car at drop-off and I knew we were in for a day.”

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When Heartcare teachers need support, they use verbal codes, such as saying, “I need to rent some space,” when requesting a break from a student or sending a child to another teacher asking for a strange object like purple sticky notes with orange polka dots. Carol explained, “We all know that when a student comes asking for a random supply, we should try to take a little time in responding to give that colleague a needed break.” By having the child leave the classroom, go outside, and complete a task that makes them feel helpful, the situation often de-escalates. Extending TIA Support to Families According to Bronfenbrenner’s (1977) ecological systems theory, although the microsystem-level relationships between child and parent or between child and educator are central to a child’s development; the next level relationships between the school and the parents at the mesosystem level are also critical. As such, an important component of the TIA is to extend the support students receive at school to their families. In order to empower parents to be supportive partners in their child’s development (Wolpow et al., 2016), Heartcare provides a variety of parent programs organized by the community liaison, Maria. Adult enrichment programs such as English as a second language (ESL) classes, parenting seminars, workshops on mindfulness, and classes on navigating the school system are well attended. Special Saturday programs for parents inspire and empower them to support their child’s academic success and cultivate interest in post-secondary education. Three hundred parents districtwide attended a recent conference titled “Imagine: Science, the Path to Knowledge,” participating in hands-on workshops taught in English and Spanish on topics such as pH balance, mapping the night sky, and the digestive system. The keynote speakers were immigrants who spoke honestly about their childhoods and the importance of education as a means of breaking the cycle of poverty. The prior year’s parent conference titled “De Colores” included hands-on fine arts sessions, a mariachi band, and native dances performed by district families highlighting their cultural assets. By fostering social-emotional learning, building schoolwide relationships, and extending trauma-informed support to families, Heartcare strengthens emotional modulation and prosocial skills.

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Impact of the Trauma-Informed Approach At a school with high numbers of students living in trauma, growth and improvement must be the focus when seeking to measure success or programmatic impact. Although many Heartcare students still are not meeting grade-level standards, over the last three academic years, scale scores in both English language arts and math for every grade level (third through fifth grade) that took the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) improved. The CAASPP results show a student’s progress towards mastering grade-level state-adopted standards. Though test scores are important mainstream measures of a school’s success, Jensen (2000) warned schools to not rely on them exclusively as a measure of improvement. He encouraged schools to “trust your intuition” and attend to the “vibes” or “soft signs” of success (p. 101), such as teacher collaboration, school spirit, smiles, or appropriate displays of affection. Although a TIA will not necessarily improve students’ home lives or solve familial problems, it can provide students with support and skills to cope in healthier and more productive ways. Principal Kristen noted “soft signs” of the TIA’s success in the palpable reduction in staff tension and parental defensiveness about their child’s behavior or needs. Moreover, she observed that overall attendance at Heartcare is good which she attributes to the students feeling safe and being fed. Nina has witnessed an improvement in students’ ability to talk to adults and self-advocate. Helen has observed a deeper connection with students, more trust, less student comparison, and greater focus on individual success. Many mentioned an increased willingness among students to take academic risks and a decreased concern about failure due to the growth mindset. In general, participants noted fewer outbursts, improved student self-regulation, and greater efficiency in de-escalation.

Discussion and Implications Trauma that occurs in childhood can have a powerful impact on a child’s ability to engage, learn, and succeed in school (McInerney & McKlindon, 2014). Therefore, as the number of trauma-impacted students in the United States continues to grow, so should educators’ understanding of their needs and aptitude

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in incorporating trauma-informed practices to bolster social-emotional competency, enhance learning, and promote recovery. Heartcare Elementary School’s TIA provides a strong exemplar for administrators, educators, and staff who wish to not only lessen the impact of sustained trauma but also provide students with support and resiliency skills to rebound and heal. A primary implication of this investigation is the power of transitioning away from punitive behaviorist models and toward more trauma-informed practices. When educators alter their paradigm of difficult student behavior from assuming students are trying to be a problem, to trying to solve a problem, they are less likely to shame, stigmatize, and/or “criminalize” students that can lead to retraumatization. Shifting the focus from “what’s wrong with you,” to “what happened to you” (McInerney & McKlindon, 2014, p. 2), is an essential starting point in adopting a more compassionate trauma-informed approach to education. Second, although minimizing harm is a beginning, it is not enough. Trauma-informed educators must not only interrupt the effects of trauma but also ignite the healing and recovery process. Heartcare found success in cultivating healthy schoolwide relationships, fostering student agency, addressing issues promptly, and facilitating social-emotional learning. Schoolwide initiatives such as “The 7 Habits for Happy Kids” help students move beyond trauma by facilitating explicit, practical learning on essential life skills such as goal setting, decision-making, emotional regulation, social competency, and problem-solving. A schoolwide growth mindset focusing on improvement over achievement increases motivation to take academic risks, enhances academic progress, and decreases student anxiety. Additionally, Heartcare’s model of community outreach to families on ESL, acculturation, navigating the school system, parenting, mental health, and relational success is a notable endeavor that enhances skill building and healthy functioning beyond the school walls. Third, central to the effectiveness of Heartcare’s TIA is schoolwide professional learning and skill building in the TIA with full support and buy-in of personnel at all levels. This unified implementation and whole-school approach help build community-wide trust and continuity of care as students progress from one grade to the next. Moreover, the TIA is only as effective as the school personnel who offer it. Therefore, effective trauma-informed programs equip faculty and staff with self-care strategies to resiliently persist when facing compassion fatigue as well as cultivate a supportive network of educators to reduce

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isolation, strengthen trust, and bolster collaboration. Such an investment in school personnel increases the capacity of schools to persevere in serving and supporting trauma-impacted students and families year after year. A limitation of this investigation is that it only examines one focal school with a fairly small sample size of educators (not mental health professionals) who offered their anecdotal observations and personal perspectives through surveys and interviews. As such, the findings cannot necessarily be generalizable to the population at large. However, the findings of this small-scale case study of one focal school in which 87% of the educators were represented can still be useful to those seeking to take a TIA. Promising avenues of future research would be to replicate this study using a larger sample size, collecting data from students and families on how the TIA has supported them, and expanding the data pool to the broader school community. Today’s P–12 students come to school with more challenges than previous generations (Berardi & Morton, 2017), and schools must respond. Although a strong first step is addressing the harm caused by trauma to prevent further traumatization, it must be accompanied by trauma-informed practices that holistically equip students for behavioral, academic, and social-emotional health and success. Heartcare Elementary’s schoolwide, multipronged TIA is a noteworthy example of a school that is maximizing students’ ability and potential to rebound, build healthy relationships, succeed in school, and resiliently move forward toward healing.

References Alexander, J. (2019). Building trauma-sensitive schools: Your guide to creating safe, supportive learning environments for all students. Paul H. Brookes. Berardi, A., & Morton, B. M. (2017). Maximizing academic success for foster care students: A trauma-informed approach. The Journal of At-Risk Issues, 20(1), 10–16. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1148240.pdf Bronfenbrenner, U. (1977). Toward an experimental ecology of human development. American Psychologist, 32(7), 513–531. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.32.7.513 Cole, S. F., O’Brien, J. G., Gadd, M. G., Ristuccia, J., Wallace, D. L., & Gregory, M. (2005). Helping traumatized children learn: Supportive school environments for children traumatized by family violence. Massachusetts Advocates for Children. https://traumasensitiveschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/HelpingTraumatized-Children-Learn.pdf

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Covey, S. (2008). The 7 habits of happy kids. Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers. Craig, S. E. (2008). Reaching and teaching children who hurt: Strategies for your classroom. Paul H. Brooks. Crosby, S. D. (2015). An ecological perspective on emerging trauma-informed teaching practices. Children & Schools, 37(4), 223–230. https://doi.org/10.1093/cs/ cdv027 Felitti, V. J., Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D. F., Spitz, A. M., Edwards, V., Koss, M. P., & Marks, J. S. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) study. American Journal of Preventative Medicine, 14(4), 245–258. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0749-3797(98)00017-8 Frydman, J. S., & Mayor, C. (2017). Trauma and early adolescent development: Case examples from a trauma-informed public health middle school program. Children & Schools, 39(4), 238–247. https://doi.org/10.1093/cs/cdx017 Jensen, E. (2000). Teaching with poverty in mind: What being poor does to kids’ brains and what schools can do about it. ASCD McInerney, M., & McKlindon, A. (2014). Unlocking the door to learning: Trauma-informed classrooms & transformational schools. Education Law Center. https:// www.elc-pa.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Trauma-Informed-in-SchoolsClassrooms- FINAL-December2014-2.pdf Nealy-Oparah, S., & Scruggs-Hussein, T. C. (2018). Trauma-informed leadership in schools: From the inside-out. Leadership, 47(3), 12–16. https://resilientfutures. us/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/TraumaInformedLeadershipinSchools-1.pdf Siegel, D. J. (2012). The developing brain: How relationships and the brain interact to shape who we are. Guilford Press. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach. https://ncsacw. samhsa.gov/userfiles/files/SAMHSA_Trauma.pdf Wolpow, R., Johnson, M. M., Hertel, R., & Kincaid, S. O. (2016). The heart of learning and teaching: Compassion, resiliency, and academic success. Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. https://www.k12.wa.us/sites/default/files/public/ compassionateschools/pubdocs/theheartoflearningandteaching.pdf

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CHAPTER 9

A Trauma-Informed School District Case Study: Iron County School District Maren Hirschi and Shawn Christiansen

Iron County School District (ICSD) is in Iron County, Utah, and includes schools in Cedar City and its surrounding areas. It is home to the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah. In 2019, the population of Iron County, was 54,839, with the following racial/ethnic makeup: 90% Caucasian, 8% Hispanic or Latino, 2% Native American, and less than 1% each within the Asian, Pacific Islander, and African American categories. The median household income between 2014 and 2018 was $46,809 (U.S. Census Bureau, n.d.). According to the Utah Department of Workforce Services (n.d.), 22% of the population of Iron County residents younger than age 18 are living at or below the federal poverty line, which was $26,200 for a family of four in 2020 (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2020). A nineyear trend in ICSD from 2006 to 2014 showed a steady increase in the percentage of free and reduced-price lunch participation from 39% to 50% (Annie E. Casey Kids Count Data Center, n.d.) In 2015, ICSD considered implementing a behavioral unit to address the increase in behavioral problems among students and formed a committee that included school psychologists, counselors, and teachers to accomplish this. The district was increasingly overwhelmed by the number of student referrals for behavioral problems. Neither teachers nor the administration had the tools necessary to help correct these behavioral problems. The school district committee visited a district behavioral unit in northern Utah, which prompted one psychologist to say he would rather put a fence at the top of the hill than

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an ambulance at the bottom. This started the process of exploring intentional trauma-informed practices. The committee realized if they continued focusing efforts and resources on students at the bottom of the hill, they would neither get ahead nor have the resources to meet the needs of students at the top of the hill, which is where the real intervention for both immediate and generational change can happen. With the shift of focus from intervention to prevention, the committee began researching the prevention of behavior challenges, which led them to the documentaries Paper Tigers (Redford, 2015) and Resilience: The Biology of Stress and the Science of Hope (Redford, 2016), as well as the ACEs Study (Felitti et al., 1998) and the San Francisco Unified School District HEARTS Program (UCSF Hearts, n.d.). The HEARTS program is “a whole-school, prevention and intervention approach that utilizes a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) framework to address trauma and chronic stress at the student level, staff level, and school organizational level” (UCSF Hearts, n.d.). The committee visited the HEARTS program and began to formulate a model for ICSD. Throughout this process, ICSD had full support from Superintendent Shannon Dulaney. Dulaney began her career teaching performing arts in public schools and later took a teaching position with a treatment center for adolescent sex offenders. Dulaney stated, “This experience changed my whole philosophy about the role education plays in the lives of children.” It was in this context Dulaney that found “behaviors are always associated with whatever they are dealing with. Give me a kid that has behavioral issues, and I’ll show you a student that has trauma. Naughty kids are not born” (personal communication, May 20, 2020). Kevin Garrett, director of special programs, shared, “I think about 100% of the time, you can trace behavior back to a trauma that has occurred. If we can get a handle on the trauma, we will be able to reduce some of the behaviors in the schools” (personal communication, May 22, 2020). These sentiments reflect the passion and support of administrators for implementing trauma-informed practices in ICSD. ICSD’s trauma-informed model includes both positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) and restorative practices. PBIS (Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, n.d.) is a multitiered framework that includes three tiers of support. Tier 1 interventions are for all students and defines schoolwide behavioral expectations and teaches prosocial skills and behavior.

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Tier 2 interventions are targeted at students who are not successful with only Tier 1 supports and need help improving specific skills. Tier 3 supports are intensive individualized supports for children who need support beyond Tiers 1 and 2. ICSD encourages individual schools to implement trauma-informed practices in a way that works for each school culture. While trauma-informed practices are not optional within ICSD schools, administrators choose how they are implemented. School autonomy promotes a team environment and has been found to promote greater change and more alignment with district priorities (Steinberg & Cox, 2016).

Implementation of Trauma-Informed Practices at ICSD All schools utilize the framework of PBIS. PBIS works by providing explicit instruction on behavioral expectations and rewarding appropriate student behavior which has shown successful results. A longitudinal study in Ohio found that out-of-school suspensions declined after implementing PBIS (James et al., 2019). One elementary in Cedar City implemented PBIS by establishing specific behavioral expectations and posting them throughout the school including areas such as the halls, lunchroom, library, and bathrooms. If a student misbehaves, the student is reminded of the expectation of the appropriate behavior. The student is given an invitation to self-correct. The opportunity to self-correct as opposed to being reprimanded allows a student to practice autonomy. Schools share a common structure through PBIS but implement their tiered interventions based on school values and student needs. For example, one middle school utilizes the 7 Mindsets Curriculum (n.d.) for Tier 1 intervention. Each teacher has access to the curriculum promoting emotional intelligence and teaches regular lessons. The Zones of (Emotional) Regulation are heavily utilized in elementary and middle schools and fit the needs of young children. The Zones of Regulation, which are used as Tier 2 supports, use a color system of red, yellow, green, and blue to teach and communicate with students about where they are in the context of emotional regulation (Kuypers, 2011, n.d.). The Zones of Regulation support students in their journey of mind–body connection and are important for children who need more direct feedback to regulate behavior.

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During the 2020–2021 academic year, ICSD implemented a districtwide computer-based social-emotional curriculum called Suite 360 (https://evpco.com/ suite360) for both Tier 1 and Tier 2 interventions. Because each school implements trauma-informed practices to fit their needs, students sometimes had to learn new terms around these practices anytime they changed schools. Suite 360 provides a common language for students and educators within the district. The Tier 2 portion of Suite 360 includes lessons for students to participate in when they have misbehaved and is frequently used as an intervention for students during detention. ICSD recognizes that some behaviors harm relationships and implements restorative practices to address harm done to relationships with teachers, staff, and peers. Restorative practices include conversations that process what happened, what the student’s thoughts and feeling were at the time, and how they can repair the relationship. Learning to repair relationships is a critical skill to help children experience safety at school and in life. Once children learn these skills, they begin to understand the importance of respect for self and others. One study of 14 middle schools using 11 essential restorative practices, such as affective statements, restorative comments, proactive circles, fair process, and reintegrative management of shame reported improved climate and connectedness, peer attachment, and social skills. Students also reported reduced cyberbullying victimization (Acosta et al., 2019). ICSD is focused on four categories of trauma-informed practices: meeting the basic needs of students and their families, teaching relationship skills and mindfulness, creating a supportive peer culture, and supporting teachers.

Meeting Basic Needs of Students and Families Abraham Maslow (1943) was among the first to conceptualize the need to have basic human needs met such as food, shelter, safety, belonging, and respect in order for humans to reach their full potential. He illustrates this through what is known as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Maslow understood that when basic needs such as food, shelter, and safety are not met, humans are no longer able to adequately focus on anything beyond their immediate needs. Once immediate needs are met with enough consistency, humans are able to progress toward self-actualization or becoming their best selves, which allows them to focus on learning and growth (Maslow, 1943).

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Food insecurity has a negative effect on the physical, psychosocial, and cognitive well-being of children. It is not uncommon for students with unmet physiological needs to also be disruptive or ineffective in the classroom (Hecht et al., 2020). This may happen for a variety of reasons, including difficulty concentrating when hungry or tired, being self-conscious about their physical presentation, or being preoccupied with thoughts about their life circumstances outside of school. Schools that provide universal free meals have shown increases in academic test scores and reductions in disciplinary referrals (Hecht et al., 2020). Some ICSD schools maintain a “Comfort Closet,” which contains clean clothes and personal hygiene items that students can access. One school has a washer and dryer that is used by school staff to wash clothing for students who are unable to wash their clothing at home. Typically developing adolescents are often overly concerned about what their peers and others think of them. Even if an adolescent’s peers ignore poor hygiene, an adolescent with inadequately clean clothing or access to personal hygiene items may be too distracted by what they fear their peers are thinking about them to participate in the academic process. Peer rejection has been documented to disrupt academic achievement (Véronneau et al., 2010). Under the McKinney–Vento Homeless Assistance Act, local education authorities (LEAs), such as school districts, who receive federal funding are required to provide a consistent education to homeless students. Federal law requires LEAs to designate someone to serve as a homeless liaison to ensure appropriate service delivery to homeless students. Homeless students are defined as “individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence” (Department of Education, 2016, p. 5) and includes students in families living with other families for economic reasons. During the 2019–2020 academic year, ICSD’s enrollment declaration (n.d.) indicated 9,323 students enrolled in kindergarten through Grade 12. The district served 327 homeless students for this academic, year which was approximately 4% of students enrolled. In order to provide a foundation to address academic needs, the ICSD homeless liaison regularly provides families with necessities such as clothing, blankets, hygiene supplies, propane for cooking, and transportation to and from school, even if it is outside of the normal bus routes. Referrals to the ICSD homeless liaison frequently come from teachers and school counselors. As

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teachers and counselors increased their ability to recognize messages behind student behavior, they asked questions to help them identify students’ needs, which allows the liaison to meet their needs. Teachers and counselors show empathy when they ask, “What happened to you?” instead of “What is wrong with you?” Teachers should inquire about situations instead of avoiding uncomfortable observations. A teacher who asked a high school student about their poor hygiene learned he was living in a campsite near a river where he was washing his clothes in the river fed by melted snow. Another teacher noticed a student chewing on his pencil and learned he was doing so because he was hungry. In addition to what the homeless liaison provides, some schools maintain multiple backpacks that are kept full of food. Students can check the backpacks out on weekends to take home. After being emptied, the backpacks are returned to school and refilled in order to be available for the next student in need. Backpacks are being checked out most Fridays. The Local Homeless Coordinating Council (LHCC) and community approach are effective because they make the process simple. A complicated system can be a deterrent when asking for help. If families are able to safely ask for help and have access to the resources needed to be successful, they are more likely to engage in education because they have the tools necessary to do so. 

Skills Training and Mindfulness An ACEs score is the number of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) an individual has experienced. The effects of ACEs include poor classroom engagement and behavior, grade repetition, and dropping out of school (Crouch et. al, 2019). In “Challenges to School Success and the Role of Adverse Childhood Experiences,” Crouch et al. (2019) describe what educators have been observing for decades: Individual student and overall school success depends on the ability of individual students, families, and communities to adaptively manage stress. In mental health therapy with individuals with chronic stress, it is not uncommon for them to present in therapy with problems such as smoking, drug use, early sexual activity, school absenteeism, difficulty or inability in maintaining employment, gang activity, bullying, self-harm, and suicide. The more chronic stress that occurs between generations within a family, the more likely an individual is to utilize maladaptive responses to stress.

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Adaptive responses to stress include self-care, problem-solving, acknowledging and identifying the stressor, mindfulness practices, communication, and asking for help (American Psychological Association, 2019). Children raised in homes with mild to moderate stress, positive coping models, and age-appropriate scaffolding develop a wide range of healthy coping skills. In contrast, children growing up in environments of chronic stress or with adults who model maladaptive responses to stress often respond to stress maladaptively (Wadsworth, 2015). ICSD uses a variety of methods to increase adaptive, internal coping mechanisms for its students throughout the district, such as skills groups, restorative circles, structured and unstructured mindfulness practices, and using formal lessons to increase emotional intelligence. ICSD and the Iron County Fifth District Court Juvenile Justice Services (JJS) are working together to provide weekly skills groups to students at most schools within the district which helps them stay out of the JJS system. These groups focus on teaching critical thinking skills such as communication, effective problem-solving, and understanding and managing emotions. Those who attend the groups are referred by school counselors. As of mid-March 2020, JJS was teaching skills groups to 214 students in two counties. Prior to ICSD adopting a prevention-over-intervention model, most of its schools had a classroom designated as the “Skills Room” staffed by a paraprofessional. They were often used by teachers as a punishment, and students perceived them this way. Garrett states that some students “were out of the classroom” and in skills rooms “for 6 months” out of the academic year (2020)! Two problems arose with skills rooms: students were sent away from the classroom without any kind of resolution, and the skills room inferred a negative connotation with the development of skills. ICSD has replaced skills rooms with Wellness Centers, where students can go when they are emotionally overwhelmed for any reason to calm themselves and regroup so they can reengage in class. An important component of Wellness Centers is that they are completely self-directed by students. Students choose to go and do not need permission. They are never used as a disciplinary measure. Many teachers have a pass in their classrooms that students in need of the Wellness Center can take which serves as communication to teachers about where they are going. Most schools have an adult staff member whose role is to

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maintain structure and coach students who want coaching. If they do not want coaching, they are entitled to decline it. Each time a student visits a Wellness Center, they are initially allowed 10 minutes. Students may be allowed an additional 5 minutes on a case-by-case basis. One of the goals of Wellness Centers is to help students identify what was happening in the classroom that precipitated a visit to the Wellness Center so that students can learn to identify the people or circumstances that upset them to the point of not being able to participate in class. With consistent observation of this, most students will eventually be able to observe triggers and self-correct without having to leave the classroom. The focus of each Wellness Center is always to help the student be ready to return to class. The ICSD Wellness Centers are about mindfulness. Mindfulness is a term that refers to keeping the focus of attention in the moment (Cook-Cottone, 2017; Mindful Schools, n.d.). It is an incredibly useful tool for emotional regulation because it supports our attention being focused on what we can control—our actions in the moment. Mindfulness practices can be both structured such as yoga or unstructured such as drawing. When our attention is focused on the moment, it is much easier to be intentional about our choices. Intentionality allows us to think through the reasons for our decisions as well as the consequences of those decisions. In general, any activity that engages the five senses (taste, touch, hear, see, feel) is an effective mindfulness activity because it naturally brings the focus of attention to the moment (Cook-Cottone, 2017; Mindful Schools, n.d.). Some specific tools Wellness Centers employ are manipulatives and therapeutic toys such as fidget toys, puzzles, noise-canceling headphones, weighted vests, drawing supplies, dim lighting, and aromatherapy. These tools help students tune into their senses and away from distressing thoughts and feelings. One middle school called its Wellness Center the CHAMPS Room, which stands for calm, healthy, appropriate, motivated, prepared, successful. It is intentionally located in a central location of the school and away from the office in order to minimize any negative, disciplinary association between the office and CHAMPS Room. Students sometimes use Wellness Centers as a way to intentionally avoid specific subjects, situations, or school generally. This is not developmentally atypical, especially from a trauma-informed lens. ICSD combats this by tracking which students are utilizing the Wellness Centers, how often, and when. If .

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teachers observe patterns with students visiting the Wellness Center, they are able to either limit specific students’ use of the Wellness Center or delay it. One way they may limit student use is to provide students who may be overusing Wellness Centers with a specific number of passes per day. Other students are restricted as to when they can visit the center. Multiple teachers have reported that students will go to the Wellness Centers and return to class able to focus and get back to work instead of being off track the entire day. Prior to ICSD’s shift to trauma-informed practices, ICSD did not have school social workers. School social workers have gradually been hired through at-risk funding, a yearly mental health grant, the regular school budget, and a grant in partnership with the Iron County Children’s Justice Center. Previously, ICSD worked with the local community mental health clinic to have a mental health therapist meet with students at school. However, as evidenced by the district’s heavy consideration of implementing a behavioral unit, this system did not provide nearly enough resources to meet the needs of students. Some ICSD school counselors expressed concern about being replaced by school social workers. Not only has this not been the case, but the opposite has also been true. Because school social workers are present to help manage crises among students, school counselors are able to do more school counseling as opposed to so much of their time being taken up by crisis management. There has been a dramatic increase in the number of skills groups being offered to students by both counselors and social workers. Social workers hired by ICSD are also licensed mental health professionals, which means they are able to provide mental health therapy to students who need a Tier 3 level intervention that allows teachers, school counselors, and administrators to focus on Tier 1 and 2 interventions (Reinbergs & Fefer, 2018). Mind–body connection is the philosophy that the mind and the body communicate for optimal physical and psychological functioning. Many people have learned not to trust signals from their bodies. An example is a child feeling hungry shortly after eating and an adult telling her, “You’re not hungry, you just ate.” The clear message to this child is that she cannot trust her body’s signals. One or two messages like this are not going to interfere with a child’s ability to trust his own body. However, consistent messages such as this interfere with the ability to regulate emotions. In The Body Keeps Score (2014) by Bessell Van der Kolk, he states, “If you are not aware of what your body needs, you can’t

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take care of it” (p. 275). Schools that help children become more aware of their minds and bodies are laying the foundation for self-regulation. Yoga is one strategy schools within ICSD are building mind and body awareness (Cook-Cottone, 2017). Yoga has a calming effect on the body and includes numerous health benefits (Woodyard, 2011). ICSD has certified yoga instructors in every school and are typically school social workers or teachers who have received certification training. In one elementary school, every student participates in yoga at least once a week. At another school where yoga is optional, several teachers have their students participate in weekly yoga sessions that are 15 to 25 minutes long. Teachers are noticing a difference in the behavior of students within their classrooms. One observation shared by teachers was improvement in students’ ability to self-regulate their emotions and behavior without the intervention of an adult.

Peer Culture District schools work to maintain a school culture of peer support and caring. One district high school calls their school culture “Cultacare.” Some schools maintain a team of student ambassadors and HOPE Squads (n.d.), which were developed in Utah as a response to a student suicide and are part of a peer-based support program in which students are trained to identify suicide warning signs and refer these peers to adults. Some schools utilize school ambassadors who are students who demonstrate empathy and other leadership qualities and are often student nominated. The purpose of the ambassadors is to help foster a school culture of community and caring. One middle school assigns an ambassador to help new students settle into the school community. This school’s ambassadors maintain a quarterly campaign with themes such as kindness and antibullying that are reinforced through things like schoolwide activities and in-class videos. One example of an annual activity is a kindness chain. Students write acts of kindness they observe their peers engaging in on paper strips that are formed into a chain and have a competition between grades to see which grade gets the longest chain. Cultacare Ambassadors take struggling students to lunch, paid for with a budget the counselor maintains. Schools also utilize restorative practices to create emotionally safe and respecting cultures and to solve problems and build relationships when students

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have conflict. The basic tenets of restorative practices are to make amends for behavior and promote reconciliation (Gavrielides, 2011). One elementary school in ICSD utilizes restorative circles. When conflict happens between two or more students, a discussion between all students who have been impacted by the conflict either directly or indirectly is facilitated by an adult. During the process, each student is allowed to share their perspective before the focus of the discussion turns to what needs to happen to create and maintain physical and emotional safety and resolution. One high school uses an acronym from their mascot as a way to remind students of the core values for finding resolutions. Being True RAMS (Respectable, Accountable, Make a Difference, Service to Others) means practicing these values in life. When one student causes harm to another student, a discussion is held about the behavior with the student, student body officers, and relevant administration. The focus is always on the behavior, whether it is consistent with being True RAMS, and problem-solving. It is critical that the focus is on the behavior and not the individual; otherwise, the process may promote shame that will increase rather than decrease problematic behaviors. The student with the offending behavior is included in the problem-solving and making amends process. Ava Chamberlain, a high school counselor, shared, “We let them own what they have done. It works really well because we’re not bringing down a hammer; we are solving a problem. The kid is involved in the problem solving” (2020). Within the Cultacare, practices is a process for students to make amends. The intent is to reward behavior that is consistent with RAM culture and build empathy. It is inevitable that through this process at least some students who have harmed others will begin to develop empathy.

Teacher Support The ICSD leadership team recognized the importance of providing its teachers with the skills and tools needed to successfully teach with a trauma-informed approach. This has happened in a variety of ways, all of which support teachers in their development and expression of empathy toward their students. Empathy and sympathy are often used interchangeably even though they are not the same. Empathy is the ability to imagine what another individual might be feeling and feel with them. Sympathy is feeling pity for another

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individual (Brown, 2013). Poor student behavior often comes from students feeling unsafe in some way. Students acting out is an unskillful way of protecting themselves from whatever they perceive to be unsafe. Teachers practicing empathy toward their students increase the emotional safety for students, which supports the reduction of disruptive and difficult behavior. Understanding is a building block for empathy. To help teachers to cultivate awareness and understanding, professional development opportunities were created. For example, a copy of I Wish My Teacher Knew: How One Question Can Change Everything for Our Kids (Schwartz, 2016) was given to each teacher in ICSD. The author, Kyle Schwartz, facilitated a presentation for faculty. Schwartz and district administrators asked ICSD teachers to ask their students to complete the sentence “I wish my teacher knew _____________.” Activities like this have helped teachers tune into their students’ lives. In her book, Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone, Brene Brown (2017) states, “It is not easy to hate people close up” (p. 65). Asking students to complete this sentence provides teachers with a close-up view of their students that provides understanding of their students. This kind of activity has a strong potential to create empathy because it gives teachers a deeper understanding of their students. Empathy may be difficult to practice when one is emotionally and physically overwhelmed and exhausted. It is easy to imagine how a teacher may become exhausted when dealing with even one student displaying disruptive behavior within a classroom of 20 to 30 students. Prior to the implementation of their trauma-informed practices, many teachers had multiple students in their classrooms with disruptive behaviors. As part of the PBIS system, each school has at least one behavior coach. One role of the behavior coach is to provide one-on-one coaching for students in the classroom who are acting out. Coaches provide skills, tools, and support necessary for students to be successful in the classroom. The direction from the district is for behavior coaches to avoid pulling kids out of the classroom for the behavior until the behavior is no longer tolerable so that they do not miss any instruction. When a student needs to be removed from the classroom, they are taken to a room equipped with audiovisual equipment that allows them to continue to participate in classroom instruction. Acting out is no longer a way for students to avoid instruction.

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While many teachers throughout the district have been completely on board for trauma-informed practices, others have needed training and experience with trauma-informed practices in order to understand how these practices will support rather than detract from student performance within their classrooms. Counselors at a few secondary schools have made efforts to coordinate the timing of groups to minimize when students will be missing significant academic times. By communicating with teachers, one high school learned if students are able to be in class for the first 20 minutes of each class, it minimized the amount of critical information missed during class. Unless there is a crisis, this high school begins all skills groups 20 minutes after the beginning of class. Of course, ICSD experiences challenges implementing trauma-informed practices. One challenge is fidelity. Because of the autonomy individual schools have to implement practices, it is difficult for district leadership to ensure practices are being implemented in the ways they were intended. Another challenge is that with the increased awareness of trauma, some teachers are more aware of trauma in their own lives. With trauma-informed practices becoming part of the culture of ICSD, teachers and staff cannot easily ignore their own traumatic experiences. One national study found that it is highly likely that more teachers have experienced trauma than individuals within the general population (Kilpatrick et al., 2014). It is unknown how many have resolved these experiences. Future implementation of trauma-informed practices should include efforts to support the mental health of teachers because in addition to the possibility of teachers being triggered by students because of their own unresolved trauma, a student’s experience of trauma may also lead to secondary traumatic stress (STS) or compassion fatigue as they deal vicariously with the emotional pain of their students (Baicker, 2020). As teachers become more intentional in managing their own stress responses, they become a model for students in how to effectively manage stress. 

Conclusion ICSD is still early in the process of gathering data on the impact of their practices. Thus far, faculty and staff of the school attend to the safety and well-being of all students and students have increased their attentiveness to

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the safety and well-being of their peers. They are creating a community. One elementary principal commented that he/she is dealing with fewer behavioral problems at school. Because teachers have the tools and support to manage problematic behaviors in the classroom, this principal rarely has students coming to their office for disciplinary reasons. Building a culture that supports trauma-informed practices takes time, but ICSD has made great progress in fostering a safer environment for the whole child.

References Acosta, J., Chinman, M., Ebener, P., Malone, P. S., Phillips, A., & Wilks, A. (2019, May). Evaluation of a whole-school change intervention: Findings from a twoyear cluster-randomized trial of restorative practices intervention. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 48(5), 876–890. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ 30900083/ American Psychological Association. (2019, November 1). Healthy ways to handle life’s stressors: When stress becomes unmanageable, try these evidence-based tools to tackle it in healthy ways. https://www.apa.org/topics/stress-tips Annie E. Casey Kids Count Data Center. (n.d.) Free and reduced lunch participation in Iron. https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/4420-free-and-reduced lunch-participation#detailed/5/6779/false/869,36,868,867,133,38,35,18,17/any/ 9868. Baicker, K. (2020, March 12). The impact of secondary trauma on educators. ASCD Express, 15(13). www.ascd.org/ascdexpress Brown, B. (2013, December 10). Brene’ Brown on empathy [Video]. YouTube. https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Evwgu369Jw&feature=emb_title Brown, B. (2017). Braving the wilderness: The quest for true belonging and the courage to stand alone. Random House. Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports. (n.d). https://www.pbis. org/pbis/tiered-framework. Tiered Framework. Cook-Cottone, C. P. (2017). Mindfulness and yoga in schools: A guide for teachers and practitioners. Springer. Crouch, E., Radcliff, E., Hung, P., & Bennett, K. (2019). Challenges to school success and the role of adverse childhood experiences. Academic Pediatrics, 19, 899–907. DOI: 10.1016/j.acap.2019.08.006 Department of Education. (2016, July 17). Education for Homeless Children and Youths program non-regulatory guidance: Title VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act. https://www2.ed.gov/ policy/elsec/leg/essa/160240ehcyguidance072716.pdf

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Department of Workforce Services. (n.d.). State of Utah 2014–2018 poverty rates quick facts. https://jobs.utah.gov/wi/data/library/other/poverty.html  Felitti, V. J., Anda, R.F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D.F., Spitz, A.M., Edwards, V., Koss, M., & Marks, J. S. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults: The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14(4), 245–258. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0749-3797(98)00017-8  Gavrielides, T. (2011). Restorative practices: From the early societies to the 1970s. Internet Journal of Criminology. ISSN 2045-6743 (Online) https://docs.wixstatic. com/ugd/b93dd4_b68b3e905ddb480695a6a7c703d13630.pdf Hecht, A. A., Pollack Porter, K. M., & Turner, L. (2020). Impact of the community eligibility provision of the healthy, hunger-free kids act on student nutrition, behavior and academic outcomes: 2011–2019. American Journal of Public Health, 110(9), 1405–1410. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305743 HOPE Squad (n.d.). Hope Squad. https://hopesquad.com. Iron County School District. (n.d.). Open enrollment declaration. Retrieved February 2, 2021, from https://irondistrict.org/enrollment/declaration/ James, A. G., Noltemeyer, A., Ritchie, R. R., & Palmer, K. (2019). Longitudinal disciplinary and achievement outcomes associated with school-wide PBIS implementation level. Psychology in the Schools, 56(9), 1512–1521. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22282 Kilpatrick, D. G., Resnick, H. S., Milanak, M. E., Miller, M. W., Keyes, K. M., & Friedman, M. J. (2013). National estimates of exposure to traumatic events and PTSD prevalence using DSM-IV and DSM-5 criteria. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 26(5), 537–547. https://doi.org/10.1002/jts.21848 Kuypers, L. M. (2011). The Zones of Regulation: A curriculum designed to foster self-regulation and emotional control. Think Social Publishing. Kuypers, L. M. (n.d.). The Zones of regulation. https://zonesofregulation.com Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370–396. https://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Maslow/motivation.htm Mindful Schools. (n.d.). Research on mindfulness. https://www.mindfulschools.org/ about-mindfulness/research-on-mindfulness/ Redford, J. (Director). (2015). Paper tigers [Film]. KPJR Films. Redford, J. (Director). (2016). Resilience: The biology of stress and the science of hope [Film]. KPJR Films. Reinbergs, E. J., & Fefer, S. A. (2018). Addressing trauma in schools: Multitiered service delivery options for practitioners. Psychology in the Schools, 55(3), 250–263. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22105 Scammell, J. L. (2019). Emotion regulation and social competence in middle childhood: The role of parental emotional competence, personality, and emotion socialization beliefs, attitudes, and practices. Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 7735. https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd/7735

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Schwartz, K. (2016). I wish my teacher knew: How one question can change everything for our kids. Da Capo Press. Seven Mindsets. (n.d.). Social Emotional Learning Solution. https://7mindsets.com Steinberg, M. P., & Cox, A. B. (2017) School autonomy and district support: How principals respond to a tiered autonomy initiative in Philadelphia Public Schools. Leadership and Policy in Schools, 16(1), 130–165. https://doi.org/10.10 80/15700763.2016.1197278 U.S. Census Bureau. (n.d.) Quick facts, Iron County, Utah. https://www.census.gov/ quickfacts/ironcountyutah U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2020, January 15). U.S. federal poverty guidelines used to determine financial eligibility for certain programs. https:// aspe.hhs.gov/poverty-guidelines UCSF Hearts. (n.d). Program overview. Retrieved February 2, 2021, from https:// hearts.ucsf.edu/program-overview Van der Kolk, B. (2014). The body keeps score: Brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma. Penguin Books. Véronneau, M. H., Vitaro, F., Brendgen, M. Dishion, T. J., & Tremblay, R. E. (2010). Transactional analysis of the reciprocal links between peer experiences and academic achievement from middle childhood to early adolescence. Developmental Psychology, 46(4), 773–790. DOI: 10.1037/a0019816 Woodyard, C. (2011, July–December). Exploring the therapeutic effects of yoga and its ability to increase quality of life. International Journal of Yoga, 4(2), 49–54. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3193654/

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CHAPTER 10

Strategies to Meet the Needs of Students With Trauma Natalia Assis, Mark Reid, Angela Proctor, and Thomas Brooks

Chronic childhood trauma stands as one of the major social and public health problems in the United States. In its 2018 Annual Child Maltreatment Report, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, estimated during that year, 4.3 million total referrals alleging abuse and neglect were received by child protective service (CPS) agencies nationally, involving as many as 7.8 million children (Children’s Bureau, 2018). Childhood trauma can come in many shapes and forms, including abandonment, physical and sexual assault, betrayal, coercive practices, threats to bodily integrity, witnessing violence and death, and emotional abuse. These traumatic experiences are associated with an increased likelihood of negative effects on students’ social and academic functioning. In the vast majority of the reported cases (77.5%), the parents act as the perpetrators of the abuse leading to trauma (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018), indicating that these children potentially face traumatic situations on a daily basis. Traumatic experiences have a direct and lasting impact on children’s ability to learn and follow instructions (Cole et al., 2005). Children with trauma may display an inability to maintain healthy relationships or to exercise self-regulation. In the classroom, students may manifest the effects of trauma experienced as dysregulated stress responses and difficulty to form relationships (Brunzell et al.,

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2015). Teachers are in a unique position to help, as schools and classrooms may be the only stable environment in which their students interact. Researchers and practitioners alike have increasingly recognized the importance of including strategies to meet the needs of students related to adverse childhood experiences and trauma to improve academic and wellness outcomes (Chafouleas et al., 2016). Creating positive and safe relationships among teachers and students enables ideal learning environments (Chaves & Taylor, 2020). Teachers can employ pedagogical tactics to build teacher–student relationships, as well as encourage relationships for students among peers. Given that schools might be the most consistent environment, and teachers the most frequent social contact for students, understanding and providing trauma-informed pedagogy can help students overcome traumatic episodes. Three of the most commonly cited factors of resilience and growth for at-risk students can be addressed and fostered in a learning environment: (a) strong relationships with caregivers, (b) development of cognitive skills, and (c) self-regulation of emotional, (d) attentional, and (e) behavioral states (Jennings, 2019). Therefore, supporting students’ ability to form social bonds with their peers and teachers is critical to successful pedagogy in the present and the future. This chapter presents different strategies and ideas for educators who serve students with trauma. Multiple practical and effective strategies that teachers and administrators can implement within their practices to meet the needs of students who have been affected by the experience of traumatic events have been identified in the literature. The discussion begins with the concept of creating environments free of unexpected changes and then describes meeting sensory needs. In addition, teaching students how to better regulate themselves is considered. Finally, several models to address trauma issues are presented. Many of these models integrate movement into the program.

Meeting Students Needs Instead of Implementing Consequences Past studies have suggested that extrinsic motivators undermine the level of success in the classroom (Lavorata, 2013). For many years, the behavioristic approach has been the go-to for managing classrooms. When a child misbehaves, there is typically a consequence, sometimes shame or controlling methods to

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force compliance. Instead, teachers can encourage appropriate behaviors, and allow multiple opportunities for success for a do-over, so the child can feel the benefits of the desired proper behavior. Although students might learn in the process of pursuing rewards (Wallace, 2009; Willingham, 2008), some have argued that using stamps to reward behaviors might influence popularity for a teacher; however, the approach alone does not necessarily improve behaviors or increase students’ academic productivity in the classroom (National Research Council, 2004). Children with complex needs often do not respond well to punitive and reward-based strategies (Cowley, 2019). Suggestions have been made that students who exhibit behavioral challenges in the classroom may have a nontraditional learning disability. The student may suffer from learning challenges in flexibility, problem-solving, or frustration tolerance (Greene & Albon, 2005). Perry (2006) stated that a child needs to feel safe to make use of the thinking portions of their brain. The stress system, when triggered inhibits access to executive functioning located in the neocortex of the brain. Somatic approaches can be helpful to address the bottom-up reaction of a dysregulated child exhibiting a stress response. Some examples of psychosomatic activities are the following: rocking, music, physical activity, yoga stretching, sensory activities, art, massage, and rhythmic movement.

Distinctions Between Early Childhood, Middle-Level, and High School Approaches Educators at all levels (i.e., early childhood, middle level, and high school) serve students with trauma. For early childhood education (ages 3–10), trauma-informed care (TIC) offers a relatively new approach with several potentially highly effective approaches, including (a) integrating strategies, (b) building partnerships and connections with community service providers, (c) implementing training for infant and early childhood mental health consultants, and (d) supporting the professionals of the early childhood education workforce (Bartlett et al., 2017). Elementary school teachers who work with their students to develop socialemotional skills and the ability to express their needs have been pleasantly

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surprised by the positive results as their students become more compassionate with each other. Teachers will report that they observe their young students offering help to their classmates when they are struggling after learning calming techniques and regulation skills (Bartlett et al., 2017). These skills can be taught through activities that enhance self-regulation, such as the ones introduced by the alert program (Williams & Shellenburger, 1996). Created by occupational therapists, the “How Does Your Engine Run?” activity teaches children to think of their emotions as if they function in a way similar to the engine of a car. To begin this approach, children are assisted in the creation of their own engine made out of paper plates. The engine consists of three colors: red, green, and blue. Each color signifies a different state of the child’s “engine.” A red engine means the child is revved up, like the gas pedal being pushed down. The emotions connected to a red engine would be hyperactive, anxious, angry, or excited. The child is taught how to express the color of their engine and then taught regulation skills to return their engine to green. A green engine plate means the child’s emotions are calm and regulated. If a child’s engine is on blue, it means they may be tired, or sad, maybe even depressed. Their engine feels like it lacks gas, or it needs a tune-up. For a child with a blue engine condition, alerting activities, such as a brain break, sensory activity, or increasing blood sugar with a high-protein snack would be encouraged to regulate the child’s emotions back on green. For older students, middle schools can implement consistent routines in classrooms and share power by offering choices to students that assist in making them feel safe and included (Von Dohlen et al., 2019). An example of providing choices would be offering a student the choice between completing their assignment at their desk or in a quiet space. The teacher remains in charge of the choices; however, the student feels they have some part in deciding how to complete the task. Middle school teachers can focus on building positive relationships and empowering students to regulate their emotions. Both teachers and administrators can model the skills of staying positive, keeping calm, and remaining in control in spite of challenges they face (Walkley & Cox, 2013; Von Dohlen et al., 2019). Engine plates can be used with middle school students, but another option that might be more easily accepted by older students would be to adopt Zones of Regulation (Kuypers, 2011). This program is similar to “How Does Your Engine Run?” It incorporates more vocabulary as older children typically have

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higher verbal skills than younger children. Zones of Regulation uses a chart and includes an additional color, yellow. Yellow is a step down from the red zone, similar to the red engine in the Alert Program. Yellow signifies stress, nervousness, or silliness. A child is a step closer to the green (calm) when they are on yellow. Zones of Regulation are described as a cognitive behavioral approach to teaching independent regulation. The skills encourage students to manage their emotions and improve problem-solving skills by accessing and using executive functioning (Kuypers, 2011). A trauma-informed approach in high school might look a little different from elementary and middle school levels of education, but still involves helping students recognize and regulate their emotional states. School counselors can play an essential role in implementing trauma-informed systems in school districts (Rumsey & Milsom, 2019). Interventions that provide support in the school environment, particularly at the secondary level, can lead to enhanced student-school engagement and increased high school graduation rates (American School Counselor Association [ASCA], 2016; Rumsey & Milsom, 2019). The ASCA has promoted a multitier system of support that involves providing the student with individual counseling, individual training, group counseling sessions, and one-on-one mentoring, in addition to making referrals to outside resources (Rumsey & Milsom, 2019). An example to utilize in high school is mental health checks. This approach was developed as a way to offer students an opportunity to share their needs without needing to express them in front of other students. The teacher creates a bulletin board in the classroom that includes sections similar to zones but described as such: “I am doing great!” “I’m feeling okay,” “I’m not doing so well, and I would like a check in.” Students are given sticky notes and at any time, they can post a sticky on the section that coincides with their state of emotion. They can write on the back of the sticky note what they need from the teacher so others cannot see what they have written. Another idea that has been used instead of a bulletin board is a box or jar where students can drop notes to their teacher about their emotional needs. All these options encourage students to trust their teacher to meet their needs and to work on positive relationships with adults who invest in them and care about them. Students can be encouraged that they do not have to experience big emotions alone and that there are safe and caring adults that are willing to help.

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The Power of Predictability Students who have experienced adversity can struggle with change. In the educational setting, changing from one activity or task to another often triggers a sense of being overwhelmed for students (Wall, 2020). Changes in the classroom environment or the presence of a substitute teacher can cause feelings of anxiety and fear. Doing something new, even if it is exciting and fun, will most likely bring on challenging behaviors in children who struggle and may lose control of their emotions and behavior. Due to limited verbal ability in expressing emotions, the only coping mechanism many students who have experienced trauma possesses is to control their environment at all costs. This manipulation may mean becoming aggressive, increasing energy and movement, or exhibiting controlling behaviors. Children in this state may not listen to or follow directions because they are focused on bringing a sense of control to their environment. Consistent routines help to promote a calm and safe environment in the classroom. Informing students as to what will be happening throughout the day, or within the class period can minimize stress for students (Hobbs et al., 2019). When a student feels their teacher understands their needs and is willing to respond to them, they create a sense of belonging, and the student begins to learn self-regulation skills (Dombo & Sabatino, 2019). Examples of how to build an environment in the classroom that empowers students and creates consistency and predictability include the following (R. Berger et al., 2016): • Post a daily schedule using pictures for students who struggle with processing words and language. • Gather information through observation and from parents and/ or the student regarding what overwhelms or brings on stress for a student. Teacher can then proactively plan to meet students’ needs when there are changes in the school environment. • Provide a calm, soothing environment in the classroom with things like soothing wall colors, music, and good communication of expectations and schedules. • Adopt a more nurturing approach that will not only show the teacher cares deeply about meeting needs but will also provide a

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clear structure and boundaries to ensure all students are safe and cared for. • Give plenty of warning before changing activities. • Proactively teach skills needed for the classroom. For example, teachers can spend time teaching students what it actually looks like or feels like to change from one activity to another through role-play and practice. Sensory Tools and Spaces for Self-Regulation Teachers who consider providing tools for students to integrate sensory input appropriately will most likely see decreased frustration and resistance in their struggling students. However, it is important that the teacher takes time with students to train them how to use any regulating activity or item. Creating a unit just to discuss what emotional regulation is and how students can work on their own self-regulation will set the class up to utilize a sensory input tools and environments effectively. One idea created in the last few years involves providing a space the child can go to that is quiet and calming yet is not completely separate from the class. Teachers have called these spaces Calming Corners, Peace Corners, or Regulation Stations (T. Berger, 2018). The goal is to provide a place where the student can step away for a moment to regulate themselves but still be able to have access to their teacher, even hear instruction if they are able to focus on the lesson (Call et al., 2014; Maich et al., 2019). The space often contains items that allow the child to calm themselves: a weighted blanket that soothes the body with proprioceptive sensory input, colors and coloring sheets that allow the student to quietly sit and think while being creative, fidgets with different kinds of textures, headphones with calming music, a soft chair or bean bag where the child can relax, or a feelings chart or Zones of Regulation chart to help the child to determine what kind of feelings are causing them to feel unsettled. Once the child has some time to feel calmer, they are welcome to go back to their spot in the class and join in with instruction or classwork. Teaching children to understand how stress impacts their bodies and providing skills and activities to regulate them back to a calm state gives them a freedom in knowing they can more successfully control their actions and emotions (Bayet et al., 2015).

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Developing Self-Regulatory Practices An inability to control their emotions and the resulting actions are one of the most prevalent ways by which children who have experienced trauma display trauma-induced behavior. Brunzell et al. (2016) recommended that the first priority for educators of students who have experienced trauma is to focus on increasing students’ ability to self-regulate. Two major types of support can be provided for the student: top-down and bottom-up regulation. Top-down approaches focus on the external environment and how it influences the child. It involves helping the student make good choices concerning emotions and reactions that are largely in the individual’s control. Bottom-up regulation involves working with more unconscious “knee- jerk” reactions to situations. This second category invites students to work on crafting abilities to self-regulate instead of immediately moving to fight-or-flight mode. Perry (2006) noted that the schools and their classrooms often provide stability and consistency missing in the lives of some students. Brunzell et al. (2016) suggested several approaches to helping students develop regulation capacities. For co-regulatory experiences, a well-regulated teacher could engage in side-byside interactions with the student who has experienced trauma thus providing a positive model. For self-regulatory experiences, a student would self-monitor and practice self-regulation. These solo experiences serve as the first steps toward students gaining a measure of self-sufficiency. In addition to practicing regulation skills, students can benefit from learning about emotions and concepts like stress triggers and the possibility of being able to alter their reactions. Finally, a high-level approach would involve the student crafting strategies to help them manage their emotions and behaviors to help cement ownership in the process of becoming more self-regulated. Sharing Emotions and Collective Regulation Students functioning from a bottom-up perspective (acting from a fear or protective response), need to be taught coping skills and social-emotional learning (SEL) skills during a time they are calm and feel safe. It is important that teachers take time to proactively teach skills students can access when they are not completely calm. For instance, for elementary students, SEL groups, such as nurture groups (developed initially by Theraplay), can help children learn interpersonal skills, how to collaborate with their peers, and how to handle stress

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when things do not always go the way they desire (Tucker et al., 2017). Middle school students can spend time in groups sharing emotions, and expressing their needs as they have a better grasp of vocabulary. High school students can have access to a counselor, coach, or teacher with whom they have forged a nurturing relationship. That adult can work with them to know how to express their needs appropriately. Teaching Behavioral Scripts Behavioral scripts are helpful in putting the SEL strategies into practice (Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development, 2019). Learning behavioral scripts that are socially acceptable enables us to function in society. Consider a script for ordering food at a restaurant or playing a game of street basketball (Abelson, 1981). Knowing how to navigate society allows people to get their needs met, be successful, and ultimately survive. Some of the scripts used in trust-based relational interventions (TBRIs) are behavioral redos, choices, and compromises (Purvis & Qualls, 2020). A behavioral redo allows a person to start over and try again when they have misbehaved (Purvis et al., 2007). Choices allow the child to be involved in deciding what behavior is allowed. The adult is still in charge but has the confidence to share some power while still providing structure (Purvis et al., 2007). An example of this would be if a teacher needed a child to put their cell phone away, they can say, “I will give you two choices, put your phone away now and get an extra break to check your messages, or keep it another 5 minutes, but you cannot have the extra break.” Compromises are a way for the student to give input about the choices (Purvis et al., 2007). The teacher remains in charge and can say no to the compromise, but they can easily honor reasonable choices at their discretion. This approach gives the student an opportunity to problem solve, collaborate, and maybe learn to accept no. Mindfulness Practices and Interventions Mindfulness has increased in research popularity over the past decade (Khoury et al., 2017). The concept often refers to a plethora of relaxation, awareness, attention, memory, and acceptance-centered practices aimed at reducing any number of psychological concerns, often through the practice of meditation and yoga (Van Dam et al., 2018; Wielgosz et al., 2019). Santorelli et al. (2017) advised unpacking the physical and emotional risks involved before beginning

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a mindfulness program. Students’ physical needs must be considered, especially if yoga is incorporated into the program, which requires teachers to be conscious of and respectful of students’ physical limitations. These considerations range from providing alternative stances, poses, and stretches to closely monitoring students’ progress to not overstrain the body as they explore and test dexterity and flexibility. Additionally, psychological concerns need to be addressed, as mindfulness programs aim to guide students toward paying conscious attention to internal states, which can highlight negative feelings such as shame, fear, sadness, anger, and so on (Santorelli et al., 2017). Students may also begin to discover things about themselves they do not like, as they look inward and self-examine. Because of this, students with a history of trauma may respond more intensely to these conscious emotional states. Teachers should take the personal histories and emotional maturity of their students into consideration before implementing mindfulness practices in the classroom. Additionally, Ortiz and Sibinga (2017) advocated for high-quality, structured mindfulness programs for students who have experienced past trauma. These programs, such as the Mindfulness in Schools project (www.mindfulnessinschools.org) or the Inner Resilience Program (http://www.innerresilience-tidescenter.org/), are often adapted versions of the mindfulness-based stress reduction (MSBR) intervention (Kabat-Zinn, 1990). Dance/Movement Therapy The intervention of dance/movement therapy (DMT) helps to build a neuroception of safety, a subconscious ability to detect threatening, risky, and safe stimuli. DMT creates within the body a more accurate awareness of a person’s surroundings. This happens when the body moves through playful engagement and the brain stops sending signals to protect itself. Through the “neural exercises” in DMT, the physiological state shifts back and forth in playful, active, and alert explorations that allow for calm chemistry (Devereaux, 2017). More recent support has risen for DMT as researchers have suggested a mind–body connection through movement (Hackney, 2000; Bartenieff & Lewis, 1980). Schools can utilize interventions such as DMT to assist with emotional regulation in their students and decrease anxiety and stress (Duberg et al., 2013; Pang, 2016).

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Cogenerative Dialogues Cogenerative dialogues can be used to improve neuroception by teaching students how to listen and understand each other. This interaction often improves the sense of feeling secure so that they can express needs and concerns (Hsu, 2020). The goal of cogenerative dialogues is to reach collective decisions about the rules and responsibilities of group activities (Roth et al., 2002). Cogenerative dialogues can also be used to resolve conflicts between students and teachers (Emdin, 2007). For example, cogenerative dialogues can help students and teachers express concerns and find solutions about coursework (Hsu, 2020). Collaborative Problem-Solving A more recent approach for school discipline is the Collaborative ProblemSolving Approach (CPS). CPS encourages educators to alter their perspective of students whose present discipline challenges in the classroom, by attempting to find the skills a student may lack in problem-solving, coping with feelings of frustration, or dealing with overwhelmed and confused (Ablon & Pollastri 2018). Often teachers are burdened with behaviors that do not align with school expectations and the traditional consequences may not work because the intent is to teach what behaviors are inappropriate and to incentivize “good” behaviors (Greene, 2008). Greene claims that while students recognize what they are supposed to do in the classroom, they may lack the skills to do so (Albon & Pollastri, 2018; Greene, 2008). CPS assesses the skills each student needs to be successful and what will lead that individual to develop those skills. The assessment targets the triggers of challenging behaviors so the educator can predict what will happen and become more proactive in problem-solving rather than reacting with punitive consequences (Albon & Pollastri, 2018). The CPS assessment (CPS-APT) takes the place of the traditional functional behavioral analysis (FBA) and can contribute to the creation of the behavior intervention plan (BIP). Studies investigating the efficacy of CPS have noted decreases in teacher stress and in critical incidents, while increases were observed in students’ time spent in the classroom receiving instruction (Pollastri et al., 2013; Schaubman et al., 2011; Stetson & Plogg, 2016).

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Implications for Schools and Educators The number of adverse childhood experiences leading to the manifestation of trauma symptoms appears to be on the rise (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018). Schools reside in a unique space where they can identify trauma-induced behaviors early and put in place proactive strategies to build relationships that support these students who have experienced trauma. Teachers and school administrators from all levels (early childhood education, middle school, high school) will benefit from training on the number of approaches shown to have a positive impact on children’s emotional health caused by traumatic events. Transforming the school into a trauma-informed environment requires a joint effort between teachers, administrators, and the community to create an environment with well-defined behavior expectations, clear communication, and sensitivity to the emotions and feelings of all individuals involved. Children who have experienced trauma have difficulties with self-regulation, and therefore, school professionals should strive to shift the mindset that continuously triggers trauma-induced behaviors by making a conscious and constant effort to build relationships that are both deep and meaningful for the students. However, it is also important to understand that children with trauma might not be able to react to current situations without the influence of their traumatic experiences. That means they might not be able to process interventions from a purely behavioral approach. Chronic stress places students in a state of defensiveness, and their ability to think through consequences and punishments is hindered. Instead, if teachers or other school personnel can help students feel safe and calm through nurturing and positive relationships, students would have an easier time learning the proper behaviors and coping mechanisms to cooperate effectively with other children and adults within the school community. Teachers can serve as role models as they apply appropriate strategies to mitigate issues in the classroom. Behavioral problems usually represent only the surface manifestations of trauma. Traumatic events can have profound effects on the way children interact with the world that cannot be immediately recognized. School professionals can strive to understand these effects, with the intention to see past the surface, realizing that children are much more than their trauma-induced behaviors. When school professionals are able to meet these needs, the negative behaviors

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associated with this deficit decrease, allowing for more quality instruction time as well as a decline in office referrals and suspensions or expulsions. Teachers are role models for students and their classroom may be the only stable environment some students experience throughout the week. The potential for positive impact through the identification and fulfillment of the needs of these students is unlimited. However, it is necessary that schools, administrators, teachers, students, and families work together to provide that stability and consistency (Perry, 2006). The approaches presented in this chapter could move children from constant feelings of insecurity, which often result in disrupted learning, for the students and others, to a more prevalent feeling of safety and trust that allows the student to function productively and reach their highest potential.

References Abelson, R. P. (1981). Psychological status of the script concept. American Psychologist, 36(7), 715–729. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.36.7.715 Albon, J. S., & Pollastri, A. R. (2018) The school discipline fix: Changing behavior using the collaborative problem solving approach. W. W. Norton. American School Counselor Association. (2016). The school counselor and traumainformed practice. ASCA Position Statements. https://www.schoolcounselor. org/asca/media/ asca/PositionStatements/PS_TraumaInformed.pdf Bartenieff, I., & Lewis, D. (1980). Body movement: Coping with the environment. Gordon & Breach. Bartlett, J. D., Smith, S., & Bringewatt, E. (2017, April). Helping young children who have experienced trauma: Policies and strategies for early care and education (Report #2017-19). Child Trends. https://doi.org/10.7916/d8-f1gn-7n98 Bayet, L., Pascalis, O., Quinn, P. C., Lee, K., Gentaz, É., & Tanaka, J. W. (2015). Angry facial expressions bias gender categorization in children and adults: Behavioral and computational evidence. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 346. https:// doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00346 Berger, R., Woodfin, L., & Vilen, A. (2016). Learning that lasts: Challenging, engaging, and empowering students with deeper instruction. ProQuest Ebook Central. https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.proxy.tamuc.edu Berger, T. (2018, February 5). An inside look at trauma-informed practices. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/inside-look-trauma-informed-practices Brunzell, T., Stokes, H., & Waters, L. (2016). Trauma-informed flexible learning: classrooms that strengthen regulatory abilities. International Journal of Child, Youth and Family Studies, 7(2), 218–239. https://doi.org/10.18357/ijcyfs72201615719

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Brunzell, T., Waters, L., & Stokes, H. (2015). Teaching with strengths in traumaaffected students: A new approach to healing and growth in the classroom. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 85(1), 3–9. https://doi.org/10.1037/ort00 00048 Call, C., Purvis, K., Parris, S., & Cross, D. (2014). Creating trauma-informed classrooms. Adoption Advocate, 75, 1–10. https://www.adoptioncouncil.org/files/ large/4b9294d4e0fc351 Chafouleas, S. M., Johnson, A. H., Overstreet, S., & Santos, N. M. (2016). Toward a blueprint for trauma-informed service delivery in schools. School Mental Health, 8(1), 144–162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-015-9166-8 Chaves, J., & Taylor, A. (2020). The “why” behind classroom behaviors, PreK–5: Integrative strategies for learning, regulation, and relationships. Corwin. Children’s Bureau. (2018). Child maltreatment. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/resource/child-maltreatment-2018 Cole, S. F., O’Brien, J. G., Gadd, M. G., Ristuccia, J., Wallace, D. L., & Gregory, M. (2005). Helping traumatized children learn: Supportive school environments for children traumatized by family violence. Massachusetts Advocates for Children. https://traumasensitiveschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/HelpingTraumatized-Children-Learn.pdf Cowley, S. (2019). Marshmallows and traffic cops: Beyond behaviourism–motivation and self-regulation in the classroom. Profession, 18. https://impact.chartered. college/article/marshmallows-traffic-cops-beyond-behaviourism-motivationself-regulation-classroom/ Devereaux, C. (2017, June). Neuroception and attunement in dance/movement therapy with autism. American Journal of Dance Therapy, 39(1) 36–38. https://doi.org/ 10.1007/s10465-017-9249-1 Dombo, E. A., & Sabatino, C. A. (2019). Trauma care in schools: Creating safe environments for students with adverse childhood experiences. American Educator, 43(2), 18–21. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1218781.pdf Duberg, A., Hagberg, L., Sunvisson, H., & Möller, M. (2013). Influencing selfrated health among adolescent girls with dance intervention: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA Pediatrics, 167(1), 27–31. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2013.421 Emdin, C. (2007). Exploring the contexts of urban science classrooms: Cogenerative dialogues, coteaching, and cosmopolitanism. City University of New York. Greene, R. W. (2008). Lost at school: Why our kids with behavioral challenges are falling through the cracks and how we can help them. Scribner. Greene, R. W., & Albon, J. S. (2005). Treating explosive kids: The collaborative problemsolving approach. Guilford Press. Hackney, P. (2000). What are the principles of Bartenieff Fundamentals? Making connections: Total body integration through Bartenieff Fundamentals. Gordon & Breach.

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Hobbs, C., Paulsen, D., & Thomas, J. (2019). Trauma-informed practice for pre-service teachers. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education. https://doi.org/10.1093/ acrefore/9780190264093.013.1435 Hsu, P. (2020). “It’s the magic circle”! Using cogenerative dialogues to create a safe environment to address emotional conflicts in a project-based learning science internship. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 15, 75–98. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s11422-018-9906-9 Jennings, P. A. (2019). Teaching in a trauma-sensitive classroom: What educators can do to support students. American Educator: American Federation of Teachers. https://www.aft.org/ae/summer2019/jennings Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full catastrophe living: Using the wisdom of your body and mind to face stress, pain, and illness. Dell Publishing. Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development. (2019). TBRI Training Notebook and Reference Manual. Khoury, B., Knauper, B., Pagnini, F., Trent, N., Chiesa, A., & Carriere, K. (2017). Embodied mindfulness. Mindfulness, 8(11), 1160–1171. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s12671-017-0700-7 Kuypers, L. M. (2011). The Zones of Regulation: A curriculum designed to foster selfregulation and emotional control. Think Social Publishing, Inc. Lavorata, B. (2013). Undermining intrinsic motivation. SFU Educational Review, 6. https://doi.org/10.21810/sfuer.v6i.371 Maich, K., Davies, A. W. J., & van Rhijn, T. (2019). A relaxation station in every location. Intervention in School and Clinic, 54(3), 160–165. https://doi.org/ 10.1177/1053451218767916 National Research Council. (2004). Engaging schools: Fostering high school students’ motivation to learn. The National Academies Press. Ortiz, R., & Sibinga, E. M. (2017). The role of mindfulness in reducing the adverse effects of childhood stress and trauma. Children, 4(3). https://doi.org/10.3390/ children4030016 Pang, J. (2016). The effect of dance movement therapy to preschoolers separation anxiety of school attendance: A Solomon four group design analysis. Jiaoyu Yanjiu Yuekan. Journal of Education Research, 271, 103–112. https://doi.org/10.3 966/168063602016110271008 Perry, B. D. (2006). Fear and learning: Trauma-related factors in the adult education process. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 2006(110), 21–27. https://doi.org/10.1002/ace.215 Pink, D. H. (2011). Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us. Penguin. Pollastri, A. R., Epstein, L. D., Heath, G. H., & Ablon, J. S. (2013). The collaborative problem solving approach: Outcomes across settings. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 21(4), 189–199. https://doi.org/10.1097/HRP.0b013e3182961017

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Purvis, K. B., Cross, D. R., & Sunshine, W. L. (2007). The connected child: Bring hope and healing to your adoptive family. McGraw Hill. Purvis, K. B., & Qualls, L. (2020). The connected parent: Real life strategies for building trust and Attachment. Harvest Publishing House. Roth, W.-M., Tobin, K., & Zimmermann, A. (2002). Coteaching/cogenerative dialoguing: learning environments research as classroom praxis. Learning Environments Research, 5(1), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1015662623784 Rumsey, A. D., & Milsom, A. (2019). Supporting school engagement and high school completion through trauma-informed school counseling. Professional School Counseling, 22(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156759X19867254 Santorelli, S., Meleo-Meyer, F., Koerbel, L., Kabat-Sinee, J., Blacker, M., Herbette, G., & Fulwiler, C. (2017). Mindfulness-based stress reeducation (MBSR) authorized curriculum guide. Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society (CFM). University of Massachusetts Medical School. https://umassmed.edu/ globalassets/center-for-mindfulness/documents/mbsr-curriculum-guide-2017. pdf Schaubman, A., Stetson, E. A., & Plog, A. (2011). Reducing teacher stress by implementing collaborative problem solving in a school setting. School Social Work Journal, 35(2), 72–93. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ954335 Stetson, E. A., & Plog, A. E. (2016). Collaborative problem solving in schools: Results of a year-long consultation project. School Social Work Journal, 40(2), 17–36. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2016-32378-003 Tucker, C., Schieffer, K., Wills, T. J., Hull, C., & Murphy, Q. (2017). Enhancing social-emotional skills in at-risk preschool students through Theraplay based groups: The Sunshine Circle Model. International Journal of Play Therapy, 26(4), 185–195. https://doi.org/10.1037/pla0000054 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2018). Child maltreatment. https:// www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/cb/cm2018.pdf Van Dam, N. T., van Vugt, M. K., Vago, D. R., Schmalzl, L., Saron, C. D., Olendzki, A., Meissner, T., Lazar, S. W., Kerr, C. E., Gorchov, J., Fox, K. C. R., Field, B. A., Britton, W. B., Brefczynski-Lewis, J. A., & Meyer, D. E. (2018). Mind the hype: A critical evaluation and prescriptive agenda for research on mindfulness and meditation. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 13(1), 36–61. https:// doi.org/10.1177/1745691617709589 Von Dohlen, H. B., Pinter, H. H., Winter, K. K., Ward, S., & Cody, C. (2019). Trauma-informed practices in a laboratory middle school. Middle School Journal, 50(4), 6–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/00940771.2019.1650549 Walkley, M., & Cox, T. L. (2013). Building trauma-informed schools and communities. Children & Schools, 35(2), 123-126. https://doi.org/10.1093/cs/cdt007

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Wall, C. R. G. (2020). Relationship over reproach: Fostering resilience by embracing a trauma-informed approach to elementary education. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma. Advanced online publication. https://doi.org/10.108 0/10926771.2020.1737292 Wallace, B. D. (2009). Do economic rewards work? District Administration, 45(3), 24– 27. https://eric.ed.gov/?q=%22How+to+Program%22&pg=5&id=EJ839580 Willingham, D. T. (2008). Should learning be its own reward? American Educator, 31(4), 29– 35. https://www.aft.org/ae/winter2007-2008/willingham Wielgosz, J., Goldberg, S. B., Kral, T. R. A., Dunne, J. D., & Davidson, R. J. (2019). Mindfulness meditation and psychopathology. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 15, 285–316. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-clinpsy-021815-093423 Williams, M. S., & Shellenberger, S. (1996). How does your engine run?: A leader’s guide to the alert program for self-regulation. TherapyWorks, Inc.

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CHAPTER 11

The Impact of Trauma on Rural Communities Susanne James, Anni Reinking, and Jayme Swanke

Trauma is felt by those living in poverty, experiencing or witnessing domestic abuse (physical and emotional), experiencing negative educational environments, and lacking resources in a community to help cope with these traumatic events (Lenares-Solomon et al., 2020). Children and families living in rural communities are particularly vulnerable to the effects of trauma because of geographic isolation, poverty, and a lack of access to mental health services (Alexander & Harrelson, 2016). Research suggests that children living in rural communities are at a higher risk of experiencing toxic stress related to trauma than their urban counterparts (National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services, 2018). The lack of needed resources in rural communities compounds the impacts of trauma experienced by students and families, but this gap also presents an opportunity for schools to act as a community resource and have a positive impact. Trauma-informed care (TIC) approaches are critical for under-resourced communities to support students in rural schools to deal with the traumatic events they are experiencing. These accessible programs, organizations, and systems take into account the broad and deep impact that trauma has on individuals, groups, and families and many are offered free of charge to anyone via open-source resources (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration [SAMHSA], 2014). Several resources are explored later in this chapter. The

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resources provided are grounded in the understanding that a trauma-informed response must be integrated throughout all aspects of the school environment including policies, procedures, and practices in order to avoid retraumatization (SAMHSA & U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration, 2014). This chapter explores the research behind trauma in rural communities including the impact on students, families, and school personnel. We discuss the impact of trauma on mental health and the strategies schools/districts can undertake to mitigate the impact of living in a rural, impoverished community. Finally, we identify resources that school districts and teachers in rural communities can access. In rural areas, individuals have a greater likelihood of dismissed trauma histories than urban residents and experience higher levels of untreated depression (McCall-Hosenfeld et al., 2014). In rural areas, individuals often dismiss their trauma due to limited access to mental health services, the stigma of abuse, lack of available shelters and affordable housing, poverty as a barrier to care, and other challenges (Langton et al., 2012). Individuals who have experienced repeated trauma may be reluctant to report abuse, fearing that their concerns will not be taken seriously, that their confidentiality will not be maintained, that their reputations may be damaged, or that they may incur even more abuse (Langton et al., 2012). Although most schools in rural areas have a chasm of resources and possible knowledge, schools and communities in rural areas recognize the impact of trauma and are beginning to adopt trauma-informed practices (Phifer & Hull, 2016). Additionally, in rural areas trauma has been found to be associated to higher rates of living in poverty (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2018). Poverty often leads to uncertainty of physiology and safety needs in the life of a child. Based on the work of Maslow (1943), the uncertainty of safety creates a sense of trauma and hypervigilance within a child. This hypervigilance weakens neural pathways to the thinking part of the brain and redirects the neural pathways to the survival part of the brain. When bypassing the thinking part of the brain, this impacts the child’s brain development, which can affect them for a lifetime (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014).

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Iterative Cycle of Trauma and Retraumatization There are many aspects or events that can create trauma in the lives of students, families, and school personnel. Trauma in the lives of adults, past or present, influences their actions towards students. The iterative cycle of trauma by parents/guardians and teachers can re-retraumatize students as a reminder of the past trauma they have experienced themselves. One aspect of the trauma cycle that should be highlighted is the concept of further victimization, or the fact that victimization can happen in schools. Retraumatization “is a conscious or unconscious reminder of past trauma that results in a re-experiencing of the initial trauma event. It can be triggered by a situation, an attitude or expression, or by certain environments that replicate the dynamics (loss of power/control/safety) of the original trauma” (Zgoda et al., 2016, para. 4). This further victimization can happen through policies or procedures of well-intentioned, yet harmful practices (Wolf & Kupchik, 2016). There are three forms of victimization that impact children in impoverished rural communities including food shaming, clothes shaming, and money shaming (Barton Figure: 11.1 Figure 11.1 The Cycle of Trauma The Cycle of Trauma

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& Davis, 2016). While the term shaming is used, and is based in research (Walker & Bantebya-Kyomuhendo, 2014), a synonymous term could be ignorance, such as an ignorance around the impact of food, clothes, and money in the classroom.

Student Trauma Students in early childhood and K–12 schools will experience some type of trauma that may impact their cognition, behavior, and relationships (Van Der Kolk, 2014). This may manifest itself in diminished concentration, memory, organization, and language skills that can increase the likelihood of emotional outbursts in the school setting (Ogata, 2017). Compared to those living in urban areas, children in rural areas have similar rates of exposure to drugs, family, community, and gun violence, as well as familial disruptions including the incarceration of a parent or involvement with the child welfare system. Although rural areas are not as populated as urban areas, the per capita data shows that there is a disproportionate amount of trauma in rural areas as compared to urban areas (National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services, 2018). This experience throughout childhood has profound short- and long-term impacts on an individual’s development (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2019). When students experience traumatic events, the neural pathways getting the most use are those in response to the trauma; this reduces the information of other pathways needed for adaptive behavior or regulation strategies. Additionally, overdevelopment of certain pathways and the underdevelopment of other progressions can lead to impairment later in life (i.e., education; Perry et al., 1995), as well as long-term health and mental health consequences, including heart disease, cancer, chronic lung disease, skeletal fractures, liver disease, obesity, depression, and suicidality (Anda et al., 1998).

School Personnel Response to Trauma School administrators and teachers are the primary agents of change in TIC. They can create or impede an environment of inclusivity, safety, and welcoming. In order for teachers to implement trauma-sensitive strategies in the classroom and create a safe and welcoming space for children to learn, it is important for them to understand the impact of trauma exposure on the child’s

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brain development, as well as how their own experiences frame their interpretation of trauma. The current teaching field is predominantly individuals who may not share the experiences of poverty, health insecurity, or trauma rural students face today (Gollnick & Chin, 2009). In order for teachers in rural school districts to adopt trauma-informed practices, first they must understand that when students demonstrate behavioral issues that manifest themselves in difficulties in self-regulation, negative thinking, being on high alert, difficulty trusting adults, or inappropriate social interactions, they may have endured some form of trauma (Terrasi & de Galarce, 2017). Minihan (2019) asserts that students must see teachers as safe and supportive adults. If teachers change the way they react to students’ behavior and respond in caring ways that are predictable and consistent, we can reduce problematic behavior (Minihan, 2019). Students often demonstrate problematic behavior, such as verbal or physical outbursts, as a plea for attention, praise, or help. Changing the ways teachers interpret this behavior is imperative for schools to be trauma-informed. School administrators and teachers from rural communities must also recognize that some variables that contribute to whether an experience is traumatic are subjective (Trickey et al., 2012). An event that is identified as traumatic by one individual may not be identified as a traumatic experience by another. Although the stereotypical rural American community values family, faith, and career, rural communities are riddled with issues including addiction, poverty, violence, and abuse. Witnessing a parent’s addiction, enduring abuse, or worrying about where their next meal is coming from can trigger trauma reactions in children, impacting their brain development and ability to learn in the classroom. Educator preparation programs and school districts need to prepare teachers for recognizing the primary trauma endured by their students or to accept the utility of trauma-informed practices within the education institution. Being able to gain knowledge, implement change, and truly understand the brain development of students is imperative to creating an environment through a trauma-sensitive lens.

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Stages of Development in Becoming a Trauma-Informed School District In order to implement the guidance laid out by SAMHSA, there are several specific steps schools can take to create a trauma-informed culture. One of the first steps to becoming trauma-informed is to make an organizational change in the school and to examine the culture of the school to ensure that the culture reflects five core values of trauma-informed care: safety, trustworthiness/transparency, choice, collaboration/peer support, and empowerment (SAMHSA, 2014). Furthermore, SAMHSA (2014) adds the consideration of the cultural, historical, and gender issues as principles to consider when becoming trauma-informed so that the school district is “responsive to the racial, ethnic and cultural needs of individuals served; and recognizes and addresses historical trauma” (p. 11). Scrutinizing the school district culture based on the experiences of the teachers, students, and community stakeholders will reveal the potential areas for growth that will ensure the school district has the foundation to become a trauma-informed district.

Trauma-Aware A rural school district starts the process to become trauma aware by determining how prevalent trauma is in their community and considers how it might impact students and staff. During this stage, the district will focus on the impact of trauma and recognize the signs and symptoms of trauma in their community. To do this work, rural school districts need to collaborate with local community partners in a process called resource mapping (Crane & Mooney, 2015), since resources are few in rural areas. Resource mapping would include school districts and community entities to align resources and policies in relation to trauma-informed care to have mutual goals, strategies, and expected outcomes. Effective treatment of childhood trauma requires a multidisciplinary team that contributes to the coordinated efforts to be trauma-informed. When community-level collaborations are utilized, they are better able to address the effects of childhood trauma (Gerrity & Folcarelli, 2008). The school administration and staff can begin conversations with local community partners, such as churches and service organizations, like Kiwanis

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or Lions Clubs, to discuss what the term trauma refers to and become aware of the impact trauma has on the community. In rural communities, the center for local human services and community events is often the area churches. Interdenominational collaboration among the churches, Kiwanis, or Lions Clubs and the school district can assist rural communities to pursue creative strategies and services to support students who have experienced trauma. In addition, when school districts work in collaboration with these community partners, they can do a better job to reach the whole community, including families and businesses to help increase understanding of how trauma impacts the social, economic, and health of the community. The goal for the awareness stage of becoming trauma-informed is to provide staff and community partners trauma awareness training including definitions, causes, prevalence, impact, values and terminology of trauma-informed care (SAMHSA, 2014). With limited resources, it is imperative that a rural school district utilizes all members of the community to provide support. The implementation guides that follow will provide a rural school district with the resources it needs to begin the process to become trauma-aware.

Trauma-Sensitive The next stage in becoming a trauma-informed school is for rural school districts to become trauma-sensitive. Trauma sensitivity is focused on the district exploring the knowledge application, and skill development of trauma-informed practices by the staff and the community. The district examines its commitment to consumer involvement and what next steps could be taken. Through a self-assessment process, the district identifies existing strengths, resources, and barriers to change, as well as practices that are consistent or inconsistent with trauma-informed care (MO Dept. of Mental Health and Partners, 2014). The policies, practices, and procedures that are existing in the school district for discipline are reviewed with a reflective process and focus on not re-retraumatizing the students. As a reminder, re-retraumatization is experiencing an event, such as “harmful” school policies or procedures (i.e., zero-tolerance policies, clothing stigmatization), that negatively impacts students by creating an environment in which a traumatic experience or emotion is felt.

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Measurement of the current school climate with such tools as the School Climate Survey or the Trauma-Sensitive School Checklist (see Table 11.3) can be used to determine the baseline during the trauma-sensitivity stage. The SAMHSA (2014) provides a set of ten domains that a rural school district must work in partnership with all community and school stakeholders to consider during this stage. Each of the 10 domains listed in the concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach is important for the school staff and the community stakeholders (SAMHSA, 2014, pp. 14–16). Each domain has a set of questions to consider moving the district to be trauma-informed (see resource list that follows). When a rural school district considers these questions, it provides guidance on developing an organizational trauma-informed approach. These questions may be difficult to answer for rural districts that lack mental health resources and experience financial constraints. The regional mental health services have a large area to service and may not be able to provide comprehensive support. Local community partners working in collaboration with school staff and administration is crucial during this stage to consider at this stage of TIC the strengths, resources, and barriers in the community. During the trauma sensitivity stage, the goal is to identify potential resources for trauma-specific treatment and prepare for the change to become trauma-informed. This progression of schools moving from trauma-aware, in which an understanding that trauma affects their student body, to trauma-sensitive, in which all students feel safe, welcomed, and supported is transformative in school culture and climate. Then they are better equipped to move to becoming trauma-responsive.

Trauma-Responsive The third stage requires rural school districts to become responsive to trauma. The school administrators and staff, along with community partners, work together to change the organizational culture of the school and highlight the role trauma has on the school and in the community. The rural community collaborates to rethink the routines and infrastructure of the school to plan and take action. Individuals apply new knowledge about trauma to their specific work in the school, the church, and in community businesses. Language that supports safety, choice, collaboration, trustworthiness, and empowerment

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permeates the conversations and collaborations with those partnering in TIC. This community focus impacts the school and how the locale supports the rural school district. During this stage, the school district works to integrate the principles of TIC into staff behaviors and practices. The five principles of TIC, including student safety, choice, collaboration, trustworthiness, and empowerment, are woven into staff development activities and performance evaluations. Furthermore, in this stage, the school district addresses staff trauma and self-care to ensure teachers and related services providers feel supported. During this stage, the administration in rural school districts must plan for trauma training for all staff and integrate trauma-informed principles into the mission of the district. District administrators must ensure that the teachers and service providers are provided programmatic support so vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue do not impact the physical and emotional well-being of these first responders. This fatigue or exhaustion can cause them to “burn out” and they leave the school in the process of becoming trauma-informed (Hill, 2011). The loss of staff and retraining of new staff will hinder the process for a school district to be trauma-sensitive and hinder the process to move to be a trauma-responsive district. A critical part of a student’s recovery from trauma is having a supportive caregiving system and access to effective treatments by trained service providers (SAMHSA, 2014). Schools play an important part in connecting students with these trained service providers. Teachers and related service personnel are the individuals who work the closest with students in the school, and their voice when moving to a trauma-informed school is critical. Giving voice to the understanding of trauma and the multiple perspectives and experiences the school staff have about trauma will help a rural school district design ongoing professional learning and thus create meaningful change in the school culture through collaborative work with school personnel and social service agencies. An example may be a school providing integrative health services through a holistic approach inside the four walls of a school building (Milosavljevic, 2015).

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Trauma-Informed In this stage, rural school districts make trauma-responsive practices the organizational norm. The TIC model is an accepted part of the organizational culture of the school and strong community partnerships strengthen collaborations and community resources. In a trauma-informed rural school district, school administrators, teachers, and staff work to develop, implement, and support processes for continuous improvement of trauma-informed approaches. The school district has established policies that support teachers’ and staff’s initial and secondary trauma. In addition, screening how trauma-informed a system is, as well as attitudes of staff towards becoming trauma-informed is conducted (see Table 11.3). There is a centralized, student data collection and reporting system for an integrated focus on academics. Student supports are integrated across a multidisciplinary team and evidence-based interventions with clearly established benchmarks and performance measures built in to monitor fidelity and outcomes. Finally, the school district encourages collaborative leadership by empowering teachers and staff to demonstrate leadership. The goal of this stage is to promote better physical, emotional, social, and educational outcomes for students, staff, and families with collaboration with community partners.

Strategies for Considering Trauma Now that we have a collective foundational understanding of the impact of trauma in rural communities, we discuss strategies you can do to provide support to families and students who have experienced trauma. These strategies address community, organization, group, family, and individual levels. Each level is discussed in the following subsections.

Consider Trauma at the Community Level The first step an individual can do to support TIC in their communities is to connect families and students to needed support in the community and at the school level. Supports may include social service agencies, churches, counselors,

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school support staff, or connections with each other to process and share stories. Bringing together individuals who want to focus on childhood trauma can identify the “champions” who will keep the initiative alive and will work within their own organizations to launch collaborations in the community to be trauma-informed (Harris & Fallot, 2001). Discussion points at the community level for this like-minded group are described in one of the resources (see Table 11.3).

Consider Trauma at the District and Building Level School administrators can start to reflect on the impact of traumatic life experiences on students’ behavior and home life when administering discipline at the district level. The data on which schools report, including expulsions, truancy, and suspensions are indicators of the punitive nature of traditional disciplinary policies, such as refraining from using out-of-school discipline procedures as a primary disciplinary tool is one step toward being trauma-informed. School districts must establish discipline strategies that reflect trauma-informed values. Additionally, they need to review how previous policies, procedures, and practices retraumatize students. Policies should shift focus to teaching prosocial behaviors rather than punishing, which is focused on causing harm (intentional or unintentional) that often results in the teacher “feeling better” but not teaching new prosocial behaviors to students. When determining discipline, schools should consider whether exposure to traumatic events plays a role in student behavior and communicate behavioral expectations in a clear and consistent manner. School administrators need to consider the best practices for engaging students in repairing situations and relationships. All behavior is a form of communication and administrators need to consider what the child is trying to communicate when they act out. An example of focusing on discipline rather than punishment is implementing a restorative practice, or the practice of restoring relationships, rather than punishing for breaking an arguably arbitrary rule. The goal for this portion to be trauma-responsive is for the rural school district to plan and take action to reconceptualize the routines and infrastructure in each school building. The webinars/learning modules and support resources listed will assist a district to become trauma responsive and move to being trauma-informed in each school building (see Table 11.1).

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Educators should also engage in self-reflective practices to understand their personal mindsets and implicit biases, along with the impact of those mindsets and biases. One great way to begin or continue the process of self-reflection is through the use of book studies, which can be found at www.akreinking.com.

Consider Trauma at a Personal Level Finally, all school personnel have experienced trauma in their own lives and must examine how it impacts their interactions within the school. While someone might not remember, or acknowledge, something they experienced as trauma, the body reacts to trauma with physiological responses. When someone “pushes our buttons,” the body reacts by becoming ready to fight or flee. Professionals can engage in self-soothing techniques, which can then be taught to students. For example, according to Bailey (2020), it takes three deep breaths to turn off the flight-or-fight response to the body. Two strategies someone can consider the effect trauma has at a personal level include relaxation and breathing techniques. In addition, Bailey suggests that when an individual encounters a trauma inducing situation, to use the acronym S.T.A.R. (Smile, Take a deep breath, And, Relax) to be in a better frame of mind to deal with the stressor (Bailey, 2020). To learn more, an individual can access free webinars on reaching and teaching children who have trauma and learn more ways to interact with students who have experienced complex trauma (see Table 11.2). In conclusion, trauma in rural areas is a complex and prevalent issue that students, families, and school personnel deal with on a daily basis and to a marked degree. To undertake the process for school districts in rural areas to be trauma-informed may seem daunting due to the lack of resources and societal issues. Knowing that resources are available that are readily available and open source is encouraging for school personnel. Ultimately, knowing how trauma impacts the health and well-being of those who reside in rural areas and bringing about organizational and community change can improve the outcomes for all.

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Table 11.1 Implementation Guides Name of Resource

Author/Creator

Description

Website

Concept of Trauma and Guidance for a Trauma-Informed Approach

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration

This manual provides a definition of trauma and a trauma-informed approach and offers 6 key principles and 10 implementation domains.

https://ncsacw.samhsa.gov/ userfiles/files/SAMHSA_ Trauma.pdf

Trauma-Informed Organizational Change Manual

Institute on Trauma and TraumaInformed Care

The purpose of the manual is to guide organizations and systems in planning for, implementing, and sustaining a traumainformed organizational change.

http://socialwork.buffalo. edu/social-research/ institutes-centers/instituteon-trauma-and-traumainformed-care/TraumaInformed-OrganizationalChange-Manual0.html

Trauma-Sensitive Schools Training Package

National Center on Safe and Supportive Learning Environments

The Trauma-Sensitive Schools Training Package offers school and district administrators and staff a framework and roadmap for adopting a trauma-sensitive approach schoolwide.

https:// safesupportivelearning. ed.gov/trauma-sensitiveschools-training-package

123 Care: A Trauma-Sensitive Toolkit for Caregivers of Children

Melissa Charbonneau Rhonda Crooker Peggy Slider Caroline Law Rowena Pineda

A 178-page toolkit for caregivers (parents, grandparents, childcare providers, teachers, others who care for children daily). Caregiver handouts are also included.

https://www.acesconnection. com/g/Parenting-withACEs/blog/spokane-wapublic-health-nurses-createtrauma-sensitive-toolkit-forcaregivers

Table 11.1 continued on following page.

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Table 11.1 continued from previous page. The Missouri Model: A Developmental Framework for Trauma-Informed Schools Initiative

Sharonica Hardin-Bartley Terry Harris Teisha Ashford Kashina Bell Julie Hahn Karen Hall Jason Heisserer Megan Marietta Leslie Muhammed Matt Phillips Gina Piccinni Tiffany Young Seve Zwolak

The implementation of a trauma-informed approach is an ongoing organizational change process. A “traumainformed approach” is not a program model that can be implemented and then simply monitored by a fidelity checklist.

https://dmh.mo.gov/ media/pdf/missouri-modeltrauma-informed-schools

Developing Trauma-Informed Organizations

Institute for Health and Recovery

This toolkit is designed to help organizations improve the quality of services offered by integrating an understanding of the impact of trauma and violence into the organization’s policies, procedures, and interactions with those being served.

http://healthrecovery.org/ images/products/30_inside. pdf

Resilient and Trauma-Informed Community Strategies and Interventions Planning Guide

No Author

This guide serves as a starting place to help teams navigate collaborative dialogue and actions to support the integration of trauma-informed practices, procedures, and policies.

http://www. resilientcommunitieswi.com/ resources.html

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Table 11.2 Webinars/Learning Modules Name of Resource

Author/Creator

Description

Website

In-Person & Online Child & Adolescent Trauma Trainings and Resources

National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN)

The NCTSN offers both online and in-person training on a range of topics, from general trauma education to assessment and intervention techniques to the Breakthrough Series Collaborative focused on systems change.

https://www.nctsn.org/ resources/training

Trauma-Informed Care: Perspectives and Resources

JBS International, Inc. and Georgetown University National Technical Assistance Center for Children’s Mental Health

This website offers issue briefs, video-based learning modules, and resource lists to offer guidance and resources to become more trauma-informed.

https://gucchdtacenter. georgetown.edu/ TraumaInformedCare/

Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) Online Training Modules

TraumaInformed Oregon

Four self-directed modules that walk you through the basics of trauma-informed care.

https:// traumainformedoregon.org/ tic-intro-training-modules/

Trauma Sensitive Schools (TSS) Online Professional Development System

Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

A free, online, on-demand set of learning modules to help learners understand the prevalence and impact of toxic stress on youth and those who care for them.

https://dpi.wi.gov/sspw/ mental-health/trauma/ modules

Table 11.2 continued on following page.

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Table 11.2 continued from previous page. Understanding Trauma Webinar Series

Becky Bailey

This 3-part webinar series from Dr. Becky Bailey disrupts the cycle of trauma by bringing new awareness to our current trauma epidemic and building healthy, healing relationships through selfregulation, connection, and resilience interventions that have the power to heal individuals, communities, and generations of those who suffer.

https://consciousdiscipline. com/product/ understanding-traumawebinar-series-individual1-year/

Description

Website

Table 11.3 Measurement Devices Name of Resource

Author/Creator

Creating Cultures of TraumaInformed Care (CCTIC): A SelfAssessment and Planning Protocol

Roger D. Fallot, PhD, and Maxine Harris, PhD

The Self-Assessment and Planning Protocol and its accompanying CCTIC Program Self- Assessment Scale attempt to provide clear, consistent guidelines for agencies or programs interested in facilitating trauma-informed modifications in their service systems.

https://www. theannainstitute.org/ CCTICSELFASSPP.pdf

The Missouri Model: A Developmental Framework for Trauma-Informed

Missouri Model: A Developmental Framework for TraumaInformed, MO Dept. of Mental Health and Partners

This tool assesses the implementation of trauma-informed approaches in various organizational settings and the effectiveness of services for clients who have experienced trauma.

https://www. traumainformedcare.chcs. org/wp-content/uploads/ MO-Model-WorkingDocument-february-2015. pdf

Table 11.3 continued on following page.

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Table 11.3 continued from previous page. Trauma-Informed Services: A SelfAssessment and Planning Protocol

Maxine Harris, Roger D. Fallot (2006)

The Self-Assessment and Planning Protocol and its accompanying TraumaInformed Program SelfAssessment Scale attempt to provide clear, consistent guidelines for agencies or programs interested in facilitating trauma-informed modifications in their service systems.

https://www. theannainstitute.org/ TISA+PPROTOCOL.pdf

Measuring Progress Towards Becoming a Trauma-Informed School

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration

Specific tools described to measure how traumainformed a system is, as well as attitudes of staff toward becoming trauma-informed.

https://www. nhstudentwellness.org/ uploads/5/3/9/0/ 53900547/measuring_ trauma_informed_ schools_11.10.17.pdf

ED School Climate Surveys (EDSCLS)

National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments

The EDSCLS web-based administration platform includes a suite of school climate surveys for middle and high school students, instructional staff, noninstructional staff, and parents/guardians.

https:// safesupportivelearning. ed.gov/edscls

Professional Quality of Life Measure (ProQOL)

B. Hudnall Stamm

The ProQOL is the most commonly used measure of the negative and positive effects of helping others who experience suffering and trauma.

https://proqol.org/ProQol_ Test.html

Trauma-Sensitive School Checklist

Lesley University Center for Special Education Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative

This checklist is organized by 5 components involved in creating a traumasensitive school.

http://www.tolerance.org/ sites/default/files/general/ trauma%20sensitive%20 school%20checklist%20 (1).pdf

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Fallot, R. D., & Harris, M. (2006). Trauma-informed services: A self-assessment and planning protocol. https://www.theannainstitute.org/TISA+PPROTOCOL. pdf Gerrity, E., & Folcarelli, C. (2008). Child traumatic stress: What every policymaker should know. National Center for Child Traumatic Stress. Gollnick, D. M., & Chinn, P. C. (2009). Multicultural education in a pluralistic society (8th ed.). Pearson Prentice Hall. Harris, M., & Fallot, R. (Eds.). (2001). Using trauma theory to design service systems (New Directions for Mental Health Services). Jossey-Bass. Hill, A. C. (2011). The cost of caring: An investigation in the effects of teaching traumatized children in urban elementary settings (Publication No. 388) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Massachusetts Amherst]. Open Access Dissertations. http://scholarworks.umass.edu Hudnall Stamm, B. (2012). Professional quality of life measure. ProQol. https://proqol. org/ProQol_Test.html Institute for Health and Recovery. (2012). Developing trauma-informed organizations. http://healthrecovery.org/images/products/30_inside.pdf JBS International, Inc., & Georgetown University National Technical Assistance Center for Children’s Mental Health. (n.d.). Trauma-informed care: Perspectives and resources. https://gucchdtacenter.georgetown.edu/TraumaInformedCare/ Kiwanis Children’s Fund. (n.d.). Impact and programs. https://www2.kiwanis.org/ childrensfund/impact-and-programs#.YBQs--lKhBx Langton, L., Berzofsky, M., Krebs, C., & Smiley-McDonald, H. (2012). Victimizations not reported to the police, 2006–2010. U.S. Department of Justice. Lenares-Solomon, D., Conti, C., & George, C. (2020). Advocating for the mental health needs of children living in rural poverty. In H. C. Greene, B. S. Zugelder, & J. C. Manner (Eds.), Handbook of research on leadership and advocacy for children and families in rural poverty (pp. 149–171). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/9781-7998-2787-0 Lesley University & Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative. (2012). Trauma-sensitive school checklist. http://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/general/trauma %20sensitive%20school%20checklist%20(1).pdf Lions Club International Foundation. (n.d.). Youth. https://www.lionsclubs.org/en/ give-our-focus-areas/youth Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370–396. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0054346 McCall-Hosenfeld, J. S., Mukherjee, S., & Lehman, E. B. (2014). The prevalence and correlates of lifetime psychiatric disorders and trauma exposures in urban and rural settings: Results from the national comorbidity survey replication (NCS-R). PLoS ONE, 9(11). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0112416

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Minihan, J. (2019). Making School a Safe Place. Educational Leadership, 77(2), 30–35. Milosavljevic, N. (2015). Integrative health services in school health clinics. Adolescent Psychiatry, 5(2), 132–139. MO Dept. of Mental Health and Partners. (2014). The Missouri model: A developmental framework for trauma-informed. https://saintfrancisministries.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/MO-Model-Working-Document-february-2015.pdf Muhammed, L., Phillips, M., Piccinni, G., Young, T., & Zwolak, S. (n.d.). https:// dmh.mo.gov/media/pdf/missouri-model-trauma-informed-schools. Retrieved Nov 28, 2021. National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services. (2018). Exploring the rural context for adverse childhood experiences. https://www.hrsa.gov/sites/ default/files/hrsa/advisory-committees/rural/publications/Rural-Contextfor-ACEs-August2018.pdf National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments. (2020). Trauma-sensitive schools training package. https://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/building-traumasensitive-schools National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments. (2020). ED school climate surveys. https://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/edscls The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (2020). Training. https://www.nctsn. org/resources/training National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (n.d.). Training. https://www.nctsn.org/ resources/training National Child Traumatic Stress Network, Schools Committee. (2008). Child trauma toolkit for educators. National Center for Child Traumatic Stress. National Child Traumatic Stress Network, Schools Committee. (2017). Creating, supporting, and sustaining trauma-informed schools: A system framework. National Center for Child Traumatic Stress. Ogata, K. (2017). Maltreatment related trauma symptoms affect academic achievement through cognitive functioning: A preliminary examination in Japan. Journal of Intelligence, 5(32), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence5040032. Retrieved Nov 28, 2021. Perry, B. D., Pollard, R. A., Blakley, T. L., Baker, W. L., & Vigilante, D. (1995). Childhood trauma, the neurobiology of adaptation, and “use-dependent” development of the brain: How “states” become “traits.” Infant Mental Health Journal, 16(4), 271–291. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-0355(199524)16:43.0.CO;2-B Phifer, L. W., & Hull, R. (2016). Helping students heal: Observations of traumainformed practices in the schools. School Mental Health, 8, 201–205. https:// doi.org/10.1007/s12310-016-9183-2

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Resilient and Trauma-Informed Community: Organization Planning Guide. (n.d.). http://www.resilientcommunitieswi.com/uploads/1/2/6/7/126760048/rtic_ org_planning_guide_oct2020_with_tabulation.pdf Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2011). Results from 2011 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Summary of National Findings. https:// www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/Revised2k11NSDUHSummNatFindings/Revised2k11NSDUHSummNatFindings/NSDUHresults2011.htm Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach (HHS Publication No. 14-4884). Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2017). Measuring progress towards becoming a trauma-informed schools. https://www.nhstudent wellness.org/uploads/5/3/9/0/53900547/measuring _trauma_informed_ schools_11.10.17.pdf Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2019). 2018 national survey on drug use and health: Methodological summary and definitions. Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. https://www.samhsa.gov/data/ Terrasi, S., & de Galarce, P. C. (2017). Trauma and learning in America’s classrooms. Phi Delta Kappan, 98(6), 35–41. https://doi.org/10.1177/0031721717696476. Retrieved Nov 28, 2021. Trauma-Informed Oregon. (n.d.). Intro to trauma-informed care training modules. https://traumainformedoregon.org/tic-intro-training-modules/. Trickey, D., Siddaway, A. P., Meiser-Stedman, R., Serpell, L., & Field, A. P. (2012). A meta-analysis of risk factors for post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents. Clinical Psychology Review, 32(2), 122–138. U.S. Department of Agriculture. (2018). Rural America at a glance: 2018 (Economic Information Bulletin No. EIB-200). https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/ publications/90556/eib-200.pdf?v=6801.4 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration. (2015). The health and wellbeing of children in rural areas: A portrait of the Nation 2011–2012. https://mchb.hrsa.gov/nsch/2011-12/rural-health/ pdf/rh_2015_book.pdf U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Service Administration. (2018). Substance abuse in rural areas. https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/topics/substance-abuse Van Der Kolk, B. (2014). The body keeps the score: Brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma. Penguin Random House. Walker, R., & Bantebya-Kyomuhendo, G. (2014). The shame of poverty. Oxford University Press.

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Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. (n.d.). Trauma sensitive schools online professional development. https://dpi.wi.gov/sspw/mental-health/trauma/modules. Wolf, K. C., & Kupchik, A. (2017). School suspensions and adverse experiences in adulthood. Justice Quarterly, 34(3), 407–430. https://doi.org/10.1080/0741882 5.2016.1168475 Zgoda, K., Shelly, P., & Hitzel, S. (2016). Preventing retraumatization: A macro social work approach to trauma-informed practices & policies. The New Social Worker. https:// www.socialworker.com/feature-articles/practice/preventing-retraumatization a-macro-social-work-approach-to-trauma-informed-practices-policies/

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CHAPTER 12

Trauma’s Impact on Urban School Districts: An Action Plan for Educators1 Jennifer Hernandez

Many students of color are experiencing trauma within their lived experience and the urban contexts in which they live complicate it. Complex posttraumatic stress disorder (cPTSD) is more severe than posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and is defined by emotional flashbacks, toxic shame, self-abandonment, a relentless inner critical voice, and social anxiety (Walker, 2014). This is found most commonly in urban areas and within children in urban school districts when addressing childhood trauma in a trauma-informed school. This is not to claim that children in the suburbs do not have trauma. Instead, the context in which communities of color, working poor communities, and communities with majority marginalized identities have an extra layer of trauma not always seen in the suburban and mostly white contexts. In fact, social systems, including schools, have greatly exacerbated the toxic stress for many children in urban settings. School districts in these urban neighborhoods have fewer resources because of the historical redlining, white flight to the suburbs, and anti-Blackness public school policies. Educators in these schools are often not certified or hold an alternative license for teaching through an outside educational agency (Ravitch, 2011). This trifecta of marginalization has students of color at a lengthy disadvantage when entering a school system that upholds white cultural norms and Euro-centered knowledge and values as the only knowledge and forces students of color to not be able to apply that knowledge to their lived experience. 1 Please note that the author has chosen to not capitalize the proper noun white for racialized reasons. Using white as a proper noun gives validation to the concept that “whiteness” is a race. Race is a social construction with no scientific evidence of its validity. In contrast, the author capitalizes “Black” as a way of uplifting the culture and in an attempt to minimize the racialized harm done to Black people through “othering.”

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Toxic stress results from exposure to severe, chronic, and prolonged stress (Jennings, 2019). Children living within contexts of poverty, community violence, environmental injustice, and structural racism find themselves in a state of chronic and prolonged stress. The current conditions in most urban areas across the nation leave children and adults dealing with the impact of trauma over generations. The common misconception that children will grow out of it and be OK if they have at least one caring adult has been disproved, and we now know this level of toxic stress has a devastating impact on children’s development and health over a lifetime (Jennings, 2019). Pediatricians from the Center for the Developing Child at Harvard University have found that sustained amounts of toxic stress results in the neurobiological formation of psychological trauma (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2014). Anti-Black policies serve as the foundation to promote unjust practices throughout the country to condemn people of color. The term anti-Blackness has been systematically embedded into society in an effort to reject the inherent value of Black people. Evidence exists in every facet of the American culture, from the political rhetoric that supports ideals stating the incompetence of Blacks to the educational sector that has dehumanized students of color through curriculum and building climate. Society continues to ensure that these are all policies in which the Black is positioned on the bottom, and as much as we might wring our hands about to all, and pursue various interventions radical improvements are impossible without a broader, radical shift in the racial order. (Dumas, 2015, p. 17)

Public education is the perfect place for this radical shift in our racial caste system within this country. The promise that all children have equitable opportunities for high-quality education is but a myth for students with marginalized identities. Psychological trauma occurs when an event is so stressful that it overloads an individual’s psychological and neurological ability to integrate information in a way that allows for the achievement of a coherent narrative. When an event or situation overwhelms the individual’s perceived ability to cope, it leaves that person fearing death, annihilation, mutilation, or psychosis. The circumstances of the event commonly include abuse of power, betrayal of trust, entrapment,

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helplessness, pain, confusion, and/or loss (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2014). For children, the traumatized development results in disrupted attachment, impaired self-capacities, and a sensitized nervous system. When given the additional environment saturated with multiple levels of toxic stress, this child will experience these intolerable emotional states. The impact of psychological trauma can be seen in school-aged children living in homes in which toxic stress occurs as they are more likely than their peers to exhibit aggressive and antisocial behaviors and are more likely to be anxious, fearful, and hypervigilant Exposure to toxic stress in urban environments also has been linked with poor peer relations, perhaps due to poor self-esteem and sensitization. Social dysfunction manifests as difficulty in establishing and maintaining friends, being aggressive with peers, and being cruel, bullying, or being mean to others. Internalizing behaviors will include anxiety, depression, withdrawal, and somatic complaints (i.e., tics, bed-wetting); these behaviors are consistent with suicidal risk. Externalizing behaviors can look like attention problems, aggressive behaviors, and oppositional defiance (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2014). Every day in public schools, zero-tolerance policies (ZTPs) implemented as a form of discipline ensures that students are disciplined through techniques of fear and intimidation and daily doses of emotional trauma (Meiners, 2007). Most often, heavy-handed use of these policies is found in urban schools in contrast to suburban schools. Students in urban settings are exposed to surveillance, profiling, policing, search and seizure, and school resource officers (SROs) who carry the authority to handcuff, mace, and use tasers on students for methods of restraint and confinement. In contrast, students do not have the same legal protections as adults. When police officers have handcuffed, maced, tazed, or searched the property or bodies of students, there are no guardians or legal representatives present at the time of these interventions. Students also endure the stigma of being arrested at school, embarrassment by being handcuffed, maced, and/or tazed at school, and having adult school staff witnessing or speaking of these interventions in which other students may hear of the incident. For students already experiencing toxic stress and trauma from their adverse childhood experiences, poverty, and community violence, school discipline policies are retraumatizing students (Meiners, 2007).

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These racialized and emotional traumas students endure lead to a demoralization that increases dropout rates and contributes to the growing number of students deepening into the criminal justice system. If a student violates a school rule that falls within the boundaries of ZTPs, then the student is set up for a double dose of punishment. After the school administrator implements the consequence to the student based on the school policy, the student is also referred to the juvenile justice system. Within the juvenile justice system, the student gains points on their police file. Once a student accumulates a certain number of points, they may be placed in court-ordered residential facilities or juvenile youth system. This becomes a lifetime consequence for a minor because in 26 states in this country, juvenile records are no longer concealed or dissolved at the age of majority (Schwartz & Reiser, 2001). For students of color and others who lack privilege, ZTPs have accelerated these students in the school-to-prison pipeline (Meiners, 2007), while other students use school as a pathway to postsecondary education, career training, and employment. ZTPs have switched the process for disenfranchised students; these policies guide the student’s future instead of students using schools to determine their own future. This future for most students of color ultimately lands them in prison. The combination of school policies designed to reduce violence and the presence of police officers had the effect of criminalizing a broad range of misconduct that poses no real threat to safety. Behaviors once painted as disruptive and troublesome—including cursing, disrespect, verbal threats of fighting with peers, verbal threats toward staff, noncompliance, and not completing assignments—have now been handled formally by law enforcement. Once in the school system, students of color are subjected to the same over-policing and racialized policing practices found in their communities. Students of color are 8 times as like to be arrested at schools as their white counterparts and 9 times more likely to be expelled (American Civil Liberties Union [ACLU], 2018). Goals 2000 (1994) and the expansion of police into schools added a new layer of trauma for students in urban schools. The use of metal detectors, drug and weapon dogs, tasers, mace, handcuffs, and the use of isolation rooms to contain and control adult Black and Brown bodies in their communities is now being implemented on students as young as 5 years old (ACLU, 2018). The Movement for Black Lives (#BlackLivesMatter) has brought much attention to

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the state-sanctioned violence against Black people in the United States (Lebron, 2017). The media, social media, and cultural attention given to the recent murder of George Floyd by Officer Derek Chauvin is retraumatizing to students who have felt the racialized policing in their neighborhoods and schools.

Strategies for Trauma-Informed Education Within Urban Spaces A trauma-informed approach carries multiple assumptions within its framework. The first and most important assumption is that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are real and have a real impact on our kids and their development. The second assumption is the power structures of the medical systems, courts, child protection systems, schools, and police (“helper” as authority who has something a child needs, child as a sufferer in need of service of expert/ professional) re-create a situation of violence associated with danger, pain, and betrayal for survivors of sexual and physical abuse. Most mental health care workers, schools, police, emergency first responders, and others traditionally have put systems over individuals—the belief that standardized testing, diagnoses, communication techniques, schools, or other helper-as-authority figures will fix the child’s problems (Jennings, 2019). Professional educators must be taught how to explicitly democratize their classroom space. In place of teaching the tenets of behaviorism to control students within the classroom in classroom management courses, in-service educators need to learn culturally responsive classroom management, trauma-informed strategies, mental health supports, and the removal of authoritarian practices. Faculty that have actually done the critical work of urban education and trauma will need to replace the traditional pedagogical practices of behaviorism still taught in most teacher preparation programs. Direct instruction for teacher candidates in honoring students’ voices and empowering them in an inclusive classroom setting will result in a democratized space that allows our young students to participate in a democracy before coming to the age of maturity. These are ways educators can ensure that top-down, authoritarian structures are removed from the classroom (Campano, 2007). Educators must implement the following strategies. First, actively listen to

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students’ stories without judgment; this will reinforce the increased empathy and compassion previously learned. Second, allow students to demonstrate their learning through a variety of assessments. Finally, empower students to set the pace for mastery of content. The model for a democratized classroom is circular. The removal of topdown authoritarian structure is crucial (hooks, 1994). At the center of the circular learning community are the students’ lived experiences. The educator must be aware and informed of the complex lived experiences of all students in their class. As humans, we all experience privilege and marginalization based on our socially constructed identities. It is imperative that the educator is an expert in the complex lived experiences of each student and their own. Above this circle is the society in which we live. Packed with social inequity, racism, sexism, classism, and ableism, it is vital that these inequities are highlighted and deconstructed through the critical race theory lens to unveil the power dynamic at the root of each. Students need to understand who benefits from these dynamics and who is marginalized. The content disciplines the educator is teaching in are foundational to the democratized classroom. Explicit teaching of the content with a critical consciousness modeled by the educator for the students is important in heightening their own critical consciousness and critical thinking skills. Supplementing the school district’s curriculum with socially just curricula allows educators to bring in representations and real-life application of content and connect these to the students’ lived experiences. These supplemental curricula can assist students of any age to make personal connections to their new learning. Finally, the educator-facilitator piece of this model requires educators to remove themselves as the expert of the content knowledge, grasping an educational model of a facilitator of shared, constructed, and recycled knowledge, in lieu of the banking system of education (Ladson-Billings, 1995). Educators are experts in pedagogy, and this model allows the flexibility of the educator as facilitator of the learning community. Asking mediative questions, constructing collaborative work groups, offering problem-based assignments that require open-ended solutions based on critical thinking are the many ways educators can facilitate the learning in others. For students with trauma, these instructional strategies allow the flexible and supportive climate needed for them to feel safe and not threatened.

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Figure 12.1 Figure 12.1. Democratized Classroom Democratized Classroom Model Model Social inequity/ racism/sexism/ classism/nationalism/ ableism/religious and language oppression

Content area/discipline

Student stories/lived experiences

Supplemental Socially just curricula with representation and the voice of the marginalized

Educatorfacilitator

Note: Adapted from Bell et al. (2016).

Professional educators must strategically create an inclusive classroom community of learners, with relationships demonstrating mutual respect. Mutual respect is the key to this community of learners. Removing the concept that the teacher is the keeper of all knowledge and students must learn and regurgitate the information is critical to building this fluid relationship (Ladson-Billings, 1995). Educators being active members of the community they are teaching also reinforces a sense of community within the classroom. Developing an inclusive learning community requires representing all identities and removing heteronormativity, classism, patriarchy, and the Christian hegemony from our classroom spaces. Specific strategies to assist educators in minimizing or eliminating these from the classroom will need to be taught through professional development. Professional development assisting in-service educators in building a praxis, or action plan, of socially just curricula and culturally responsive instructional strategies is vital to democratizing classrooms, building

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learning communities, and removing the authoritarian structure in the classroom. Professional development should focus on each educator constructing their own praxis customized to the grade level and content discipline they are teaching. Table 12.1 Praxis for Urban Educators Self-awareness and Education

Internal journey for every educator to understand and minimize inherent implicit and explicit bias, deconstruct stereotypes, and minimize identity contingencies in the classroom.

Anti-Racism Training

It is not enough to know about racism; each educator must attend and participate in simulations of oppression and marginalization.

Socially Just Curricula

Collect and analyze supplemental curricula within discipline content areas for representation and empowerment of the marginalized within each academic discipline.

Culturally Responsive Instructional Strategies and Classroom Management

Explicit training for and implementation of a trauma-informed culturally responsive instructional strategies and classroom management with substantive cognitive coaching from trained facilitators to support implementation with fidelity and accountability.

Inclusive and Democratized Community of Learners

Strategically construct a democratized learning community (see Figure 12.1) with a comprehensive knowledge of students’ lived experiences, full representation of each social identity present in the community, and application of content to everyday lived experiences of our students.

Praxis for Urban Educators This intense professional development is not available in a 1-day workshop. Instead, a week of intense instruction on social justice, oppression and marginalization, implicit and explicit bias, and socialization is needed. Professional development should continue throughout the school year with facilitators and/ or academic coaches working in classrooms with teachers until their instructional practices become second nature (Garmston & Wellman, 2009).

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Strategies for Educators’ Social-Emotional Well-Being and Student Social-Emotional Well-Being Providing trauma-informed educational opportunities for students in urban settings is equally effective as those for students in suburban or rural settings. These strategies offer an additional layer to support the relaxation of the nervous system caused by toxic stress. The educators’ ability to self-regulate and pace is key in maintaining empathy within the learning environment. It is invaluable that educators remember that the process of educating and growing a child is as valuable as the product. Be mindful of countertransference. Deconstruct and create awareness for the internal process you are experiencing as you work with your students (Jennings, 2019). Often, the assumption is that educators are not victims of trauma themselves but somehow removed from this possibility. In the infamous study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2019) on ACEs, 64% of the 17,000 participants had at least one ACE. As educators, our interactions with students are invaluable and often can soothe a student experiencing a trauma response or retraumatization. It is vital that educators understand that for students with one ACE, and in cases of students in urban settings more than one ACE, we must provide clear information and choices to our students. Using our leadership as educators, we can empower our students and remove the belief in perpetual victimhood. With compassion and patience, as educators we must be willing to repeat information as necessary and write it down for students when needed (Jennings, 2019). One of the most important things an educator can accomplish is to be aware of your own defenses. Your own anxieties and wish to control the outcome can often hinder your clarity within an interaction with the student. Finally, be aware of compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue can be defined as victim blaming, dismissiveness, savior complexes, taking on your client’s/patient’s battles, and so on (Walker, 2014). This phenomenon tends to affect the helper-authority figures the most, resulting in burnout and mental health impacts. As educators, we give so much of ourselves to this work that we must protect ourselves from this level of fatigue and burnout. Those behaviors listed above can also retraumatize or escalate a student having a trauma response.

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As human beings, we are always better when we are on our game. When working with trauma survivors, we must be grounded, healthy, and alive. This comes with an appropriate application of self-care. Our physical bodies need nutrition, exercise, sleep, and relaxation. Our emotional parts of ourselves require personal and professional wellbeing, physical activity, and soul nourishment. These strategies and professional development for urban educators are both a goal and a process. Teaching is a social enterprise laden with moral responsibility. As teacher-learners, we explore the cultural diversity in our society, our schools, and in ourselves. This requires the dispositions, cultural knowledge, and competencies to adopt curriculum and instructional skills for a culturally responsive classroom practice. Becoming more informed about the experiences of oppressed people ideally will lead to each educator’s praxis—a social consciousness combined with a plan for social action. When educators experience such praxis, they become better prepared to be leaders in schools.

References American Civil Liberties Union. (2018). Talking points: The school-to-prison pipeline. https://www.theotx.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/TalkingPoints_School toPrisonPipeline_ACLU.pdf Bell, L. E., Goodman, D. J., & Ouellett, M. L. (2016). Design and facilitation. In M. Adams & L. A. Bell (Eds.), Teaching for diversity and social justice (3rd ed., pp. 55–93). Routledge. Campano, G. (2007). Honoring student stories. Educational Leadership, 65(2), 48–54. http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/oct07/vol65/ num02/Honoring-Student-Stories.aspx Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019). Preventing adverse childhood experiences (ACEs): Leveraging the best available evidence. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/ pdf/preventingACES.pdf Dumas, M. J. (2015). Against the dark: Antiblackness in education policy and discourse. Theory Into Practice, 55(1), 11–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/00405841.2016.1116852 Garmston, R. J., & Wellman, B. M. (2009). The adaptive school: A sourcebook for developing collaborative groups (2nd ed.). Christopher-Gordon Publishers. Goals 2000: Educate America Act, H.R. 1804 [Archived]. (1994). https://www2. ed.gov/legislation/GOALS2000/TheAct/index.html hooks, b. (1994). Teaching to transgress: Education as the practice of freedom. Routledge.

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Jennings, P. A. (2019). The trauma-sensitive classroom: Building resilience with compassionate teaching. Norton Professional Books. Ladson-Billings, G. (1995). Toward a theory of culturally relevant pedagogy. American Educational Research Journal, 32(3), 465–491. https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312 032003465 LeBron, C. J. (2017). The making of Black Lives Matter: A brief history of an idea. Oxford University Press. Meiners, E. R. (2007). Right to be hostile: Schools, prisons, and the making of public enemies. Routledge. National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. (2014). Excessive stress disrupts the architecture of the developing brain. Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/wp3/ Ravitch, D. (2011). The death and life of the great American school system: How testing and choice are undermining education. Basic Books. Schwartz, R., & Reiser, L. (2001). Zero tolerance as mandatory sentencing. In W. Ayers, R. Ayers, & B. Dohrn (Eds.). Zero tolerance: resisting the drive for punishment in our schools. A Handbook for Parents, Students, Educators, and Citizens. New York, NY: New Press. Walker, P. (2014). Complex PTSD: From surviving to thriving. Lafayette, CA: Azure Coyote Publishing.

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CHAPTER 13

The Need for a New Trauma-Informed Framework: Integrating Social Justice Education Brianne Kramer

It is important for teachers to adopt trauma-informed practices (TIPs) centered on social justice education (SJE) to create an equitable classroom in which everyone’s voice and presence are respected and reduces other forms of trauma students may be experiencing. This chapter proposes a new framework for TIPs that is grounded in SJE. As more schools work to implement socio-emotional learning and utilize trauma-informed practices in the classroom, programs that are focusing on trauma and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been criticized due to the initial study not including other forms of trauma students are experiencing, a lack of classroom focus, and the deficit perspectives through which some TIPs programs view student behavior (Gaffney, 2019; Khasnabis & Goldin, 2020; Pyscher & Crampton, 2020; Wade et al., 2016; White et al., 2019; Winninghoff, 2020). Although some TIPs may work well for any type of trauma, only utilizing these practices in a classroom does not extend to larger, systematic problems that could be exacerbating trauma.

Trauma-Informed Practices The ACEs study conducted in the mid-1990s was the first of its kind to connect adult health outcomes with trauma experienced in childhood. This study set the tone for interventions to prevent ACEs to follow a medical model,

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even when applied to schools. While there is evidence that TIPs can make a difference in the classroom climate and student behavior (Bell et al., 2013; Cavanaugh, 2016; Chafouleas et al., 2016), there is concern that the medical model ACEs were founded upon can lead to more negative than positive effects for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) students and students in poverty. This section discusses how trauma-informed practices emerged primarily from a medical model which leads to marginalization of certain students, a lack of focus on systemic racism and oppression, and teachers developing a deficit perspective as examined in the following.  There is a lack of consideration for equity issues regarding race and social class that result in further dividing students. One critique centers on how ACEs based on the medical model may provide the idea that students with ACEs need to be “fixed,” particularly if they are from a minoritized population (Pyscher & Crampton, 2020; White et al., 2019). The ACE questionnaire itself is problematic because marking an item off on the list does not provide any context to what the person taking it has truly experienced (White et al., 2019). Furthermore, on the ACEs survey, there are no questions regarding trauma that is experienced outside of the home, despite many children experiencing trauma in society (White et al., 2019). Because the survey looks at only the child’s home life and not greater systems outside the home, it only focuses on the microsystem of Bronfenbrenner’s (2005) ecological theory, ignoring the three other systems that interact within an individual’s life. If we fail to look at all the other parts of the ecological model, then the focus and intervention is on the individual rather than the traumatic source.  More recently, an updated ACEs survey has been used to fill some of the gaps of the original survey. Wade et al. (2016) created the Extended ACE questions developed from surveying themes in the literature and during a program with youth in Philadelphia. The Extended ACE questions use a scale instead of the standard yes/no response that the original ACEs survey contains and focus on experiences based on racism, neighborhood violence, the safety of one’s neighborhood, bullying, and interaction with the foster care system (Wade et al., 2016, p. 139). The addition of these questions provides more information and captures experiences within a much larger population than the original survey and addresses issues of racism and poverty. Adding these topics into the existing ACEs survey that is widely used should be a priority of organizations

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and researchers that regularly work with and study ACEs. Without including extended questions, data are incomplete, and proper trauma-informed practices and systems cannot be implemented.  The solutions that TIPs focus on primarily target individual behavior and outcomes. By focusing solely on individuals and not the system, schools are oversimplifying trauma (Khasnabis & Goldin, 2020; Stearns, 2020). While teachers may have found some success by focusing on individual students, it is important to also consider how a “diagnosis” of trauma is used in the classroom and in the school system as a whole. In many cases, there is increased surveillance on students who have high ACE scores or who have been diagnosed with trauma (White et al., 2019). The idea of keeping an eye on a student with trauma or specific risk factors is not generally questioned by educators because of safety concerns and the potential to develop relationships with students. However, this is not the experience many BIPOC students have after being labeled as having experienced trauma or ACEs.  The use of TIPs focusing on the individual may unintentionally lead to further marginalization for BIPOC students. When teachers ignore social conditions that create marginalization for BIPOC students or students in poverty, it can lead to further labeling of these student identities and silences forms of resistance that students may be exhibiting towards a system of education that does not include them (Pyscher & Crampton, 2020; Winninghoff, 2020). Many times, educators can fall into a mindset where BIPOC students who exhibit signs of trauma or ACEs are seen as representative of their entire racial group or social class. This can lead to students and their families being held responsible when the TIPs used in the classroom do not work, because teachers fear the appearance of not having control in their classroom, especially when it could be reflected in their evaluations (Khasnabis & Goldin, 2020).  Because there may not be a good understanding of how trauma can be experienced in greater society, some teachers may view students who have experienced trauma or ACEs as damaged or beyond intervention, particularly in minoritized student populations. As Gaffney (2019) states “but childhood trauma resulting specifically from racism, homophobia, or other systemic injustices that weren’t articulated when the ten ACEs were established more than 20 years ago still go uncounted in a student’s ACE score. The next logical step—ACEs centered on society—was never established” (para. 7). Adverse

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childhood experiences do not account for the systemic racism and oppression BIPOC students and students in poverty experience. Social factors affect students in the classroom as well as in the home and greater society; therefore, the solution to these issues must be at the systematic level. If educators use TIPs, they must focus on racial bias and the systemic inequity that cause, as well as, intensify trauma (Blitz et al., 2016; Goldin & Khasnabis, 2020). There have been several studies that have focused on BIPOC populations’ ACE survey results, which is important given that the original study focused on a majority White population. Cronholm et al.’s (2015) study of ACEs relied on an expanded ACEs survey that was given to participants who were from a predominantly Black community. Their findings showed that a higher population of his participants held higher ACE scores than the population of the initial predominantly White ACEs study. However, the sample also showed gender, race, and poverty factored into a higher risk for the expanded ACE survey items but not for the conventional ACE survey items, which may point to the differences between the populations surveyed in each study (Cronholm et al., 2015). By refusing to change the standard by which we develop TIPs, we may inadvertently retraumatize students.  Another issue that arises due to the lack of focus on race and class issues at the societal level is that it is common for educators to develop a deficit perspective of BIPOC students and students in poverty. Khasnabis and Goldin (2020) found “treating trauma as only an individual-level problem, when it is not, has the unfortunate and perhaps somewhat predictable effect of blaming children and families for challenges they did not cause” (p. 46). Teachers hold many ideas about students that are steeped in stereotypes and biases and may complain about students not having necessary supplies, food at home, or parents that may not be as involved in school events or with academics as other parents and then connect these aspects with students’ intelligence or social-emotional learning (Blitz et al., 2016; Pyscher & Crampton, 2020). By understanding the systemic racism and oppression that exists for BIPOC and students in poverty, teachers can begin to rethink their approach to TIPs in the classroom. Utilizing SJE and restorative justice practices will work to achieve this goal. 

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Social Justice Education If teachers are utilizing SJE frameworks that work to create equity in the classroom, it may mitigate some of the gaps that can be found in trauma-informed practices. While some classrooms use trauma-informed pedagogy, all classrooms should be rooted in SJE in order to benefit all students. If a classroom is rooted in this type of education from the beginning, any other practices, pedagogies, or elements that are added into the classroom will complement it and work to benefit students even more. In order to best understand social justice and the implications for TIPs, the framework is defined, various SJE approaches are identified, and suggestions for how teachers might embed social justice into their classrooms are provided. In addition, ideas about teacher neutrality and identity for students and teachers are discussed.  Social justice education is focused on creating equitable classrooms that acknowledge individual and institutional oppression to create a meaningful learning experience that works to benefit each student. SJE involves confronting structures of oppression, power, and privilege and critically examining the relationships these structures have in schools and the greater society (Applebaum, 2009; Cohen et al., 2013; Hackman, 2005). It is important that teachers and students both work within an SJE framework, although this might look different based on the role one has in the classroom. Teachers should work to help all students, but particularly White students, to understand how racism is systemic, how race is socially constructed, how Whiteness as the invisible norm systemically constitutes “difference,” and that White people can be complicit in sustaining the system unintentionally—even when they are not aware that they do so, and especially, even when they think they are morally good. (Applebaum, 2009, p. 399)

There are many stereotypes and deficit perspectives students and teachers bring into the classroom, so it is important that it is grounded in critical thinking and multiple viewpoints (Cochran-Smith et al., 2009). These are essential teachings for social justice. While some may believe that SJE is primarily shouldered by the teacher and is only about treating students equally, students need to have

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an active role in the education happening in the classroom and use their talents and strengths (Hackman, 2005; Nieto, 2006). While both students and teachers have an active role in the classroom grounded in social justice education, it is up to the teacher to create that environment in their classroom.  Teaching for social justice encompasses many aspects of the classroom, including curriculum, relationships, and dialogue. Teachers must first introduce students to the basic tenets of social justice for students to be able to understand the dialogue that happens in a classroom focused on social justice and to value the diversity that exists in the world (Cohen et al., 2013; Picower, 2012). Social justice should also be embedded in each course taught. SJE can work to develop and further relationships between teacher faculty and between student peers. In Picower’s (2011) study, participants were current teachers who formed collaborative relationships in order to work on further developing ideas for their own classrooms. These groups also allowed teachers to think critically about others’ ideas that were different from their own and could be furthered to extend partnerships into the community (O’Connor & Daniello, 2019; Picower, 2011). Teachers can utilize their colleagues to discuss issues within their community and work to create shared understandings that will further their own and their students’ learning. Students’ peer relationships can also benefit from an SJE framework being utilized in the classroom. In Cohen et al. (2013), the researchers reported that students described it as a personally liberating experience as they developed their own social justice consciousness and were able to discuss inequities they saw in their own lives and in others’ lives. This can only be accomplished if the material connects to students’ lived experiences and supports larger efforts for social change (Cochran-Smith et al., 2009; Hackman, 2005). In Picower’s (2012) study of elementary teachers who used social justice practices, two important elements she identified hold specific implications for students: students valuing themselves and learning to respect the diversity of the world around them. The first element holds importance when also considering trauma-informed practices. It is important for students to learn more about their identities and cultivate a sense of pride in those identities (Picower, 2012). Part of why students may disengage in the classroom or act out is because they do not feel respected or valued. If they do not see their identities represented in the classroom or they are ignored completely, then there is no reason for them to be invested in anything that happens there. Sometimes,

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this message that their identities and ideas are not welcome in the classroom can be communicated by peers, but many times it is upheld by the teacher. For the second element, Picower (2012) notes that students need to have opportunities where they listen to their peers’ experiences. As these opportunities continue, teachers will be able to create more collaborative and welcoming environments for all students, particularly BIPOC students. When approaching a social justice framework, it is important for teachers to understand several components of schooling and greater society. Teachers need to accept that they are complicit in an institution that has served to uphold White supremacy and exclude or limit minoritized populations. Teachers need to think about who is privileged and who is left out when thinking about methods, pedagogy, and curriculum in the classroom. All student voices in the classroom should be heard and valued, and student identities should be upheld (Nieto, 2006). This is not easy or comfortable for most teachers. In fact, many teachers find resistance from colleagues, students, and the community when focusing on the realities of White privilege and the disenfranchisement minoritized populations have faced and continue to face (Applebaum, 2009). It is vital that teachers be color-conscious in order to create a classroom grounded in equity. The National Center for Education Statistics’ (2020) report The Condition of Education identified the changing demographics seen in American public schools, specifically that the percentage of White students enrolled was lower in 2017 when compared to 2000 with gains higher in every racial/ethnic category except for White students. This change is projected to continue over the next few decades.  Many teachers believe that they must remain neutral in the classroom which dissuades them from teaching what they perceive as controversial issues about race, oppression, and privilege. Applebaum (2009) asked: “What does teacher neutrality, in the sense of fairness and evenhandedness, require in a classroom where conditions of power and privilege operate, although often not acknowledged, just as they do in the larger society?” (p. 383). The power and privilege built into institutions founded on White supremacy are constantly reproduced in schools, primarily because of the oppressive structure education was also founded upon. If teachers continue to uphold these systems, they are continuing to disenfranchise minoritized populations in their classrooms. Many teachers proclaim to have a colorblind mentality where they treat all students “equally,”

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but they are mistaking equality for equity, believing this is an act of fairness, even when they might concede that race is a factor in many things (Blaisdell, 2005; Hackman, 2005). The idea of wanting to treat all students as equal guides their thinking, but it is also a large part of the problem. Even the teachers who reject colorblindness could not be described as color-conscious because they fail to see how their teaching has been developed and guided by Whiteness (Blaisdell, 2005). Teachers also try to knowingly, or unknowingly, protect their racial privilege. In a study of in-service teachers taking an SJE class in a graduate program, one student tried to answer course questions in a way that they did not have to confront the topic of race (Matias et al., 2017). Teachers must be willing to confront these uncomfortable topics in the classroom; otherwise, they are just working to uphold the systems as they exist, disenfranchising a growing population of their students. Another student in the study was annoyed by the questions asked in the course, did not understand the pointed nature of the questions about race, and described feeling that he was being attacked for being White (Matias et al., 2017). Although both teachers eventually were able to grasp the ideas the course embodied, they are representative of many teachers who are trying to avoid having these critical conversations in the classrooms and other spaces they can influence.  White people, in general, have difficulty talking about issues of race because of the racial privilege they receive. In Pennington and Brock’s (2012) study, White teachers stated that they were identifying themselves by race for the first time in their life during an activity in their graduate courses. Because of this, they fail to understand the effect race has on the daily lives of BIPOC. In a study of university students’ experiences with race within schools, many participants described how they experienced microaggressions geared toward their intelligence—both deficit perspectives and the model minority myth attributed to Asian students (Sue et al., 2009). These microaggressions can have an influential cumulative effect on the way someone views their intelligence and their place in the school. BIPOC students also identified that their racial reality was denied or rejected by peers, which was stated outright or casually through body language like eye-rolling, shifting, or looking away when in dialogue in the classroom (Sue et al., 2009). Because many of these denials or rejections can be so subtle, it is important that the teacher plays an active role in this dialogue. BIPOC students felt angry when their integrity was called into question, were anxious about specific outcomes,

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and felt drained after dealing with constant microaggressions, and they had even stronger negative reactions when the professors did not moderate the dialogue well or completely ignored realities that were shared (Sue et al., 2009).  Teachers may also tend to favor students who come from the same racial background as them, especially if they are White. Planning the classroom environment and curriculum often happens through teachers’ own personal identities because one cannot cast this off, so teachers tend to give priority to students with privileged identities, which harms minoritized populations and further oppresses them in the classroom (Applebaum, 2009). This also furthers institutionalized racism. Because most teachers think primarily about the curriculum, it is a key piece of ensuring social justice is present in the classroom. Curriculum may not represent the history and experiences of BIPOC students, especially in schools that are predominately White. Teachers need to ensure that BIPOC individuals are accurately and appropriately represented in their curriculum, and not simply during Black History Month or when the first Thanksgiving tale is told. Teachers need to be intentional about decolonizing their curriculum and including BIPOC people from the beginning of their planning, not simply as an addition or afterthought. Classrooms are racial spaces, whether or not teachers want to view them as such. It is important that all students see themselves represented in the classroom and feel their identity is valued. Not having all students represented in the classroom can result in retraumatization. This is also why it is extremely important to utilize social justice education in conjunction with trauma-informed practices. One cannot be completely successful in the classroom without the other.

Developing a New Framework In order to appropriately use trauma-informed practices in the classroom equitably and successfully, a new framework needs to be utilized. This new framework should be composed of SJE and TIPs. By being educated and teaching through a social justice lens, teachers will use pedagogy that focuses on all students in the classroom. Pairing an SJE lens with TIPs will fill the gap that currently exists in the TIP/ACEs model. There are several ways we can work within education systems to make this framework a reality. 

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Creating a system with a social justice focus is a multistep approach. First, social justice education must take priority in teacher preparation programs (TPPs) at universities and colleges. While many TPPs have at least one Social Foundations of Education (SFE) course, some do not. It is in these courses where preservice teachers learn about minoritized populations, critical pedagogy, social justice, and antiracist education. SFE courses should be a priority of colleges and departments of education so that teachers can begin planning for an equitable classroom. Second, there has been a continuous narrative that content is the most important aspect of a TPP program since No Child Left Behind was enacted in 2002. It is essential that we shift this perspective to include what is needed to educate and support all students in the classroom equitably. Preservice teachers need to learn more about the people and communities that they will be serving. If they do not understand their students and the community, teachers will not be successful in the classroom because they will leave BIPOC and minoritized students behind. Next, it is imperative that the ideas and pedagogy of social justice not be tied to only one or two courses in TPPs. Every class in a teacher education program should be utilizing social justice and antiracist pedagogy. If it is modeled as well as embedded throughout the program, it will deepen preservice teachers’ commitment to this specific pedagogy and will create teachers who will provide a quality education to each one of their students. Finally, K–12 schools also have a role in introducing and maintaining social justice and antiracist pedagogy in their schools. Educators should ensure that their classrooms are spaces that do not retraumatize minoritized students. They should revise curriculum to ensure a rich, multicultural focus. When designing their classroom environment, teachers should take special care to analyze policies and procedures that may impose harsher consequences on specific student populations so they can be removed or amended. Educators also need to be intentional in learning about the community that surrounds the school. By bringing in aspects of the community from guest speakers to ideas, the students will benefit from a focus on that school–community connection taking priority in the classroom. If these changes in teacher education and K–12 schools are enacted, trauma-informed practices can be enacted in ways that are culturally appropriate and do not serve to disenfranchise BIPOC students and students living in poverty. While trauma-informed practices were built to reduce exclusionary practices, without a social justice framework tied to TIPs, educators are not truly breaking this cycle and working to promote real change.

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Conclusion Current trauma-informed programs used in schools do not always take into account trauma students experience in their communities or racial trauma that occurs through interactions with various institutions. This chapter proposes the creation of a new framework in order to account for all types of trauma, not just the home- or family-based. The current trends toward the use of TIPs and social-emotional learning will continue because of their contribution to student equity. However, it is vital that we consider the needs of students whose trauma or ACE scores are not revealing their actual lived experiences. By creating teachers who embody social justice and antiracist pedagogy and utilize it daily in their classrooms, we can ensure that BIPOC students will not continue to face racial trauma in the classroom by systems that are rooted in White supremacy. The focus needs to be on building this new framework to provide an equitable education for all students in our classrooms nationwide, where all students can succeed.

References Applebaum, B. (2009). Is teaching for social justice a “liberal bias”? Teachers College Record, 111(2), 376–408. https://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentId=15200 Bell, H., Limberg, D., & Robinson, E., III. (2013). Recognizing trauma in the classroom: A practical guide for educators. Childhood Education, 89(3), 139–145. http://10 .1080/00094056.2013.792629 Blaisdell, B. (2005). Seeing every student as a 10: Using critical race theory to engage White teachers’ colorblindness. International Journal of Educational Policy, Research, & Practice, 6(1), 31–50. Blitz, L. V., Anderson, E. M., & Saastamoinen, M. (2016). Assessing perceptions of culture and trauma in an elementary school: Informing a model for culturally responsive trauma-informed schools. The Urban Review, 48(4), 520–542. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-016-0366-9 Bronfenbrenner, U. (2005). Ecological models of human development. In M. Gauvain & M. Cole (Eds.), Readings on the development of children (4th ed., pp. 3–8). Worth.  Cavanaugh, B. (2016). Trauma-informed classrooms and schools. Beyond Behavior, 25(2), 41–46. https://doi.org/10.1177/107429561602500206

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Chafouleas, S. M., Johnson, A. H., Overstreet, S., & Santos, N. M. (2016). Toward a blueprint for trauma-informed service delivery in schools. School Mental Health, 8(1), 144–162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-015-9166-8 Cochran-Smith, M., Shakman, K., Jong, C., Terrell, D. G., Barnatt, J., & McQuillan, P. (2009). Good and just teaching: The case for social justice in teacher education. American Journal of Education, 115(3), 347–377. https://doi.org/10.1086/597493 Cohen, B. D., Tokunaga, T., Colvin, D. J., Mac, J., Martinez, J. S., Leets, C., & Lee, D. H. (2013). When the social justice learning curve isn’t as steep: How a social foundations course changed the conversation. Educational Studies, 49(3), 263–284. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131946.2013.783836 Cronholm, P. F., Forke, C. M., Wade, R., Bair-Merritt, M. H., Davis, M., Harkins-Schwarz, M., Pachter, L. M., & Fein, J. A. (2015). Adverse childhood experiences: Expanding the concept of adversity. American Journal of Preventative Medicine, 49(3), 354–361. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2015.02.001 Gaffney, C. (2019). When schools cause trauma. Teaching Tolerance, 62. https://www. learningforjustice.org/magazine/summer-2019/when-schools-cause-trauma Goldin, S., & Khasnabis, D. (2020, February 19). Trauma-informed practice is a powerful tool. But it’s also incomplete. Education week. https://www.edweek.org/ leadership/opinion-trauma-informed-practice-is-a-powerful-tool-but-its-alsoincomplete/2020/02 Hackman, H. W. (2005). Five essential components for social justice education. Equity & Excellence in Education, 38(2), 103–109. https://doi.org/ 10.1080/1066568 0590935034 Khasnabis, D., & Goldin, S. (2020). Don’t be fooled, trauma is a systemic problem: Trauma as a case of weaponized educational innovation. Bank Street: Occasional Paper Series, 43(5). 44–57. https://educate.bankstreet.edu/occasional-paperseries/vol2020/iss43/5/ Matias, C. E., Henry, A., & Darland, C. (2017). The twin tales of Whiteness: Exploring the emotional roller coaster of teaching and learning about Whiteness. Taboo: The Journal of Culture & Education, 16(1), 7–29. https://doi.org/10.31390/ taboo.16.1.04 National Center for Education Statistics. (2020). The condition of education 2020. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. https://nces. ed.gov/pubs2020/2020144.pdf Nieto, S. (2006, Spring). Teaching as political work: Learning from courageous and caring teachers (Occasional Paper Series). Sarah Lawrence College, Child Development Institute. https://www.sarahlawrence.edu/media/cdi/pdf/ Occasional%20Papers/CDI_Occasional_Paper_2006_Nieto.pdf O’Connor, M. T., & Daniello, F. (2019). From implication to naming: Reconceptualizing school-community partnership literature using a framework nested in

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social justice. School Community Journal, 29(1), 297–316. https://www.adi.org/ journal/2019ss/OConnorDanielloSS2019.pdf Pennington, J. L., & Brock, C. H. (2012). Constructing critical autoethnographic self-studies with white educators. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 25(3), 225–250. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2010.529843 Picower, B. (2011). Learning to teach and teaching to learn: Supporting the development of new social justice educators. Teacher Education Quarterly, 38(4), 7–24. https://www.jstor.org/stable/ 23479628 Picower, B. (2012). Using their words: Six elements of social justice curriculum design for the elementary classroom. International Journal of Multicultural Education, 14(1), 1–17. http://dx.doi.org/10.18251/ijme.v14i1.484 Pyscher, T., & Crampton, A. (2020). Possibilities and problems in trauma-based and social emotional learning programs. Bank Street: Occasional Paper Series, 43(13), 3–9. https://educate.bankstreet.edu/occasional-paper-series/vol2020/ iss43/13/ Stearns, C. (2020). Let them get mad: Using the psychoanalytic frame to rethink social-emotional learning and trauma-informed practice. Bank Street: Occasional Paper Series, 43(3), 23–32. https://educate.bankstreet.edu/occasional-paperseries/vol2020/iss43/3/ Sue, D. W., Lin, A. I., Torino, G. C., Capodilupo, C. M., & Rivera, D. P. (2009). Racial microaggressions and difficult dialogues on race in the classroom. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 15(2), 183–190. https://doi.org/10.1037/ a0014191 Wade, R., Jr., Cronholm, P. F., Fein, J. A., Forke, C. M., Davis, M. B., Harkins-Schwarz, M., Pachter, L. M., & Bair-Merritt, M. H. (2016). Household and communitylevel adverse childhood experiences and adult health outcomes in a diverse urban population. Child Abuse & Neglect, 52, 135–145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. chiabu.2015.11.021 White, S., Edwards, R., Gillies, V., & Wastell, D. (2019). All the ACEs: A chaotic concept for family policy and decision-making? Social Policy and Society, 18(3). https://doi.org/10.1017/s147474641900006x Winninghoff, A. (2020). Trauma by numbers: Warnings against the use of ACE scores in trauma-informed schools. Bank Street: Occasional Paper Series, 43(4), 33–43. https://educate.bankstreet.edu/occasional-paper-series/vol2020/iss43/4/

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CHAPTER 14

rACEsm: Addressing Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) of African American Youth in K–12 Education and Beyond Laura Danforth, John W. Miller, Jr., and Jacqueline Burse

What Are Adverse Childhood Experiences? An adverse childhood experience (ACE) is a traumatic event that a child experiences before their 18th birthday. Conventional ACEs encompass abuse (physical, sexual, emotional), neglect, or household dysfunction (e.g., exposure to maternal violence, parental divorce, caretaker substance abuse, mental illness, suicide, incarceration of a family member) that children encounter (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2019b). In the United States, 46% of children experience at least one ACE, and 22% experience two or more (Bethell et al., 2017). Physical abuse, emotional neglect, and substance abuse are the most common ACEs faced (Fortson et al., 2016). The first large-scale study of ACEs was conducted by the CDC and Kaiser Permanente between 1995 and 1997 (Felitti et al., 1998) and expounds on the long-term effects of trauma experienced in childhood. This study included more than 17,000 individuals and found that two thirds of all participants reported at least one ACE. Furthermore, this study examined the relationship between ACEs and behavioral and health outcomes and found that experiencing one or more ACE can have lasting effects on general well-being in seven specific outcome areas. These areas include injury (e.g., traumatic brain injuries, broken

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bones, etc.), mental health (e.g., depression, anxiety, suicide), maternal health (pregnancy complications, fetal death), infectious disease (HIV, sexually transmitted diseases [STDs]), chronic disease (e.g., cancer, diabetes, etc.), risky behaviors (e.g., alcohol and drug abuse, risky sexual behaviors), and decreased opportunities in academic success, occupation, and opportunity to earn a living wage (CDC, 2019a). It is important to note that all of these outcomes also increase risk for premature death (Bright et al., 2016; CDC, 2019a). Furthermore, the Kaiser study found that many of these longitudinal consequences (e.g., workplace absenteeism and increased costs in health care, criminal justice, mental health) directly correlate with our health, economic, and social expenses (Felitti et al., 1998). While the Kaiser study helped highlight ACEs as a significant public health issue, it is crucial to note that 75% of the initial study participants were White, mostly middle- and upper middle-class, college-educated, employed, and had sufficient health care coverage (Felitti et al., 1998). The largest ACEs study to date is the 2011–2014 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey (BRFSS). While African Americans only represent 8.4% of survey participants using the BRFSS and remain significantly underrepresented in ACEs research, results convey that African American youth are at higher risk for ACEs as well as detrimental behavioral and health outcomes (Fortson et al., 2016).

ACEs in Educational Settings of African American Children Not only are African American children exposed to risk factors that increase the likelihood of conventional ACES, they also experience expanded ACEs of racism and discrimination, specifically within K–12 educational settings.

Disconnect Between African American Students and School Staff When compared to White students, African American students are more likely to characterize relationships with their teachers as disconnected, contentious, or nonexistent (Spilt & Hughes, 2015). These sentiments concerning relationships from the perspective of African American students have been echoed in other studies as well, with African American students reporting that

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the majority of their K–12 teachers either completed a minimal amount of their job responsibilities (e.g., doing the “bare minimum,” providing little personal assistance or academic guidance, being there to “draw a paycheck,” etc.), treated them unfairly based on race (e.g., misjudging academic ability, spending less class time with minority students) or both (Danforth & Miller, 2018). School counselors are also less available to students of color, as schools with high-minority student enrollment have a counselor-to-student ratio that is 1:1000, which is twice the national average of 1:470 (U.S. Department of Education, 2011). African American students are also more likely to be told that they “likely won’t be admitted to college,” by school staff, and less likely to receive assistance with the college admission process from school counselors, specifically the “information and knowledge about how to acquire a college education and achieve educational goals” (Perna, 2000, p. 136; Harper, 2012; Spilt & Hughes, 2015).

Educational Discipline Disparity There are minimal racial differences in punishable behaviors (Bullara, 1993; Skiba et al., 2002), yet African Americans are punished more severely than White students for committing minor school rule violations, such as being out of dress code, tardiness, excessive noise, and, most frequently, for what teachers consider as “defiance or disrespect” in the classroom (American Psychological Association Zero Tolerance Task Force, 2008). African American students are approximately 16% of the total high school population yet are suspended or expelled at a rate three times higher than White students (U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, 2014). In order to respond to increases in juvenile crime rate in the mid-1990s, many schools adopted and utilized “zero-tolerance policies” to discipline students (Kang-Brown et al., 2013). By 1997, 79% of schools were using these policies, a collection of severe “predetermined consequences” for students engaging in any type of disruptive behavior that puts other students at risk or interrupts the learning process (American Psychological Association Zero Tolerance Task Force, 2008, p. 853). Though these policies intended to create a climate conducive to learning and to reduce discipline disparities across race, they have actually perpetuated the disproportionate amount of African American students who are suspended and expelled (American Psychological Association Zero Tolerance Task Force, 2008).

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Gregory and Weinstein (2008) report that teachers identify defiance and disrespect as the most commonly occurring problem behaviors displayed by students, especially African Americans. Children who are from a different racial and cultural background than their teachers “may be perceived to be the cause of more problems in school than their White student peers who share a common cultural background to the teacher” (Bullara, 1993, p. 357). Because 84% of teachers in the United States are White, even in racially segregated schools, African American students are at an increased risk of having their behaviors either completely misunderstood or misdiagnosed in the classroom. This results in an increase in the frequency of discipline, as well as the perpetuation of the assumption that African American students misbehave more than White students (Feistritzer, 2011). The lack of teacher preparation in how to manage classroom behavior, the absence of culturally sensitive and competent discipline practices, as well as internalized racial stereotypes, all contribute to excessive discipline referrals for African American students resulting in suspension, expulsion, and the school-to-prison pipeline (American Psychological Association Zero Tolerance Task Force, 2008; Bullara, 1993; Ferguson, 2001; Graham & Lowery, 2004).

Curriculum Violence as Racial Trauma Although it does not have to be deliberate, curriculum violence is predicated on educators’ and curriculum writers’ construction of academic programming and classroom lessons that “ignore or compromise the intellectual and psychological well-being of learners” (Ighodora & Wiggan, 2011, p. 2). Curriculum violence adversely affects students intellectually and emotionally and is most perceptible in courses that are supposed to teach students about difficult histories (i.e., slavery, the Civil war, Jim Crow laws, the civil rights movement; Jones, 2020). There are numerous instances of curriculum trauma in schools, including assignments that encouraged students to complete journal prompts from the perspectives of “slaves or slave owners,” describing their daily activities before the Civil War (Glover & Aunkst, 2020), and assignments that require participation in mock “slave auctions” (Sabataso, 2020). There are history texts that refer to enslaved Africans as “immigrants,” or “indentured servants,” offering White redemptive accounts of American history (i.e., praising Thomas Jefferson but never acknowledging that he owned roughly 600 enslaved Africans). There are

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also texts that present the Civil War as an issue revolving around “states’ rights,” against Northern control rather than acknowledging the influence of White supremacy on the way the American South functions (Kendi, 2019). These same texts tend to portray the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s as the campaign that ended racism for good, and polarize important civil rights leaders (i.e., Martin Luther King is portrayed as the symbol of colorblindness and peace while Malcolm X is seen as militant and violent; Kendi, 2019). Furthermore, rather than using current events to supplement curriculum, build critical thinking skills, and foster positive classroom conversations, some classroom teachers and school administrators tend to remain silent on issues that affect African Americans (e.g., the continuous targeting, terrorization, and murder of African Americans by police). This is because teachers (particularly White teachers) are socialized to avoid conversations about race to demonstrate that they themselves are not racist (Williams et al, 2018). This results in the continued acceptance of institutional racism and continued school culture where White comfort is deemed more important than Black life (Department of Education, 2016; Castagno, 2008) and intensifies school-based racial trauma that is pervasive in educational settings (Dumas, 2014).

School-Based Interventions to Mitigate Expanded ACEs of Racism Racial Trauma and Toxic Stress Physiologically speaking, we all experience various forms of stress. Having stressful experiences in healthy environments teaches us how to effectively cope with challenges and is an essential aspect of childhood (Walkley & Cox, 2013). For example, go back to your childhood and imagine a situation where you felt threatened. Perhaps it was the angry bark of a neighbor’s dog or the feeling you felt when you looked around the department store and realized that you could not find your parent. Thoughts of dread may have filled your head, your heart rate increased, you may have felt flustered and maybe have begun to sweat. In those moments, you experienced an increase in adrenaline and cortisol production, which send “fight or flight” messages to the brain. These stress responses increase

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heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing, dilate blood vessels and bronchioles in the lungs to allow more oxygen to the brain and muscles; sharpen our senses (particularly hearing and sight); and keep us on high alert until the threat is over (Morsy & Rothstein, 2019). However, if you remained in any situation or variety of difficult circumstances over an extended period, the stress that could have been helpful becomes toxic. Frequent frightening or threatening situations cause an over or underproduction of necessary hormones, can diminish brain activity, stunt brain growth, elevate blood pressure for sustained and unhealthy periods, disrupt metabolic systems, compromise the immune system, and increase vulnerability to infection and inflammation (Morsy & Rothstein, 2019). Without intervention, this type of toxic stress increases the risk for mental health issues (depressive disorders, behavioral dysregulation, PTSD, psychosis, alcoholism, increased suicide attempts). Toxic stress also increases risk for cancer, heart disease, infectious disease, and obesity (Shonkoff et al., 2012). Because of the experience of race-based traumatic stress caused by both individual-level experiences of discrimination (i.e., hate crimes, microaggressions, etc.) and systemic racism (e.g., police violence, insufficient healthcare access, poverty, segregation, etc.), African American youth and adults are at risk for experiencing toxic stress, or prolonged activation of the body’s stress response without allowing the body to recover fully (Franke, 2014). The common, mundane, day-to-day stress of racism experienced by African Americans is “almost taken for granted,” has a “harsh impact on the psyche and world-view” of African Americans, and is “detracting, energy-consuming,” and consistently “environmentally-induced and fostered” (Carroll, 1998, p. 271). By including racism as an expanded ACE, scientists are catching up to a reality that many African Americans have known since 1619; racism unchecked never goes away, and it may ultimately lead to death.

Creating Trauma-Informed Classrooms In order to address the cognitive, behavioral, and health harm that racebased trauma and toxic stress provokes, it is essential that teachers turn their classrooms into trauma-informed spaces, especially because schools themselves can be spaces that cause or exacerbate trauma and toxic stress (Morsy & Rothstein, 2019). There are six major tenets of trauma-informed care (i.e., safety;

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trustworthiness and transparency; peer support; collaboration and mutuality, empowerment, voice, and choice; acknowledgment of cultural, historical, and gender issues), all of which can be adapted and used in schools (CDC, 2018). Safety Teachers, school staff, and administrators have a responsibility to allow students to define what makes them feel physically and psychologically safe in schools, and then cultivate an environment reflective of this (National Child Traumatic Stress Network [NCTSN], 2015). African American students account for 34% of school arrests and 25% of school referrals to law enforcement, despite representing 15% of enrolled students (Education Week Research Center, 2017; Nance, 2015). Because police presence in schools increase students’ fears of being victimized (Theriot & Orme, 2014), and because African American students and their families are more likely to witness and experience police violence and racial profiling by law enforcement, it is essential that school administration and teachers advocate that all police presence is removed from schools (Morsy & Rothstein, 2019). This is especially true since 30% of schools in the United States employ law enforcement officers, which directly increases the likelihood of experiencing toxic stress for African American students (Boyd et al., 2016; Corley, 2018). It is important to note that the assumed major role of school resource officers or school police revolves around crisis de-escalation using nonviolent tactics, attempting to reduce teen suicide, working with students considered at risk, and other prevention services that increase the health and safety of school (Sulkowski & Lazarus, 2014). However, school resource officers tend to escalate situations with students while harming them physically and emotionally (Helm, 2016; Kim, 2015; Vera & Chen, 2019). Removing police from schools and replacing them with licensed social workers could help facilitate feelings of psychological and physical safety in schools. In order to increase psychological safety in schools, teachers must also ensure that they create “safe and brave environments” and acknowledge the impact that various racial and historical trauma have on African American students (NCTSN, 2015). Understanding how event exposure to traumatic events affect academic and social functioning for African American youth at school and acknowledging that indirect exposure via television or social media increases the likelihood of maladaptive behaviors (e.g., withdrawal, distractibility,

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opposition, etc.), as well as posttraumatic stress symptomology is key (First, et al., 2020). Teachers can increase their ability to de-escalate behavioral responses to trauma by developing emotional connections with students, removing the student from any overwhelming condition or classroom environment before arbitrarily requesting that they focus on schoolwork, and by proactively developing candid and open relationships with African American students’ families experiencing threatening or traumatic situations in their communities (Morsy & Rothstein, 2019). Trustworthiness and Transparency Because of the history of the racist and discriminatory nature of public education in the United States, schools must intentionally build trust with African American students and their families. To do so, educators must acknowledge systemic racism, as well as national and local instances of it, both in and out of the classroom. Offering empathy and support to students and families and actively acknowledging the pain and distress that racism evokes is also a way to build trust. It should be said, however, that educators cannot simply wait for the next tragedy or major national event to build these relationships, and that facilitating trust has to be part of the organizational culture (NCTSN, 2015). Furthermore, all organizational policy decisions should be made with complete transparency and involvement from African American students and families. School administrators should prioritize the input from African American students and ask them how they have experienced or are currently experiencing racism at school from other students, teachers, or staff. Schools must commit to an implementation of assessing their school’s climate (i.e., listen for casual pejorative/racist language in classrooms and hallways, ensure school events like spirit days are not steeped in stereotypes and bigotry, etc.), as well as publicly denouncing racist acts rather than keeping them quiet, actively punishing racist students and teachers (as administrators too often ignore these instances until they are repeatedly asked to address them), and supporting targeted students (Pollard, 1989; Willoughby, 2012). School administrators should make a commitment to not only collect important data surrounding school climate but should also commit to publish and share said data with the public and reflect on what could be changed to improve school climate and culture for African American students, specifically (NCTSN, 2015). For school boards

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and superintendents, this means working actively to develop clear expectations and statements regarding how reports of racism will be addressed, enforcing consequences for violations of those expectations, and rewarding teachers and staff who are actively trying to reduce racism in their schools (Pollard, 1989). This also means that school boards and superintendents should prioritize racial diversity in these positions, as school board members and administration are more likely to be White, wealthy, and live in high-income neighborhoods (Bartanen et al., 2018). Peer Support Peer social support is considered a strong protective factor for youth facing adversity in and out of school (Dockett & Perry, 2009; Ladd et al., 2006). Peer support proves to be particularly important for African American youth who may experience differential treatment from teachers, school staff, and other students as this type of support helps build positive academic self-concepts and promotes academic success (Brittian & Gray, 2017). Although students should be encouraged to independently build peer support networks that mitigate the effects of trauma, this process should be facilitated and encouraged by teachers and is a way for students to build mutual trust, establish safe spaces, and promote healing (Hardy, 2013; NCTSM, 2015). For example, teachers can help students design and organize student-led groups, events, and dialogues regarding current events, mutual interests, or groups dedicated to equity and inclusion. Assisting and enabling students to develop unique opportunities to create systems of support among themselves (and providing classroom time and/or financial assistance to do so), can help validate their worldviews and create space to cope and heal (NCTSM, 2015). Collaboration and Mutuality Because feelings of powerlessness are prevalent in trauma survivors, meaningful sharing of power and decision-making can facilitate healing for those who have experienced trauma (Caplan, 2006). Leveling power dynamics between students, parents, teachers, school staff, and administration and creating a true democratic dialogue surrounding issues that matter to students can help educators understand policies or practices that may exacerbate race-based trauma (SAMHSA’s Trauma and Social Justice Strategic Initiative. [SAMHSA], 2014).

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For example, in order to address race-based discipline disparities plaguing their school, a school principal set up summits to discuss these disparities from the student and family perspective (Fitzgerald et al., 2016). The summits were held on neutral ground (e.g., local churches, community centers) and the principal resisted the role of facilitator or czar. Children and adults were encouraged to speak freely, with no consequences or judgment surrounding language, outlook, or suggestions. Students and parents came up with approaches to classroom management and discipline that they felt were appropriate, safe, and equitable. Listening to students and their families flattened oppressive power structures, created mutual trust and partnership, encouraged reciprocal relationships, and reduced discipline disparity within the school (Fitzgerald et al., 2016). Additionally, sharing of power means that schools must diversify their teachers, staff, and administration. Currently, 51% of K–12 students are White, yet White teachers represent 84% of the teacher workforce. Conversely, 16% of K–12 students are Black or African American, yet only 7% of the teacher workforce and 10% of school principals identify as Black or African American (U.S. Department of Education, 2016). Intentionally recruiting and sharing decision-making power with African American educators is necessary. African American teachers and administrators are more likely to improve school experiences for African American youth, directly challenge racism in schools, serve as advocates and cultural brokers (e.g., serving as paid consultants for White educators, taking on paid leadership roles within schools aiming to become trauma-informed, culturally competent spaces). African American teachers and administrators are also able to develop trusting relationships with students and families and increase academic success for African American students (U.S. Department of Education, 2016). Empowerment, Voice, and Choice In order to help African American students cope with racial trauma, both students and staff must feel empowered and safe to do so (SAMHSA’s Trauma and Social Justice Strategic Initiative, 2014). As stated previously, teachers (particularly White teachers) must be given the time, space, empowerment, and organizational support to understand blatant racial issues, and institutionalized/structural racism (in and out of our educational systems). White teachers must also understand how White racial privilege has influenced their practice

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(Neville et al., 2000). Once this work begins, teachers will be better equipped to use a true strengths-based approach in their classrooms, rather than focusing on perceived deficits in African American youth related to trauma (e.g., focusing on perceived “negative” behaviors or coping; labeling children as “at-risk youth”; Brunson-Day, 2013). Although there may be a shared, collective experience of racism for African American youth and families, it is essential that each student’s individual experience is acknowledged and explored. Because choice is an important part of a trauma-informed classroom, African American students should be given the space to unpack and share their experiences if they choose to do so. They should also be given power, voice, and choice in how discussions on racism should be addressed or discussed in the classroom, as well as authority regarding what classrooms should “look and feel like”to facilitate learning (Walker-Devose & Devose, 2017). This allows African American students to help determine how their schools should change, elevates their voices and shared decision-making in this process, and helps cultivate leadership and self-advocacy skills (SAMHSA’s Trauma and Social Justice Strategic Initiative, 2014), all of which prioritizes students and increases teamwork between students and teachers. Attention to Historical, Cultural, and Gender Issues Trauma-informed teaching must take into account the cultural and historical experiences of African American youth, particularly within education. Teachers must move past cultural stereotypes and bias projected onto African American students, and recognize how the intersection of race and gender influences stereotypes. For example, White educators have long possessed low academic expectations for African American boys, are more likely to encourage athletic excellence rather than academic success, and often label African American girls as “loud,” “sassy,” and less innocent (Epstein et al., 2017; Gist et al., 2018; Howard, 2008; Pollard, 1989). Encouraging students to engage in positive racial identity development is also key, as a healthy connection to one’s heritage may help buffer the psychological stressors of racial trauma (Parks, 2017). Cultural connections must be honored and acknowledged by teachers, specifically as it relates to African American family processes (Marbley & Rouson, 2011). Understanding that African American families often incorporate and include extended family members and fictive kin in their circle of support can help teachers utilize a

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village of people to facilitate growth, healing, and academic success in African American youth. Using their expertise, knowledge, and lived experience can also help educators develop policies that are anti-racist and inclusive (e.g., co-creating school events that African American families feel safe to attend, overhauling discipline practices that disproportionately affect African American youth, etc.). This expertise can also help shape classrooms into spaces where the trauma of racism is acknowledged and discussed appropriately (Brunson-Day, 2013). Specifically, there are many resources that teachers can utilize to create trauma-informed classrooms. These resources include online guides that provide simple ways for classroom teachers to address racial trauma by age group (e.g., The National Child Traumatic Stress Network Resource Guide for Educators, 2015), podcasts focused on innovative ways to establish trauma-informed classroom crisis management techniques (e.g., Trauma-Informed Educators Network Podcast, Portell, 2020), and educator publications focused on trauma-informed practices in the age of COVID-19 and virtual learning (e.g., “A Trauma-Informed Approach to Teaching through Coronavirus,” Teaching Tolerance, 2020; “Teaching for Black Lives,” Watson et al., 2018). These resources also include planning and action guides that can help teachers create safe classrooms via National Center on Safe Supportive Learning; Guarino & Chagnon, 2018), and even online training packages that can be purchased at the classroom or district level (e.g., Kognito, 2020). In summary, the United States has a legacy of pervasive anti-Black racism that consistently subordinates African Americans, resulting in deleterious health, economic, and educational outcomes. Despite the challenges that racial discrimination creates for African American students, their success can be mediated by educators who acknowledge racism and historical trauma as a conventional and pervasive adverse childhood experience and who employ culturally competent, trauma-informed school-based interventions. These practices will not only make their classrooms and schools safer spaces but will also help mitigate the trauma of racism experienced outside of these spaces.

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Harper, S. R. (2012). Black male student success in higher education: A report from the national Black male college achievement study. Pennsylvania GSE Center for the Study of Race and Equity in Education. https://web- app.usc.edu/web/rossier/ publications/231/Harper%20(2012)%20Black%20Male%20Success.pdf Helm, A. B. (2016, September 3). Ex-SC Cop who hurled black student over desk won’t face criminal charges. The Root. https://www.theroot.com/ex-sc-cop-who-hurledblack-student-over-desk-won-t-face-1790856611 Howard, T. (2008). Who really cares? The disenfranchisement of African American males in preK–12 schools: A critical race theory perspective. The Teachers College Record, 110(5), 954–985. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2009-00716-001 Ighodaro, E., & Wiggan, G. A. (2010). Curriculum violence: America’s new civil rights issue. Nova Science Publishers. Jones, S. (2020). Ending curriculum violence. Teaching Tolerance, 64, 47–50. https:// www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/2020-01/Teaching-Tolerance-Magazine Spring-2020-Issue-64.pdf Kang-Brown, J., Trone, J., Fratello, J., Daftary-Kapur, T., Vera Institute of Justice, & United States of America. (2013). A generation later, what we’ve learned about the zero tolerance in schools. Vera Institute of Justice. https://www.vera.org/ publications/a-generation-later-what-weve-learned-about-zero-tolerance-inschools Kendi, X. I. (2019). How to be an antiracist. One World. Kim, E. K. (2015, August 4). Video emerges of boy with ADHD, 8, handcuffed at school; officer facing lawsuit. NBC News. https://www.today.com/news/video-emergesboy-8-handcuffed-school-officer-facing-lawsuit-t36461 Kognito. (2020, April 1). Online trauma-informed training for educators. https://kognito.com/blog/online-trauma-informed-training-for-educators Ladd, G. W., Herald, S. L., & Kochel, K. P. (2006). School readiness: Are there social prerequisites? Early Education and Development, 17(1), 115–150. https://www. tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1207/s15566935eed1701_6 Marbley, A. F., & Rouson, L. 2011. Indigenous systems within the African American community. Multicultural Education, 18(4), 2–9. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ963743 Morsy, L., & Rothstein, R. (2019). Toxic stress and children’s outcomes: African American children growing up poor are at greater risk of disrupted physiological functioning and depressed academic achievement. Economic Policy Institute. https://www. epi.org/publication/toxic-stress-and-childrens-outcomes-african-americanchildren-growing-up-poor-are-at-greater-risk-of-disrupted-physiologicalfunctioning-and- depressed-academic-achievement/ Nance, J. P. (2015). Over-disciplining students, racial bias, and the school-to-prisonpipeline. University of Richmond Law Review, 50, 1063–1074. https://heinonline. org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/urich50&div=39&id=&page=

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National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (2015). Addressing race and trauma in the classroom: A resource for educators. https://www.nctsn.org/sites/default/files/ resources//addressing_race_and_trauma_in_the_classroom_educators.pdf Neville, H. A., Lilly, R. L., Duran, G., Lee, R. M., & Browne, L. (2000). Construction and initial validation of the Color-Blind Racial Attitudes Scale (CoBRAS). Journal of Counseling Psychology, 47(1), 59–70. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/ 2000-13659-006 Parks, F. M. (2017). How culturally relevant and culturally-responsive healing and coping strategies support the success of African American children. Black Child Development Institute. https://www.nbcdi.org/sites/default/files/BeingBlackIsNot ARiskFactorGeorgia.pdf Perna, L. W. P. (2000). Differences in the decision to attend college among African Americans, Hispanics, and Whites. The Journal of Higher Education, 71(2), 117–141. https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/2649245.pdf?casa_token=c5IyJtaiz9sAAAAA: KByPnT0nZF-_szyRJWno1j_QwwA7ZNifAcEtSpH6hM-VvqUn3ijC0H5Zz tk0Ut7-JDYjlQ gtvJx5FT7CPdCs-FQZDTvMm8-H1ZYl6WZiZOuKo10gdTGq Pollard, D. S. (1989). Reducing the impact of racism on students. Educational leadership, 47(2), 73–75. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ397749 Portell, M. (Host). (2019–present). Trauma-Informed Educators Network Podcast. Apple Podcasts. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trauma-informed educators-network- podcast/id1480791597 Sabataso, J. (2020, February 17). Feeling ‘everything and nothing’: Understanding curriculum violence in schools. Rutland Herald. https://www.rutlandherald.com/ news/local/feeling-everything-and-nothing-understanding-curriculum violence-in-schools/article_f0638c15-11fc-50f7-aa17- a92bc527f460.html SAMHSA’s Trauma and Social Justice Strategic Initiative. (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. https://ncsacw.samhsa.gov/userfiles/ files/SAMHSA_Trauma.pdf Shonkoff, J. P., Garner, A. S., Siegel, B. S., Dobbins, M. I., Earls, M. F., McGuinn, L., Pascoe, J., Wood, D., & Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care. (2012). The lifelong effects of early childhood adversity and toxic stress. Pediatrics, 129(1), 232– 246. https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/ article/129/1/e232/31628/The-Lifelong-Effects-of-Early-Childhood-Adversity Skiba, R. J., Michael, R. S., Nardo, A. C., & Peterson, R. L. (2002). The color of discipline: Sources of racial and gender disproportionality in school punishment. The Urban Review, 34(4), 317–342. https://link.springer.com/content/ pdf/10.1023/A:1021320817372.pdf

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Spilt, J. L., & Hughes, J. N. (2015). African American children at risk of increasingly conflicted teacher–student relationships in elementary school. School Psychology Review, 44(3), 306–314. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/ PMC4724798/ Sulkowski, M., & Lazarus, P. J. (2014). Creating safe and supportive schools and fostering students’ mental health. Taylor & Francis. Teaching Tolerance. (2020, March 23). A trauma-informed approach to teaching through coronavirus. https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/a-trauma-informed-approach to-teaching-through-coronavirus Theriot, M. T., & Orme, J. G. (2016). School resource officers and students’ feelings of safety at school. Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, 14(2), 130–146. https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/yvja14&div=11&id=&page= U.S. Department of Education. (2016). The state of racial diversity in the educator workforce. https://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/highered/racial-diversity/ state-racial-diversity-workforce.pdf U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights. (2014). Civil rights data collection, data snapshot: School discipline, issue brief no. 1. http://www2.ed.gov/about/ offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-discipline-snapshot.pdf Vera, A., & Chen, N. (2019, December 16). Video shows North Carolina school resource officer slamming and dragging 11-year old boy. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2019/ 12/16/us/north-carolina-student-slammed-dragged/index.html Walker-Devose, D. C., & Devose, D. W. (2017). Overcoming stereotypes and biases: making classrooms and therapeutic spaces safer for young black children. The Black Child Development Institute. https://www.nbcdi.org/sites/default/files/BeingBlack IsNotARiskFactorGeorgia.pdf Walkley, M., & Cox, T. L. (2013). Building trauma-informed schools and communities. Children & Schools, 35(2), 123–126. Watson, D., Hagopian, J., & Au, W. (Eds.). (2018). Teaching for Black lives. Rethinking Schools. Williams, M. T., Printz, D., Ching, T., & Wetterneck, C. T. (2018). Assessing PTSD in ethnic and racial minorities: Trauma and racial trauma. Directions in Psychiatry, 38(3), 179– 196. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/328056753_Assessing_ PTSD_in_ethnic_and_racial_minorities_Trauma_and_racial_trauma/link/ 5c57bd1f92851c22a3a7c7e7/download Willoughby, B. (2012). A guide for administrators, counselors, and teachers responding to hate and bias at school. Teaching Tolerance. http://www.tolerance.org/ sites/default/files/general/Responding%20to%20Hate%20at%2 0School%20 ONLINE_3.pdf

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CHAPTER 15

Indigenous Methodologies for Teaching in a Trauma-Informed Health Education Program1 Sarah Allen, Rae Deernose, Alma Knows His Gun McCormick, Shannen Keene, Brianna Bull Shows, John Hallett, Mark Schure, Christiane Parrish, and Suzanne Held

This chapter begins with an overview of Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) and pedagogical approaches before exploring historical and ongoing trauma for Indigenous peoples in the United States within educational contexts. Trauma-informed practices and Indigenous pedagogical approaches are explored through Indigenous methodologies used by Apsáalooke Aakbaabaaniilea (Uub saa lue gaa Uuk baa baa neela; Crow program facilitators/mentors) in a community-based health education program (Held et al., 2019; Schure et al., 1 Author Note: To enact critical methodology and pedagogy, scholars and educators recommend using identifiers preferred by specific Indigenous communities (e.g., Crow). However, such usage can be complicated, since individuals within those communities may not identify using the majority affiliation and/or they may prefer a more general term (e.g., Native). We use “Indigenous” and “Native” to encourage solidarity across Nations and to advance broad scale action as well as tribal affiliations when speaking about specific nations (e.g., “Crow” and “Apsáalooke”). Although we occasionally use “Indian” or “American Indian” to align with policy language, we recognize these terms are problematic given their history. Throughout this paper, we use various terms deemed appropriate for specific contexts by our Indigenous partners and mentors. Furthermore, we defer to these partners for advice regarding specific spellings of traditional names (e.g., Apsáalooke) and phonetic pronunciations. We also use the Apsáalooke language throughout as a purposeful way to respect the community and bring it into and Indigenize a colonizing space (Adapted with permission from: Stanton et al., 2020).

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2020). Aakbaabaaniilea are trusted community members, selected to lead the Báa nnilah (Baa neela; to give words of advice) program, based on their own management of a chronic illness (CI) and their roles in the community. They share words of advice, encouragement, and support to Apsáalooke with CIs through strengths-based Apsáalooke methodologies, values, and ways of teaching and learning grounded in personal experiences and stories and principles of relationality, respect, relevance, reciprocity, and responsibility. Educators can incorporate these evidence-based, trauma-informed Indigenous pedagogical methodologies and strategies in their own teaching practices. By doing so, they can recognize and support Indigenous ways of knowing, teaching, and learning (Young, 2015). The pedagogical approaches we discuss in this chapter are unique to the Apsáalooke Nation. Some themes may be similar across Indigenous communities, but because there are over 500 federally recognized tribal nations in the US with a rich diversity in cultures, any generalizations made to Indigenous communities broadly should be done with caution.

Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Pedagogical Approaches An Indigenous theory of education is inherently based on IKS and pedagogical approaches (Kovach, 2010; Young, 2015). Although there are many familial, geographical, and cultural differences among Indigenous peoples, their diverse knowledge systems share some common characteristics (Kovach, 2010; Young, 2015). IKS are shared, communal, holistic, and experiential. They are based in the local language and spiritually grounded in songs, ceremonies, and prayer. IKS also focus on responsibility, reciprocity, respect, reverence, and relationships (Barnhardt & Kawagley, 2005; Kirkness & Barnhardt, 1991; Kovach, 2010; Young, 2015). Learning rooted in authentic lived experiences, such as observation, action, group sharing, and activities are also key components of IKS. Relational dynamics among self, others, the creator, community, stories, and the land are central, and as such, IKS center the core value of creating and sustaining healthy relationships (Barnhardt & Kawagley, 2005; Kovach, 2010). In this context, knowledge is created for the purpose of giving back; and this act of sharing knowledge to create and maintain vibrant relationships directly informs Indigenous pedagogical strategies (Kovach, 2010; Young, 2015).

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IKS value the sharing and transferring of collective knowledge to the next generation through conversation, oral history, and storytelling (also referred to as storying, storywork, or talk stories; Archibald, 2001, 2008; Deloria, 2004; Denzin et al., 2008; Graveline, 1998; Hart, 2010; Henderson, 2000; Kovach, 2010; Smith, 1999; Wilson, 2008). Storytelling preserves and transmits Indigenous knowledge through sharing stories or words of advice. By sharing experiential knowledge and lessons learned from personal lived experience, storytellers may impart wisdom to listeners who, in turn, may benefit by applying the wisdom to their own life. Storytellers share because they love and care for the listener and stories become “the relational glue in a socially interdependent knowledge system” (Kovach, 2010, p. 108). Storytelling is a key pedagogical tool for teaching and learning (Young, 2015). This is active learning—the listener is expected to be present, listen to the advice, act on it, and model and share the learning with others (Kovach, 2010; Young, 2015). Stories shared in an Indigenous language often convey more meaning, which makes them easier to remember and take root in the heart of the listener.

Recognizing Historical Trauma and Its Impact in Educational Contexts Historical trauma experienced by Indigenous peoples has had a devastating and ongoing impact on Indigenous health and educational outcomes. Examples include genocide, broken treaties, theft and occupation of land, punishment for use of Indigenous languages, forced relocation to urban areas, boarding schools, forced sterilization, and loss of traditional food systems (Brave Heart & DeBruyn, 1998). Although this list is not exhaustive, the impact of complex, intergenerational, historical, systemic, and ongoing trauma within Indigenous communities induced by colonization cannot be understated. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) boarding school era (1860–1978) embodied colonial efforts of assimilation within educational contexts. Boarding schools sought to erase traditional ways of teaching and learning, “function[ing] as a colonial mechanism to destroy [Indigenous] cultures, languages, knowledges, and physical bodies, causing irreparable damage over many generations of . . . Indigenous peoples” (Young, 2015, p. 2). Boarding schools forced children to learn content that was irrelevant to their culture, customs, values, traditions, and practices, through aggressive and authoritarian Western delivery methods

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designed to assimilate, marginalize, and oppress Indigenous peoples (Birdhat, 2017). BIA education systems separated and traumatized families and undermined core Indigenous values of family, kinship, relationship, and spirituality (Ball, 2012; Cross & Cross, 2015; White et al., 2006). The forced removal of Indian children to boarding schools far from their families undermined the child’s place in traditional society and often caused the child to feel rejected by their own family. Educators sexually and physically abused children, cut their hair, and beat their native language and spirituality out of them (Dunbar-Ortiz, 2015). Western information was taught in English and in a rigid manner. This pedagogical violence contradicted how they were traditionally nurtured and reared and intentionally severed ties with traditional ways and identity. This education—designed to “kill the Indian and save the man” (National Conference on Social Welfare Proceedings, 1892)—oppressed Indigenous children within educational contexts, displaced their spiritual well-being with rejection and messages of inferiority, and created a profound loss of cultural ways, family, and identity. The trauma of losing a loved one to a boarding school left a scar across generations of families and is still felt today as unmarked graves containing the remains of Indigenous children beside boarding schools continue to be discovered.

Linking Historical Trauma to Ongoing Trauma in Educational Contexts The actions and policies of boarding schools have had ongoing and lasting devastating intergenerational effects on Indigenous individuals and communities. Colonial, White settler perspectives and practices continue to dominate pedagogy in educational institutions today (Brayboy, 2005; de los Rios et al., 2019; Patel, 2015; Stanton, 2019), and Indigenous people are drastically underrepresented in the teaching profession (National Center for Education Statistics, 2012). The continuity between historical trauma and ongoing trauma in educational contexts for Indigenous peoples points to the need for trauma-informed practices centered on Indigenous pedagogical approaches. In order to enact change, de los Rios et al. (2019) called for educators to receive “training, practice, and commitment to a new/old vision of justice that seeks, above all, to repair harm and respond to the needs the harm has created” (p. 362). Culturally sustaining

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pedagogies have been offered as methods for centering Indigenous perspectives and practices in educational settings with a focus on justice (Paris & Alim, 2017).

Our Teaching Context Our partnership between Messengers for Health (an Apsáalooke Nation nonprofit health organization) and faculty and students from Montana State University shares the goal of affecting long-term positive health outcomes within the Apsáalooke Nation and has worked together for 25 years on a number of community-based participatory research (CBPR) projects. The idea for the Báa nnilah Program was proposed by the Messengers for Health Community Advisory Board (CAB). After listening to community stories and interviews and doing a literature review on other trauma-informed interventions, the partnership developed the Báa nnilah educational program for CI self-management that centered Apsáalooke definitions of wellness, understandings of local facilitators and barriers to CI self-management, ideas for effective solutions, and cultural strengths and values. Indigenous research methodology and CBPR approaches informed our codevelopment, codesign, and codelivery of trauma-informed educational content, materials, and activities. A more thorough description of the development and delivery of our educational program, including how it is trauma-informed can be found in Hallett et al. (2017), Held et al. (2019), Real Bird et al. (2016), and Schure et al. (2020). Aakbaabaaniilea facilitated seven educational gatherings that included topic areas such as CI self-management, physical activity and healthy eating, historical and ongoing trauma and resilience, patient–provider relationships, and healthy communication. The gatherings followed a general format of a meal and prayer, an Old Man Coyote story related to the gathering topic, discussion, sharing circle, a skill-building activity done in supportive partnerships, and a check-in with their Counting Coup (goal setting). To learn more about Counting Coup, see Dáakuash et al. (2020). We use Aakbaabaaniilea (those who share advice) instead of mentor to reflect the core element of relationality where Aakbaabaaniilea share advice with their people. We also use the term gathering instead of curriculum, class, session, or meeting to reflect the cultural context of the delivery of this educational program.

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Aakbaabaaniilea led gatherings centering the five core values of relationality, relevance, respect, reciprocity, and responsibility. We briefly summarize each of these five core values as they were practiced within our teaching context before discussing their implications for a trauma-informed approach. It is important to recognize the holistic, dynamic, and interconnected nature of these dimensions within an Indigenous pedagogical approach. We represent these five dimensions as petals of a flower to symbolize the beauty and interconnected nature of this approach. For more details on the qualitative study and thematic analysis from which these five core values emerged, see Allen et al. (2020) and additional forthcoming publications.

Relationality Relationality is foundational to Indigenous methodologies and pedagogical approaches and was a central component of our program’s success. Aakbaabaaniilea recruited Apsáalooke from within their existing kinship and social networks and created supportive partnerships within their gatherings. Figure 15.1 Five R’s of an Indigenous Pedagogy Respect

Responsibility

Reciprocity

Relevance

Relationality

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This revitalized and reinforced the clan system and helped Apsáalooke want to attend gatherings, feel comfortable, and connect with and “make relatives” with other Báa nnilah members.

Reciprocity It is appropriate within Apsáalooke culture to share good words, advice, and wisdom with each other. It was, therefore, very natural for sharing to be an important part of the gatherings through meals, stories, sharing circles, and supportive partnerships. Aakbaabaaniilea also modeled openness and vulnerability by expressing personal feelings, thoughts, and experiences with their group, which helped others tell their stories as well.

Relevance Aakbaabaaniilea used personal and cultural stories to help make the content relevant. They used pedagogical approaches that were consonant with Apsáalooke cultural values and strengths. Being taught by another member of the tribe and grounding the program content and delivery in spirituality, the Apsáalooke language, sharing advice, storytelling, and humor allowed Aakbaabaaniilea to tailor the program to the unique needs of their individual groups and to make the content personally relevant.

Respect Respectful relationships informed the entire program design, content, and delivery of the Báa nnilah program. Aakbaabaaniilea were selected to facilitate the program because they were respected members of the community who could share words of advice that others would trust. Aakbaabaaniilea viewed themselves as equal partners and co-learners in the process, which created safe and respectful relationships and learning environments. Ensuring confidentiality in a tight-knit community and assessing learning in a culturally appropriate manner were also important in building trust with others and earning their respect.

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Responsibility Indigenous pedagogical approaches recognize that sharing knowledge is grounded in relational accountability, the ethical and spiritual responsibility to each other and the community. As Apsáalooke, spirituality is the greatest value and is incorporated into every aspect of their cultural ways. As an Apsáalooke person, you are aware of your spiritual responsibilities and fulfill your role as a clan aunt or uncle on a daily basis in your own family and extending out into kinship and clan systems. Aakbaabaaniilea spoke about being mentors as a calling to educate and to encourage others to help themselves. They felt a deep responsibility to act as an advocate, leader, and role model in their community.

Implications and Discussion Identifying the core dimensions of an Indigenous methodology used within a trauma-informed health education program provides a framework that educators and administrators can learn from when incorporating trauma-informed practices in classrooms and other settings. Our Aakbaabaaniilea contextualized and enacted Kirkness and Barnhart’s (1991) four Rs—reciprocity, relevance, respect, and responsibility—within the Apsáalooke context, which provided an additional element of relationality. These five dimensions illuminate not only the role a teacher can have in trauma-informed care, but also instructional strategies and approaches that educators in a variety of educational contexts can apply. Models of trauma-informed practice have tremendous overlap with an Indigenous approach to teaching and learning. As such, Indigenous pedagogical practices provide a valuable framework for educators wishing to develop culturally consonant trauma-informed approaches in their classrooms. This can provide a path for educators to emphasize the role of resilience over pathology (Elliott et al., 2005) and create ways for both students and teachers to grow and heal (Bath, 2008).

Intersections of Indigenous Pedagogy and a Trauma-Informed Approach The five dimensions of an Indigenous pedagogical approach intersect with a trauma-informed approach in multiple ways. For example, trauma-informed

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practices acknowledge “the widespread impact of trauma,” “recognize the signs and symptoms of trauma,” and respond to trauma and its consequences to “resist re-traumatization” (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 2014, pp. 9–10). This chapter outlined multiple ways in which historical and ongoing trauma in educational contexts has had profound consequences on Indigenous health and educational outcomes. Historical and ongoing trauma is part of the first two dimensions of the National Center for Trauma-Informed Care’s definition of a trauma-informed designation that call for an awareness of “the widespread impact of trauma” and a recognition of “the signs and symptoms of trauma” in Indigenous populations (SAMHSA, 2014). Applying the five dimensions of an Indigenous pedagogical approach in one’s teaching could also address elements of the last two components of this definition by “fully integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures, and practices” that are culturally consonant with Indigenous values that “resist re-traumatization” (SAMHSA, 2014, p. 9). Because trauma often leads to a cascade of negative impacts on physical and mental health, it is important to consider the ways in which Indigenous approaches could be incorporated into classrooms. These approaches can help mitigate the effect trauma has on an individuals’ abilities to cope effectively with stressors, inhibit or destabilize healthy relationships, create insecurity, incite feelings of powerlessness, or compromise one’s ability to learn in a classroom setting (Raja et al., 2015). Given the historical and ongoing trauma experienced by Indigenous peoples, it is important that trauma-informed pedagogical policies, procedures, and practices within educational contexts (including gathering content and delivery) be developed using a culturally derived and consonant approach that facilitates healing the wounds sustained from trauma (Duran et al., 1998). For many, trauma recovery includes (a) recognizing and healing the trauma-induced wounds, (b) halting negative reinforcing coping patterns, (c) identifying and reinforcing resilient traits and behaviors, and (d) establishing a life with a strong sacred connection (Miller, 2002). Elements of this approach—such as establishing a life with a strong sacred connection and identifying and reinforcing resilient traits and behaviors—are strongly evidenced in all five components of an Indigenous approach. Other approaches to trauma-informed interventions involve (a) establishing a safe environment, (b) encouraging healing

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relationships, and (c) teaching skills to bolster self-management and coping (Bath, 2008) and have direct corollaries to all five dimensions of an Indigenous pedagogy. Empirically supported principles of trauma-informed prevention— including safety, peace, self- and collective efficacy, connectedness, and hope (Hobfoll et al., 2007)—also align well with the five dimensions of an Indigenous pedagogical approach. Although an Indigenous pedagogical approach and a trauma-informed approach have much in common, there are spaces in which there is no alignment. It is in those spaces that an Indigenous approach to healing from trauma is distinct from other populations. Thus, while the National Center for Trauma-Informed Care identifies general guidelines, definitions, recommendations, and pathways for recovery from trauma, these may have unique components for Indigenous people. This means standardized components of a trauma-informed approach may be applicable to Indigenous contexts, but the specific path to healing from trauma is, by necessity, deeply Indigenous. Thus, healing from trauma for Apsáalooke can be found within, and is specific to, Apsáalooke culture. Within Apsáalooke culture, the path to healing from trauma begins at its root cause—the spiritual rejection of their people and cultural ways that happened through settler colonialism. Apsáalooke have long known what to do to heal from this trauma. A deep wound requires deep healing, and culture is medicine. Apsáalooke cultural strengths and values centered on spirituality and forgiveness combined with strong family connections, the clan system, kinship ties, and traditional healing practices and medicines can heal. Pedagogical approaches centered on the values of relationality, respect, reciprocity, responsibility, and relevance are important starting points on this journey within educational contexts.

Implications for the Classroom Today, efforts to better support Indigenous students through culturally consonant educational delivery methods are often lacking and may perpetuate the marginalization of Indigenous youth and communities in educational contexts (Birdhat, 2017; Young, 2015). Many teachers have inadequate training to recognize racism and implicit colonial oppression embedded within

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educational paradigms (Young, 2015). It is important that teachers and scholars examine, document, and challenge the ongoing marginalization of Indigenous students in predominantly White educational contexts and from some non-Indigenous educators from preschool onward in order to recognize and regenerate Indigenous ways of knowing, teaching, and learning in the classroom. Indigenous scholars and Elders have repeatedly called for education using pedagogies that are based on Indigenous epistemologies that recognize and promote diversity in ways of knowing and educating (Petrone & Stanton, 2021; Young, 2015). These approaches incorporate elements of relationality, shared learning spaces, inclusive curricula, relevance, reciprocity, responsibility, and respectful protocols of engagement with local communities focused on communities of intergenerational and lifelong learners (Birdhat, 2017; Kovach, 2010; Smith, 1999; Wilson, 2008; Young 2015). Centering IKS and pedagogical approaches in educational contexts requires educators to move beyond simply adding Indigenous content to Western curriculum to actively dismantling the Eurocentric paradigms that perpetuate colonial damage in educational contexts (Birdhat, 2017; Young, 2015). When information on historical and ongoing trauma is not taught and published, it continues to impact individuals and communities negatively. Unfortunately, an accurate history is not widely discussed in society or taught in schools, making it largely absent in the training of future educators. This exposure is important for both non-Indigenous and Indigenous people. For Indigenous children, learning about their history is a way to know their ancestors, visit and connect with Elders as teachers, and learn how to be a part of their community and culture in ways that promote resilience. When this is not an integral component of their education, an important opportunity for healing from historical trauma is lost. One effort toward systemic change is Indian Education for All, “Montana’s constitutional requirement and duly enacted policy” that requires “recognition of the distinct and unique cultural heritage of American Indians and a commitment in our educational goals to preserve their cultural heritage” (Montana Office of Public Instruction, n.d.). The relevance of contemporary educational curriculum is also often in tension with other Indigenous educational values of knowing where one comes from, one’s family tree, and the stories families hold. Being taught knowledge from an Elder in the community directly connects that history to their voice

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and the specific ways it impacted them. This connection is often absent in contemporary classrooms due to a lack of Indigenous educators. In addition, because older generations were punished and scarred from speaking their language in boarding schools, teachings in their own language were less likely to reach younger generations. Approaches such as adding a week of Native American history as a separate, short, and distinct “unit” without discussing current issues make it hard for students to connect historical trauma to its ongoing impacts and may perpetuate, rather than challenge, stereotypes of Indigenous people. Delivery approaches that focus on resilience, survivance, and the positive elements that contribute to being a strong people today impact how curriculum content is understood. Integrating Indigenous history and knowledge throughout the curriculum (math, science, social studies, etc.) and throughout the school year allows learners to have a better understanding of IKS that moves beyond a simple history lesson. Honoring and valuing Indigenous methodologies and approaches to teaching promotes learning that is more congruent with how Indigenous people were taught and learned from time immemorial. Non-Indigenous teachers have significant limitations in their ability to deliver Indigenous content due to critical gaps in their lived experience. Teachers can work toward developing meaningful relationships with Indigenous partners, inviting them to the classroom, and actively Indigenizing curriculum by including Indigenous voices, perspectives, and histories. Indigenous scholars have written extensively about this at all levels. For example, Waziyatawin and Yellow Bird (2012) and Yellow Bird’s (2013) scholarship places an emphasis on freeing oneself from dependence on Western ideas, philosophies, beliefs, and theories by using traditional Indigenous ceremonies to help heal and change the brain from the trauma of colonialism. Even the idea of education itself consisting of a teacher’s curriculum is a fundamentally Western view that leaves little space for Indigenous pedagogical approaches in the classroom. This can devalue Elders’ expertise and qualifications in Indigenous history and language and can be seen as a form of ongoing trauma. Due to being educated in predominantly White institutions, teachers may not understand why it is important to teach Indigenous content, how to use Indigenous pedagogical approaches, or how to teach it in culturally competent ways. Many non-Indigenous instructors may harbor unexamined biases that

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can result in behaviors and comments that range from naïve ignorance or lack of understanding to overt and covert forms of racism in the classroom context. These shortcomings can be partially addressed by having non-Indigenous teachers work in partnership with local tribal or urban native communities in selecting topics to cover in the curriculum. These issues can also be systemically addressed by encouraging school boards to allocate resources that help Indigenous students to be successful in schools by having Indigenous counselors available to support their learning in the classroom, provide college outreach and preparation, and act as the contact person to report discrimination and bullying in educational contexts. School boards can also more actively recruit and retain Indigenous teachers, ensure Indigenous representation and decision-making power on the school board, and work to uncover systematic racism in educational systems.

Conclusion This chapter centers an Indigenous pedagogical approach within a traumainformed health education program and highlights how IKS, philosophies, teachings, values, and principles can inform successful health education in Indigenous communities (Young, 2015). Aakbaabaaniilea naturally centered the values of relationality, reciprocity, relevance, respect, and responsibility in their teaching and learning approach in ways that can guide other educators, teachers, and administrators seeking to adopt trauma-informed practices and policies that are culturally consonant with Indigenous perspectives. This has far-reaching implications for improving the practices of teaching and the processes of learning in ways that honor IKS.

Acknowledgments We offer our deepest appreciation to our community advisory board and the Aakbaabaannilea for their passion to improve the health and well-being of the Apsáalooke Nation. Aakbaabaannilea had the opportunity to review and provide feedback for the manuscript.

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Funding  The authors received the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Improving Chronic Illness Management with the Apsáalooke Nation: The Báa nnilah Project, NIH U01MD010619, the Montana Healthcare Foundation, The Mountain West Clinical Translational Research Program, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH 1U54GM104944, and Montana INBRE, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH, P20GM103474. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. 

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CHAPTER 16

Blurred Lines: Trauma and Educational Disability Jennifer M. McKenzie

The symptoms of trauma exposure in children are becoming more widely documented and accepted as one cause of a variety of learning and behavioral issues in schools (Beers & De Bellis, 2002; Cook et al., 2005; National Center for Mental Health Promotion and Youth Violence Prevention [NCMHP], 2012; Perfect et al., 2016; van der Kolk, 2003). Currently, trauma exposure is not an accepted cause of an educational disability, such as emotional disturbance (ED). Indeed, if a student’s educational difficulties are directly related to trauma in their environment, they may be excluded from all special education services in school. The literature establishes that students who have experienced trauma demonstrate characteristics that match the defining features of the federal definition of ED (Bower, 1982; Forness, 1992; Forness & Knitzer, 1992) and, therefore, should be eligible for special education services under that category, as well as offered a free, appropriate public education to meet their unique needs. Unfortunately, the disability category under which most traumatized children might belong is likely one from which they would be excluded. There is considerable disagreement in the field over the distinction between emotional disturbance, which is one of the disability categories included under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA, 2004), and social maladjustment (SM), which is a condition explicitly excluded under the definition of ED. Recently, this argument has a renewed controversy in the wake of the trauma-informed schools movement due to the similarities between

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characteristics of students who have experienced trauma and those who have been historically considered socially maladjusted (Cannon et al., 2013; Smith et al., 2015). This chapter examines the IDEIA definition of emotional disturbance through the lens of a trauma paradigm. The chapter explores the federal definition of ED, including SM, and compares this definition to the behavioral characteristics of children who have experienced trauma. Finally, implications for policy and practice are provided.

Trauma and Children’s Behavioral Responses It is essential for teachers and other school professionals to realize that trauma is not experienced by individuals in the exact same way. Even siblings who live in the same home and/or neighborhood and are subjected to the same trauma often have disparate responses. Experiencing trauma can affect behavior and learning in different ways; however, research has shown similarities across individuals that may affect their ability to cope (NCMHP, 2012). In examining these commonalities, the overarching categories of safety, self-regulation, and learning are used.

Safety Brain research has shown that, when children encounter a perceived threat to their safety, the stress response system activates the instinct to prepare the body to fight, freeze, or flee from what makes the child feel unsafe (Cole et al., 2005). The survival instinct caused by feeling a lack of safety may manifest in many ways in the classroom, but the mission is generally the same: to avoid perceived danger and pain. Children who feel unsafe may shut down or withdraw from social interactions with peers and teachers, refusing to speak or communicate through other means. A traumatized child may resort to fleeing from perceived danger to avoid the conflict and retreat to a place where they feel safer, often outside of the classroom. Others may quickly engage in argumentative or physically aggressive behaviors because they may have learned that standing up for themselves allows them to be in control of the feeling of fear. Unfortunately, all these behaviors are often viewed by teachers as being willful and purposely

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disruptive to the classroom environment. In a review of the literature published between 1990 and 2015, Perfect et al. (2016) asserted that children who had been maltreated, including physical abuse and neglect, had more discipline referrals, were more likely to be suspended, and were more likely to be retained. When behavior is viewed as controllable (e.g., “they controlled it yesterday, so they can do it today”), it is more likely to be met with an emotional response and punishment from adults, when what is needed is reassurance and actions of comfort.

Self-Regulation Maltreated children have been shown to be at risk for a wide variety of self-regulatory inadequacies, such as anxiety, depression, aggression, impulsivity, inattentiveness, difficulty interpreting emotional signals, chronic uncertainty about the reliability of other people, and a lack of a predictable sense of self (Cole et al., 2005; Shields et al., 1994; van der Kolk, 2003). These deficits create relationship difficulties for students, both with adults and peers. Children who are dysregulated are often viewed by teachers as being disruptive, inattentive, and hyperactive. Teachers regularly find themselves reprimanding behaviors, redirecting attention, and repeating directions, which becomes more cumbersome as the year progresses. Without effective interventions for these needy students, teachers are likely to resort to frustrated responses and exclusionary discipline, such as limiting peer interaction, removing students from the room, or making discipline referrals. Deficits in self-regulation also have detrimental effects on social competence. Students who have experienced trauma can have difficulty making and keeping friends because they exhibit maladaptive patterns of emotion regulation, such as being inflexible, having emotional overreactions to problem situations, or engaging in aggressive or noncompliant behaviors in social situations (Shields et al., 1994). Trauma exposure affects children’s ability to read emotional cues in others, which can make the child appear to lack empathy or react in ways that do not match the context of the interaction.

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Learning Along with social and behavioral issues, children with traumatic histories have many deficits in learning that can significantly impact their educational success. Studies have shown that children who have experienced trauma demonstrate impaired cognitive functioning, including deficits in attention, executive function skills, memory, abstract reasoning, and overall IQ (Beers & De Bellis, 2002; Cook et al., 2005). Duplechain et al. (2008) examined the effects of high and moderate exposure to trauma on elementary school students’ reading achievement and found statistically significant differences between students who experienced trauma, regardless of the amount of exposure, and students who reported no trauma exposure. Their analysis further showed that students who reported moderate levels of trauma exposure demonstrated a steady decline in reading achievement over the 3-year study. This finding seems to suggest that any amount of trauma can have deleterious effects on learning. Executive function skills are essential for a variety of cognitive tasks both in and out of the classroom as they enable people to interpret and respond to new information in their environment (Tobin, 2016). Traumatized children have difficulty with tasks requiring attention because they are more susceptible to distractions and have more impulsive responses (Beers & De Bellis, 2002) due to their overdeveloped stress response systems. These children narrow their attention to perceived sources of threat and are often disinterested in activities and/or topics that other kids enjoy (van der Kolk, 2003). Teachers can misinterpret traumatized students’ lack of enthusiasm for lessons as insubordination, laziness, or a lack of effort and respond accordingly. It is likely that many children who have experienced trauma will exhibit behavioral and learning difficulties in school and may also be referred for special education evaluation. Before examining the components of the IDEIA definition of ED, the following discussion considered the case of a student with trauma exposure to create a context for comparison of this student’s characteristics and those of a student with ED.

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M.C. v. Bedford School District When M.C. was in seventh grade, an older male cousin began sexually abusing him. During his 10th-grade year, M.C. was suspended three times: once in December for fighting, once in January for assault on a student, and once in March for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. After the second suspension, M.C.’s parents made a referral for evaluation for special education eligibility under the category of ED. After the third suspension, M.C.’s parents unilaterally placed M.C. in a boarding school for students with problem behaviors. M.C. underwent an educational evaluation in April of his 10th-grade year. His academic abilities were rated as average or above average in most subject areas. His ninth-grade teachers described M.C. as one of the best students in the grade, but he experienced increasing difficulty with completing homework, passing tests, and attending class during 10th grade. A school psychological evaluation said he “failed to reach the cut-off score for clinical depression” despite the fact he was at the “upper limit of the moderate range of depression” (N.C. ex rel. M.C. v. Bedford Cent. Sch. Dist., 2007, Part C Facts, para. 4). Conference attendees discussed how M.C.’s behaviors deteriorated at home after the sexual abuse with his cousin began and that, although M.C. was able to maintain adequate academic and behavioral standards in ninth grade, his substance abuse and behavior escalated in 10th grade. Upon examination of all the data, the school district determined that M.C. was not eligible for an educational identification of ED under the IDEIA and was, therefore, ineligible for special education services. The independent hearing officer (IHO) decided that M.C. did not meet the criteria for classification as emotionally disturbed, stating that the drug use—not the sexual abuse— was the reason for M.C.’s behavioral difficulties. The state review officer (SRO) confirmed this decision. Prior to discussing the final decision in the last appeal of the case, it is important to understand the complicated history of the ED definition under the law to determine how it was applied to M.C.’s case.

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Eligibility Criteria for Emotional Disturbance In order to ensure that students are correctly identified as being eligible for and in need of special education, Congress defined 13 disability categories under which students can be identified (IDEIA, 2004). Each disability category has unique criteria that must be satisfied through a full and complete educational evaluation prior to a student’s placement in special education (IDEIA, 2004). School multidisciplinary teams consider each student’s educational evaluation data and compare it to the required criteria in the definition to determine if a student has an educational disability. In addition, teams are required to determine if the disability has an adverse impact on the student’s educational functioning and if special education services are required to meet the student’s needs. Although most of the 13 disability definitions themselves are not widely refuted, scholars have long criticized the definition of ED due to its vagueness and exclusion of certain groups of students.

Definition of ED The definition of ED has remained the same since the original statute was enacted in 1975. This definition was taken, almost exactly, from a 1957 study conducted in California by Eli Bower that sought to detect differences between students with ED and their peers. Bower (1982) discovered that students with ED had the potential to learn but were poor learners, had few satisfactory interpersonal relationships, behaved oddly or inappropriately, were depressed or unhappy, and developed illnesses. He also noted that peers without ED also exhibited one or more of these characteristics to some extent. The defining difference rested in the degree to which these characteristics were exhibited and for how long. Specifically, the current federal definition is as follows: Emotional disturbance means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational performance:

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• An inability to learn that cannot be satisfactorily explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors. • An inability to satisfactorily build or maintain interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers. • Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances. • A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression. • A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. Emotional disturbance includes schizophrenia. The term does not apply to children who are socially maladjusted, unless it is determined that they have an emotional disturbance under paragraph (c)(4)(i) of this section. (IDEIA, 2004, Sec 300.8 [c][4])

In his early study to define common characteristics of ED, Bower (1982) intended for his definition to avoid presumptions about a child’s clinical designation and focus on characteristics that could be observed in the school setting and be readily understood by school personnel. However, both Bower’s and the IDEIA’s definitions are broad and vague, leaving much of the interpretation and implementation to local school districts. What decades of research has shown is that use of the educational definition has significantly under-identified students with ED in schools, leading to many students not receiving appropriate special education services (Maag & Howell, 1992). Even more problematic is the SM clause included in the federal definition of ED, which excludes students from qualifying if their educational and/or behavioral difficulties are determined to stem from social maladjustment. SM Clause Definitions of SM generally include antisocial behaviors and personality traits such as (a) an inability to conform to the societal and school standards for behavior, (b) engagement in deviant behavior, (c) imposition on the rights of

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others, and (d) a willful choice to engage in behaviors for secondary gain (Easler & Medway, 2004; Theodore et al., 2004). The term conduct disordered is often used interchangeably with SM, although there is no mention of SM in the medical models for identifying conduct disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). However, the definition of conduct disorder does include a lack of prosocial emotions, such as empathy or remorse, which is often associated with SM. Many school professionals have distinctly different views of what it means to be ED and SM, leading to bias in determining eligibility for special education and clearly differential treatment for the behavioral issues these children exhibit. There is some agreement among educators that children with ED and SM can be viewed as prey and predator, respectively (Olympia et al., 2004). Students with ED are often viewed as not having control of their behaviors, which causes impulsivity and internal conflict, and therefore, are viewed as deserving of special education services. Conversely, students who are SM are viewed as purposefully engaging in misbehavior for their own benefit with a lack of guilt or remorse and are, thus, deserving of punishment. This type of thinking implies the causality of behavior, be it internal or external, is the most important factor in determining if a student is eligible for, and requires, special education services (Merrell & Walker, 2004; Olympia et al., 2004). Furthermore, ED is the only disability category for which professionals attempt to associate remorseful feelings with eligibility. No one tries to determine if autistic students or students with intellectual disability are willfully exhibiting or truly remorseful for their problem behaviors (Olympia et al., 2004). By his own admission, Bower’s (1982) original definition of ED is the same as the definition of SM, meaning that the federal definition that most states use to determine eligibility for special education “operationally and conceptually defines ED by their social maladjustments, then disqualifies them on the same basis” (p. 58). As with all federal education laws, states retain the power to determine how the IDEIA will be implemented within their borders. As of 2014, only seven states (California, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Wisconsin) had omitted the SM clause from their special education statutes. Wisconsin explicitly prohibited excluding students based on SM and opted for a more inclusive definition of emotional behavioral disabilities (Cloth et al., 2014). Creating a clear diagnostic distinction between ED and SM is arguably the most troublesome issue to be raised regarding the SM clause, due mostly to

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the behavioral commonalities between the two. Many students identified as ED display externalizing, delinquent behaviors often associated with SM (Forness, 1992; Forness & Knitzer, 1992). In addition, one of the criteria in the federal definition of ED, an inability to satisfactorily build or maintain interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers, could be considered synonymous with the definition of SM (Forness & Knitzer, 1992), meaning that, once again, SM is both included and excluded all at once. Even the clause itself states that teams can determine that a student has both ED and SM. If these are two discrete classifications, how can one also preclude the other? The practical result of the continued ambiguity is that students who are deemed to be SM instead of ED are subject to more exclusionary discipline and less evidence-based behavioral and academic interventions. In other words, they are written off as “bad kids” on whom efforts are wasted.

Conclusion of M.C.’s Case As previously explained, M.C. faced years of sexual abuse before ever exhibiting any behavioral issues or abusing illegal substances. Based on the definition of ED presented herein, it appears he met some of the criteria—such as an inability to learn that cannot be satisfactorily explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors; an inability to satisfactorily build or maintain interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers; and a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression. These characteristics existed over a long period and to a marked degree, and they adversely affected his educational performance. It could be argued that M.C. also exhibited characteristics of SM, such as an inability to conform to the societal and school standards for behavior and engagement in deviant behavior. According to the IDEIA definition, if the multidisciplinary team determined that M.C. met the criteria for both ED and SM, he could still qualify for special education services as a student with ED. There is no guidance, however, on how teams can or should consider the effects of trauma on the behavioral characteristics of children during evaluations and eligibility determinations for special education. Ultimately, the court determined that M.C. was not eligible under the IDEIA category of emotional disturbance, as he did not meet four of the five

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characteristics over a long period and to a marked degree. The court determined that M.C. did not exhibit an “inability to learn,” and also reasoned that drug use—not the presence of a disability—could be the cause of M.C.’s academic issues. When considering the eligibility criteria of inappropriate types of behaviors under normal circumstances, the discussion focused on the fact that the abuse that M.C. had experienced made his circumstances far from normal and that, therefore, M.C.’s behavior was expected given his circumstances. The court determined that M.C.’s aggression and drug use did not qualify him as emotionally disturbed; rather, these were the types of “bad behavior” that are characterized under social maladjustment, which is not covered under the IDEIA. The court also found that M.C. did not exhibit a pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression over a long period and to a marked degree. As the court noted, at times, M.C.’s psychological episodes were more difficult than the average teenage boy but did not rise to the level necessary to meet the “pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression” criterion. Because the debate regarding eligibility for special education services for these students continues, policymakers need to revisit the definition of emotional disturbance and make appropriate changes in light of the plethora of information regarding trauma’s effects on students’ social, emotional, and cognitive development. Furthermore, schools must identify how they will appropriately educate students who have social, emotional, and behavioral needs due to trauma.

Implications for Policy and Practice Current federal and state special education policies make no mention of the effects of trauma on children, nor do they provide guidance to school staff or the latitude to include these students under the definition of emotional disturbance. As the number of students who have experienced trauma continues to increase across the nation and children’s mental health concerns in schools become even more urgent, policymakers must reexamine the definition of emotional disturbance to make it more inclusive. If a child is found to meet one or more of the eligibility criteria to be qualified as ED and the social and emotional issues they exhibit are caused by trauma, those students should still be eligible if they require special education services.

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Changes in Eligibility Criteria for ED and/or Adjustments in Implementation of Criteria Special education is a very rule-driven process, and educational professionals—although they may want the best for their students—are constantly making their best attempts to appropriately implement regulations. Scholars in the field have long argued that the definition of ED does not meet the educational goals of the IDEIA and does not facilitate the necessary services and supports for all students in need (Forness & Knitzer, 1992; Maag & Katsiyannis, 2008). It is long past time for policymakers to heed the call to adopt a definition that results in the valid and reliable identification of all students who need special education services. Fortunately, much of the work involved in developing a definition that meets these criteria has already been completed. In the 1990s, the National Mental Health and Special Education Coalition, a group comprised of approximately 30 professional mental health and education organizations, proposed a new definition for ED that addressed a number of the limitations in the original definition (Smith et al., 2015). The group changed the name of the disability category to Emotional or Behavioral Disorder to be more inclusive of the students for which it was intended to serve. Forness and Knitzer (1992) discussed the definition as follows: The term Emotional or Behavioral Disorder (EBD) means a disability characterized by behavioral or emotional responses in school so different from appropriate, age, cultural, or ethnic norms that they adversely affect educational performance. Educational performance includes academic, social, vocational, and personal skills. Such a disability 1. is more than a temporary, expected response to stressful events in the environment; 2. is consistently exhibited in two different settings, at least one of which is school related; and 3. is unresponsive to direct intervention in general education or the child’s condition is such that general interventions would be insufficient.

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4. Emotional and behavioral disorders can co-exist with other disabilities. 5. This category may include children or youth with schizophrenic disorders, affective disorders, anxiety disorders, or other sustained disturbances of conduct or adjustment when they adversely affect educational performance in accordance with section 1. (para. 6) This definition not only removes the SM clause, but it also completely absolves multidisciplinary teams of the responsibility of determining if a child’s behavior falls under one of the five problematic criteria included in the current definition. Instead, this proposed definition would expect teams to use diagnostic methods to use similar procedures as those used to determine eligibility for other disability areas. These methods would include determining the degree of difference in the child’s behavioral responses through diagnostic procedures, concluding that there is an adverse effect on educational performance, ruling out differential diagnoses or alternatives for the child’s difficulties, and ensuring that the child has been provided with evidence-based prereferral interventions and that data on those interventions have been adequately evaluated (Forness & Knitzer, 1992). If the IDEIA adopted the language in this proposed definition, the effects of trauma would most likely be inherent in the criteria. As has been established, students who experience behavioral and emotional symptoms of trauma often exhibit responses that are markedly different than their peers. Additionally, stating that educational performance includes more than just satisfactory grades or academic performance can assist teams in focusing on all adverse impacts on a student’s education. For example, in the case of M.C., this definition might have required the school to demonstrate the evidence-based interventions they had implemented to help M.C. overcome his behavioral issues instead of simply refusing to provide special education services. Utilizing this definition might also have established a better connection to M.C.’s history of trauma and led the judge to find that his behavior was significantly different from his peers only after being exposed to trauma in the form of sexual abuse. Utilizing the presented criteria for evaluations to determine eligibility for special education under the EBD category would be similar to other disability categories, such as a specific learning disability or intellectual disability, as the

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team would be establishing a significant difference in emotional and/or behavioral functioning instead of focusing on the student’s intent or motivation. A specific learning disability is the only IDEIA category in which schools are allowed—and even encouraged—to use response to intervention (RTI) to determine eligibility for special education. The use of RTI should also be included in the methods for determining if a student has ED and to provide appropriate supports to students who have experienced trauma.

Use of Multitiered Systems of Support With Trauma-Informed Practices RTI is a type of multitiered system of supports (MTSS) that utilizes a proactive and preventative model for the early identification of academic and behavioral difficulties (Maag & Katsiyannis, 2008). It addresses the context of problem behavior through the provision of evidence-based interventions of increasing intensity based on individual students’ needs (Horner & Sugai, 2000). If students receive high-quality, evidence-based emotional and behavioral interventions and still experience significant emotional or behavioral difficulties that affect their educational performance, they could then be considered for eligibility under ED. This model can also be used to provide additional data and support for students after they are identified, and the use of trauma-informed practices can be included in the individualized interventions for students who have those needs. The multitiered framework integrates well with the intended outcomes of a trauma-informed approach in schools. SAMHSA (2014) outlined those outcomes as preventing negative events, building individuals’ self-regulation capacities, assisting in remediating the effects of prior adverse experiences, and avoiding re-traumatization of those who have experienced trauma. These align with the MTSS in that the overarching goal is universal (Tier 1) supports for all students by creating a positive, safe environment, which could decrease the likelihood of negative events happening to students at school. All levels of support in MTSS focus on skill building, which could build self-regulation skills, when needed. Tiers 2 and 3 recognize that some students will require additional, more intensive, and targeted behavioral supports, which can help traumatized students build appropriate coping strategies and resilience (Chafouleas et al., 2016). MTSS creates consistent expectations for the behavior of students, which, in

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turn, creates an opportunity for consistency in adult responses to misbehaviors. In addition, teachers will have more behavioral data available for decision-making in MTSS due to the framework being so heavily grounded in the collection and use of data. However, one important challenge in using MTSS for ED eligibility and trauma-informed behavioral interventions is that few teachers have the requisite knowledge to implement either system with fidelity.

Need for Teacher Training in Behavioral MTSS and Trauma-Informed Practices Unfortunately, teachers often report feeling ill-equipped to implement evidence-based behavioral interventions (Evertson & Weinstein, 2006; Melnick & Meister, 2008; Reinke et al., 2011; Ritter & Hancock, 2007), and almost half of new teachers leave the profession in the first 5 years, many citing student behavioral concerns as the reason (Gonzalez et al., 2008). To enact a successful MTSS model, behavior and social-emotional learning must be viewed as an entire school responsibility. This means that schools must put in place a schoolwide system to respond to problem behaviors and all teachers need to be trained on the implementation of evidence-based interventions, including trauma-informed practices, across varying intensities and based on students’ specific needs (Sugai & Horner, 2002; Tillery et al., 2010). In order to provide appropriate care for traumatized students in schools, teachers need to understand their role in supporting these students. Unfortunately, very little research has explored teachers’ perceptions of their roles, and even less has addressed teachers’ trauma-informed practices implementation. Reinke et al. (2011) examined teachers’ perceptions of their roles regarding students’ mental health needs; 89% of the teachers surveyed agreed that schools should be involved in addressing children’s mental health needs, but only 34% of those teachers felt they possessed the necessary skills to do so. Alisic (2012) found that teachers struggle to balance the needs of children exposed to trauma, the needs of the other students in the class, and their own needs. Most of the teachers in this study also reported a lack of competence in knowing how to respond to the needs of traumatized children. The data indicates that teachers need training in trauma-informed practices. A concerted effort should be made to include this training in teacher training programs and in-service teacher

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training. Specific skills and strategies that could be included in this training can be found in various other chapters in this edition.

Conclusion Schools are in the unique position to have positive and long-lasting protective effects on children while reversing and remediating some of the damage inflicted through trauma. Children’s brains are more malleable than adults’ brains; therefore, early intervention gives children the best chance to recover from the harmful effects of trauma on their physiology (Perry et al., 1995). Given the proper supports and services at a young age, many children can build resilience to combat the impacts of trauma and find success both inside and outside of the educational environment. Teachers love their students and want to do what is best for them, but feelings of sympathy and caring are only the first steps in developing a remedy for traumatized children. Today, students who experience trauma may or may not qualify for special education support services. Special education was never intended to be a cure-all for every issue facing students in schools. It is, however, an important and underutilized tool in the toolbox to meet the needs of students with social, emotional, and behavioral challenges brought about by childhood trauma (Cannon et al., 2013). With increased teacher training and a contemporary definition matching the educational intent of the IDEIA, perhaps students who have experienced trauma can find success in public school classrooms.

References Alisic, E. (2012). Teachers’ perspectives on providing support to children after trauma: A qualitative study. School Psychology Quarterly, 27(1), 51–59. https:// doi.org/10.1037/a0028590 American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425596 Beers, S. R., & De Bellis, M. D. (2002). Neuropsychological function in children with maltreatment-related posttraumatic stress disorder. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 159(3), 483–486. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.159.3.483

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Bower, E. M. (1982). Defining emotional disturbance: Public policy and research. Psychology in the Schools, 19(1), 55–60. https://doi.org/10.1002/1520-6807(19820108) 19:13.0.CO;2-2 Cannon, Y., Gregory, M., & Waterstone, J. (2013). A solution hiding in plain sight: Special education and better outcomes for students with social, emotional, and behavioral challenges. Fordham Urban Law Journal, 41(2), 403–497. https:// ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ulj/vol41/iss2/3 Chafouleas, S. M., Johnson, A. H., Overstreet, S., & Santos, N. M. (2016). Toward a blueprint for trauma-informed service delivery in schools. School Mental Health, 8(1), 144–162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-015-9166-8 Cloth, A. H., Evans, S. W., Becker, S. P., & Paternite, C. E. (2014). Social maladjustment and special education: State regulations and continued controversy. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, 22(4), 214–224. https://doi. org/10.1177/1063426613487405 Cole, S. F., O’Brien, J. G., Gadd, M. G., Ristuccia, J., Wallace, D. L., & Gregory, M. (2005). Helping traumatized children learn: Supportive school environments for children traumatized by family violence. Massachusetts Advocates for Children. https://traumasensitiveschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Helping-Traumatized-Children-Learn.pdf Cook, A., Spinazzola, J., Ford, J., Lanktree, C., Blaustein, M., Cloitre, M., DeRosa, R., Hubbard, R., Kagan, R., Liautaud, J., Mallah, K., Olafson, E., & van der Kolk, B. A. (2005). Complex trauma in children and adolescents. Psychiatric Annals, 35(5), 390–398. https://doi.org/10.3928/00485713-20050501-05 Duplechain, R., Reigner, R., & Packard, A. (2008). Striking differences: The impact of moderate and high trauma on reading achievement. Reading Psychology, 29(2), 117–136. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702710801963845 Easler, R. C., Jr., & Medway, F. J. (2004). Mothers’ judgments of students with emotional disturbance and social maladjustment/conduct disorder: Comparisons of target students and siblings. International Journal of Special Education, 19(2), 73–90. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ852060.pdf Evertson, C. M., & Weinstein, C. S. (2006). Classroom management as a field of inquiry. In C. M. Evertson & C. S. Weinstein (Eds.), Handbook of classroom management: Research, practice, and contemporary issues (pp. 3–16). Routledge. Forness, S. R. (1992). Broadening the cultural-organizational perspective in exclusion of youth with social maladjustment: First invited reaction to the Maag and Howell paper. Remedial and Special Education, 13(1), 55–59. https://doi.org/ 10.1177/074193259201300110 Forness, S. R., & Knitzer, J. (1992). A new proposed definition and terminology to replace “serious emotional disturbance” in Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. School Psychology Review, 21(1), 12–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/02 796015.1992.12085587

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Gonzalez, L., Brown, M. S., & Slate, J. R. (2008). Teachers who left the teaching profession: A qualitative understanding. The Qualitative Report, 13(1), 1–11. https:// doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2008.1601 Horner, R. H., & Sugai, G. (2000). School-wide behavior support: An emerging initiative. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 2(4), 231–232. https://doi.org/ 10.1177/109830070000200407 Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq. (2004). Maag, J. W., & Howell, K. W. (1992). Special education and the exclusion of youth with social maladjustments: A cultural-organizational perspective. Remedial and Special Education, 13(1), 47–54. https://doi.org/10.1177/074193259201300109 Maag, J. W., & Katsiyannis, A. (2008). The medical model to block eligibility for students with EBD: A response-to-intervention alternative. Behavioral Disorders, 33(3), 184–194. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43153451 Melnick, S. A., & Meister, D. G. (2008). A comparison of beginning and experienced teachers’ concerns. Educational Research Quarterly, 31(3), 39–56. Merrell, K. W., & Walker, H. M. (2004). Deconstructing a definition: Social maladjustment versus emotional disturbance and moving the EBD field forward. Psychology in the Schools, 41(8), 899–910. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.20046 N.C. ex rel. M.C. v. Bedford Cent. Sch. Dist., 473 F. Supp. 2d 532 (2007). https:// casetext.com/case/nc-ex-rel-mc-v-bedford-central-school-dist National Center for Mental Health Promotion and Youth Violence Prevention. (2012). Childhood trauma and its effect on healthy development. http://www.promote prevent.org/sites/www.promoteprevent.org/files/resources/childhood%20 trauma_brief_in_final.pdf Olympia, D., Farley, M., Christiansen, E., Pettersson, H., Jenson, W., & Clark, E. (2004). Social maladjustment and students with behavioral and emotional disorders: Revisiting basic assumptions and assessment issues. Psychology in the Schools, 41(8), 835–847. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.20040 Perfect, M. M., Turley, M. R., Carlson, J. S., Yohanna, J., & Saint Gilles, M. P. (2016). School-related outcomes of traumatic event exposure and traumatic stress symptoms in students: A systematic review of research from 1990 to 2015. School Mental Health, 8(1), 7–43. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-016-9175-2 Perry, B. D., Pollard, R. A., Blakley, T. L., Baker, W. L., & Vigilante, D. (1995). Childhood trauma, the neurobiology of adaptation, and “use-dependent” development of the brain: How “states” become “traits.” Infant Mental Health Journal, 16(4), 271–291. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-0355(199524)16:43.0.CO;2-B Reinke, W. M., Stormont, M., Herman, K. C., Puri, R., & Goel, N. (2011). Supporting children’s mental health in schools: Teacher perceptions of needs, roles,

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and barriers. School Psychology Quarterly, 26(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1037/ a0022714 Ritter, J. T., & Hancock, D. R. (2007). Exploring the relationship between certification sources, experience levels, and classroom management orientations of classroom teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 23(7), 1206–1216. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2006.04.013 Shields, A. M., Cicchetti, D., & Ryan, R. M. (1994). The development of emotional and behavioral self-regulation and social competence among maltreated school-age children. Development and Psychopathology, 6(1), 57–75. https://doi.org/10.1017/ s0954579400005885 Smith, C. R., Katsiyannis, A., Losinski, M., & Ryan, J. B. (2015). Eligibility for students with emotional or behavioral disorders: The social maladjustment dilemma continues. Journal of Disability Policy Studies, 25(4), 252–259. https:// doi.org/10.1177/1044207313513641 Sugai, G., & Horner, R. (2002). The evolution of discipline practices: School-wide positive behavior supports. Child & Family Behavior Therapy, 24(1-2), 23–50. https://doi.org/10.1300/J019v24n01_03 Theodore, L. A., Akin-Little, A., & Little, S. G. (2004). Evaluating the differential treatment of emotional disturbance and social maladjustment. Psychology in the Schools, 41(8), 879–886. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.20044 Tillery, A. D., Varjas, K., Meyers, J., & Collins, A. S. (2010). General education teachers’ perceptions of behavior management and intervention strategies. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 12(2), 86–102. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098300708330879 Tobin, M. (2016). Childhood trauma: Developmental pathways and implications for the classroom. Australian Council for Educational Research. https://research.acer. edu.au/learning_processes/20/ van der Kolk, B. A. (2003). The neurobiology of childhood trauma and abuse. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 12(2), 293–317. https://doi. org/10.1016/S1056-4993(03)00003-8

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CHAPTER 17

Responding to Trauma: Considerations of Attachment for Youth in Foster Care Amanda Hill

Early in my career as a social worker, I had the experience of working with many children involved with the child welfare system, specifically foster care. In preparing to write this chapter, I spent some time reflecting on these experiences and remembering some of the cases. One specific case that came to mind was that of a 13-year-old girl who lived in a rural part of Maryland. She had been relocated to the county I was working in after being placed in foster care. During our first meeting, she told me how her mother had kicked her out of the house after her mother’s boyfriend sexually assaulted her. Rather than being treated as the survivor of assault, she was accused of trying to ruin her mother’s relationship. She went on to explain that she had couch-surfed for about a week before finally telling a teacher what happened. Thanks to the action of her teacher, the local child protection agency was notified, and she was immediately placed in foster care. In addition to the trauma of the assault and her mother’s abandonment, this young girl was now faced with being separated from her siblings, entering into a new school mid-year, and having to acclimate to living with a family who were strangers to her. While the story of this young girl is quite tragic, not all children who enter the foster care system do so as a result of traumatic treatment by their parents or caregivers. Considering this chapter mainly focuses on children in the foster care system, I think it would be valuable to share the story of another client who ended up in foster care but for very different reasons.

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While working as a social worker at a residential treatment center, I was referred a 16-year-old boy who had been placed in foster care after his mother voluntarily gave temporary legal guardianship to the state. Why would a mother do something like this, you might ask? The client was the youngest child of this mother who had successfully raised three other children, all of whom were either going to college or were beginning their careers. Unfortunately, her youngest son, my client, struggled with severe addiction issues and aggressive behavior. When I met the mother, she was so pained at having to temporarily “give up” her son so that he could receive a higher level of treatment and intervention. I remember her saying, “I don’t know what I did! I did everything the same with my son as I did with my other children. How is it possible that they are doing so well, and my youngest has so many problems?” She had tried everything else she could think of to get her son help—taking him to therapy, going to Narcotics Anonymous meetings, and connecting him with various mentors. Unfortunately, nothing seemed to make a difference, and her son’s addiction became more severe, and his behavior, more violent. Voluntarily transferring guardianship was her last resort. Regardless of the reason a child enters the foster care system, there is an undeniable trauma that results from this action. Sometimes, the trauma stems from abuse and neglect perpetrated by the child’s caregivers before they enter foster care, and other times, that trauma stems from the separation and broken attachment to their parents and families when entering foster care (Cohen & Mannarino, 2019). The results of these traumas inherently impact a child’s functioning at home, in social settings, and especially at school (Palmieri & La Salle, 2017). All those who work with children should have an understanding of the foster care system, the reasons why children are placed in foster care, and how this system interacts with child welfare more broadly. Additionally, they should have an awareness of how a child’s development and attachment can be impacted by being in foster care and the ways in which these impacts affect their education and learning. This chapter presents some concrete methods for educators to work more effectively with children in the foster care system.

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The Purpose of Child Welfare When approaching the topic of child welfare, it is necessary to first consider the purpose of the child welfare system in the United States broadly. This system consists of a group of programs, departments, and services that are designed to enhance the well-being of all children by prioritizing their physical safety, promoting permanency, and emphasizing the ability of families to successfully care for their children (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2020). This undertaking is both significant and challenging when we consider the fact that nearly 25% of the U.S. population, about 73 million people, are children younger than age 18 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2011). The challenges experienced by children in the United States are vast. Poverty, housing instability, hunger, health issues, education, and various forms of violence permeate this population in various ways and to varying degrees. According to the Children’s Defense Fund (2020), one in six children (16%) was living in poverty in 2018; of those children, nearly 73% were children of color, and about 20% of all homeless individuals in the Unites States were children. One in six children was living in households that were considered to be food-insecure, meaning they lack regular access to nutritious food, which can lead to increased rates of anemia, cognitive problems, asthma, obesity, malnutrition, and a variety of mental and behavioral health problems (Gundersen & Ziliak, 2015). Despite significant efforts by teachers and school administrators, in 2018, more than 70% of Black and Hispanic fourth and eighth graders were not proficient in reading or math. Finally, in the United States, a child experiences some form of abuse or neglect every 47 seconds (Children’s Defense Fund, 2020). Although the child welfare system attempts to mitigate these issues, all of these adverse childhood experiences are examples of the traumas inflicted on America’s youth (Whitfield, 1998). Although many of these factors are not justifiable reasons for a child to be placed in the foster care system, sometimes it is deemed necessary to remove children from unfortunate circumstances and place them in a different and safer setting. However, the placement instability that is experienced by children when entering foster care can result in reduced supports and a lack of continuity of care (Gardenhire et al., 2019). In addition to the trauma that may have contributed to the child entering foster care, there are many secondary losses that may be unique to these children during their time

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in foster care, including separation from siblings and parents, as well as multiple placements in different foster homes that can negatively impact the ability for these children to form healthy attachments (McWey, 2004). As a result of this knowledge, modern child welfare programs emphasize the importance of permanency planning to aid in the development of healthy attachment patterns in foster children. Permanency planning is the intentional effort to provide children with stability and security within a loving family environment throughout childhood and into adulthood (Schofield et al., 2012). In the 1970s, the concept of permanency planning, which resulted from the development of attachment theory by John Bowlby (1969/1982), became a foundational element of modern foster care practices (Crosson-Tower, 2013). Bowlby (1969/1982) found that children who did not have access to a consistent caregiver struggled to form healthy attachments to those around them, not only as children but in adulthood as well.

Attachment Theory Styles According to attachment theory, the desire for connectedness is part of the evolutionary drive of all individuals and encompasses both people and the environment (Bowlby, 1969). Bowlby (1969, 1982) expanded on the previous research of Schaffer and Emerson (1964), who established that infants go through specific stages in developing attachments. Bowlby (1969, 1982) examined the different ways in which children attach to others, specifically their caregivers, beyond infancy. As a result of his research, Bowlby initially determined that it was possible for a child to develop one of three attachment styles: secure, anxious-ambivalent, and anxious-avoidant types. Decades later a fourth attachment style was identified: disoriented/disorganized (Walsh, 2010). If a child experiences consistent nurturing from their primary caregiver(s), the child will develop secure attachment patterns. Alternatively, if a child experiences inconsistent, emotionally neglectful, and/or abuse from their primary caregiver(s), the child will develop either an anxious-ambivalent, anxious-avoidant, or a disoriented/disorganized pattern of attachment. However, it is important to note from the beginning of this review of attachment styles and patterns that just because a child may have developed an attachment style that is not secure does not mean that they will

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maintain that style forever. Cozolino (2016) theorized that “if someone who is insecurely attached is lucky enough to stick with a securely attached person for about five years, it increases her own attachment security” (p. 109). Depending on the pattern of attachment that a child develops, they will demonstrate differing emotional and behavioral responses to various interactions and experiences (Gardenhire et al., 2019). For example, children with secure attachments are likely to be responsive and helpful when faced with an unpleasant or challenging situation. Typically, children with secure attachment patterns are able to be comforted when they become distressed, engage collaboratively with others while playing and learning, and be excited about exploring unfamiliar situations (Mennen & O’Keefe, 2005). For those educators who are teaching a child who is in the foster care system, it may be unlikely that they exhibit secure attachment patterns, but it is not impossible. Remember, as children and adults are able to establish consistent and healthy relationships, over time it is very possible for their attachment style to become more secure (Goldsmith et al., 2004). Children whose primary caregiver is inconsistent or uses the threat of rejection and abandonment as a tool of control may develop the attachment style characterized as anxious-ambivalent. When these children become upset, the pattern of behavior they exhibit can manifest as both hostile and dependent. The child with this attachment style will habitually be concerned about the whereabouts of their primary caregivers and have a hard time being soothed (i.e., they may be asked to be picked up and then immediately struggle to be put down). These children have a harder time working and playing independently, have little interest in engaging in new experiences, and may demonstrate more intense separation anxiety (Mennen & O’Keefe, 2005). The teenage girl referenced at the beginning of this chapter likely fell within this attachment style. She experienced much more than the threat of abandonment when her mother forced her to leave the home with no other housing options. However, it is important to note that children with this attachment style may still engage in prosocial behaviors. Gross et al. (2017) defined these types of behaviors as “voluntary action to improve another’s welfare; it encompasses diverse behaviors, such as feeding a hungry child, lending a hand to a stranger, or soothing a distraught friend” (p. 661). For example, a child with this attachment style might lend a helping hand to their peers, just as a child with a secure

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attachment style might, the difference is in the motivation behind the prosocial behavior. The child with an anxious-ambivalent attachment pattern will likely engage in prosocial behaviors for the purpose of pleasing their adult caregivers because they have learned that this is the best way to receive positive attention and affection. While I was not the primary caregiver for the young teenage girl mentioned previously, she was very eager to accomplish the goals we had collaboratively developed and was very hard on herself anytime she felt she was not making progress. This was yet another indicator that this young girl was exhibiting anxious-ambivalent attachment. Children with an attachment style that is anxious-avoidant will likely be suspicious or skeptical of their caregivers because they have learned that their needs will not be consistently met. This is learned because the primary caregivers of these children have been either rejecting or overly controlling. When experiencing difficult situations, instead of seeking out their caregivers for help and support, they will distance themselves from their caregivers, feeling as though they can handle problems on their own (Mennen & O’Keefe, 2005). These behaviors are considered a defense mechanism to deal with prolonged rejection or non-responsiveness of their primary caregiver. Tallandini and Caudek (2010) defined defense mechanisms as “strategies—adaptive or maladaptive—that children and adults use to deal with the emotional difficulties of everyday life” (p. 535). The teenage male referenced at the beginning of this chapter might be considered to fall within this style of attachment. As his struggles with substance abuse increased, his mother, understandably, became more and more controlling of every aspect of this adolescent’s life. While attempting to create an environment that did not allow for substance use, his mother strenuously regulated every hour of his day and did not allow for any unsupervised contact with his peers, eliminating nearly all possibilities for personal privacy. His response to this controlling environment was to attempt to separate himself from his mother and gain control over his life in a series of unhealthy and damaging ways that ultimately led to his placement in residential treatment. It should be noted that similarly to children with anxious-ambivalent attachment patterns, children with the anxious-avoidant attachment style will also engage in prosocial behaviors, but the motivation for doing so is different than in the other attachment styles. For example, a child may practice sharing with peers they deem to be more popular because they want to avoid

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confrontation (Gross et al., 2017). This experience was especially apparent for my teenage male client. Being in residential treatment resulted in an abundance of confrontation-based interaction with peers. Subsequently, my client regularly engaged in prosocial behaviors to decrease negative attention and reduce unpleasant interactions with his peers. The behaviors of children who have disoriented/disorganized attachment style might appear to be inconsistent depending on the presented stimulus. For example, they may initially act like they do not care about an upsetting situation and then quickly fall apart emotionally with a mixture of sadness, anger, and panic. The child with this attachment style may fluctuate between wanting to be close with their caregiver and then being distressed when their caregiver is present. Researchers have determined that the development of this attachment style is the result of primary caregivers provoking fear in their children. These children have not been able to learn which behaviors produce the desired positive attention from their caregiver and subsequently are not able to develop a consistent strategy for regulating attachment with others (Mennen & O’Keefe, 2005). A finding made by Martin Schröder and his research colleagues (2019), which may be important for educators, was that school-aged children with this attachment style consistently scored lower on intelligence and language tests than their peers with secure attachment patterns. It should be noted, however, that this finding is only consistent for children and not adults, indicating that age may be a mitigating factor in this finding. Children with this attachment style are also at an increased risk of having difficulty with their behavior and ability to regulate their emotions (Fearon et al., 2010). Regardless of which attachment style is identified in a child, they will develop a variety of strategies to aid in their ability to deal with caregiving environments irrespective of whether that environment is loving and caring or scary and neglectful. The child may learn that those strategies are very effective in helping them function within the home environment but may be problematic in other social contexts. Additionally, these strategies may impair the child’s social and emotional development resulting in challenges in educational and extracurricular settings (Mennen & O’Keefe, 2005). While attachment theory has evolved over the decades, the core concept of attachment remains the same that each individual has “an inherent biological need to form attachments with others in order to experience healthy development and to meet their emotional needs” (Walsh,

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2010, p. 66). Ensuring that every child in the foster care system is afforded the opportunity to form these vital attachments is necessary in minimizing the possibility of further trauma.

Impact of Attachment Theory on Foster Care The impact of the research regarding attachment stages and styles on children in the foster care system was that children not only had the need but also the right to a permanent foster family arrangement as soon as possible. Increasing the level of placement permanency subsequently decreased the number of times that a foster child would be required to move from home to home, school district to school district, and family to family. Increasing permanency reduces the amount of secondary loss and helps to increase the developmental, mental, and emotional stability of the child (Goldsmith et al., 2004). Throughout the 1970s, as permanency planning became the norm, research showed some improvement in child outcomes, but ultimately, those children who were able to maintain continuity with their original/biological family unit had even better outcomes because they were spared from the additional trauma of long-term separation (Crosson-Tower, 2013). In the current foster care system, whenever possible, the ultimate goal is family continuity even when foster care is a necessary measure to protect the welfare of children.

Trauma Under Foster Care Children who are maltreated are more likely to develop attachment patterns that are insecure than their peers who have not experienced maltreatment (Mennen & O’Keefe, 2005). Subsequently, being placed in foster care presents the opportunity for the maltreated child to develop secure attachments to their new caregivers which allows for the possibility of improved developmental outcomes. However, the removal of a child from their birth parents does trigger feelings of loss and the possibility for additional trauma (Goldsmith et al., 2004). If these feelings of loss are not acknowledged by the child’s foster family, the result can be further difficulties with developing secure and healthy attachments (Steenbakkers et al., 2019). As was discussed previously, it is important

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to remember that attachment styles and patterns are not necessarily permanent. While attachment theory can help us to understand and give context to the behaviors we see in children that have been maltreated and subsequently removed from their biological parents, it should not be used to try to predict how children may develop over the course of their lives. As such, “while attachment problems may predispose a child towards future behavior problems, these problems must be evaluated and treated within the context of the child’s current environment” (Barth et al., 2005, p. 259). Essentially, not every behavior problem exhibited by a foster child can be attributed to malformed attachments and it is essential that the child and their behavior be assessed from a more holistic and context-encompassing perspective. In the past, the child welfare system utilized strategies to protect children that emphasized reducing and eliminating risk factors. Risk factors are considered to be “conditions, events, or circumstances that increase a family’s chances for poor outcomes, including child abuse and neglect” (Children’s Bureau, 2020, p. 2). This risk-reduction approach tended to focus on the failures of both biological and foster care families. It created additional stress without providing much guidance on how to improve the family functioning or the overall well-being of the child. Currently, the child welfare system takes a more asset-based approach that emphasizes protective factors. Protective factors are considered to be “conditions or attributes of individuals, families, communities, and the larger society that mitigate risk and promote the healthy development and well-being of children, youth, and families” (Children’s Bureau, 2020, p. 1). This approach focuses on enhancing the strengths of parents, both biological and foster, and providing these parents with increased support and opportunities that help them to parent more successfully. As a result, there is a greater chance that the child will be able to receive the nurturing and attention necessary to develop secure attachments. For educators working with these children, it is important to maintain this asset-based approach. Children in foster care, while facing significant challenges, have a wealth of interpersonal strengths that, when nurtured, can enhance their educational outcomes.

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How to Respond: Considerations for Educators “Child welfare systems must develop and maintain a cadre of professionals . . . who have the skills and knowledge to work together to identify and respond to child trauma” (Bartlett & Rushovich, 2018, p. 31). While educators might not consider themselves to be direct participants in the child welfare system, it is important to acknowledge their indirect participation via the shared value of enhancing the well-being of all children. In some cases, educators may be spending nearly as much time with these children as their foster families. Because of this, it is important that teachers and other educational staff have some basic knowledge regarding best practices for working with these youth. There are three domains that are considered to be the foundation for effective engagement with children—knowing, being, and doing (Lefevre et al., 2008). The domain of knowing encompasses the understanding of child development and theory. The domain of being involves the effective “use of self ” in practicing professional values. The domain of doing involves the development of certain skills and techniques that promote strong relationships and enhance learning (Lefevre, 2017). It is no secret that teachers have a huge responsibility, they must provide for the educational needs of all students in their classrooms. While the specific number of students may increase or decrease depending on the age and level of their students—early, elementary, or secondary—the importance of teachers building a solid rapport with all their students remains essential. This is especially true for children in the foster care or the child welfare system broadly. Consider the words of Wendy, a female participant in a study regarding the grief and loss experienced by foster children: “If I had one person in my life to build like that one like that trusting relationship and I feel like that would have helped me” (Mitchell, 2017, p. 8). Even though Wendy had access to teachers, foster parents, and other child welfare professionals, she never felt that any of them took the time necessary to build that trust that could have helped her feel more safe and secure. Her experience is in stark contrast to Luis, another participant in the same study who was able to build a trusting relationship with a supportive adult. He said, “It made me feel human. She brought me back to life cause the way I would describe my actions and the way I felt, I felt like a zombie, I wasn’t really living” (Mitchell, 2017, p. 8). Fostering these types of relationships that promote

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secure attachments involves many components, too many to review them all in this one chapter, so instead some important considerations are highlighted. First, all children, regardless of their home situation have various strengths that can aid them in their education. Sometimes, when a child is struggling it is easy to lose sight of those strengths and just focus on the deficits. One way to maintain this asset-based approach is by being considerate of the type of language used in both a classroom and an individual setting. Person-first language is a way of respectfully putting the person before their condition (i.e., a child in foster care, rather than a foster kid; Cox et al., 2019). Essentially, this means acknowledging that the child’s identity is not solely based on the fact that they are in a foster home, residential setting, or with a pre-adoptive family. Rather, it promotes the reality that the child is a dynamic being with multiple components of their identity, with foster care being only a small part. Whether you are talking to the child, or about the child, practicing person-first language is a necessary way to demonstrate their value and worth beyond their current circumstances, an important component in forming secure attachments. It is also important to use inclusive language in all settings, but this is especially true when there are students in the class or school who are involved in the foster care system. If teachers and educational staff, exclusively use the term parents when describing the caregivers or legal guardians of children, the children in foster care are vulnerable to feeling excluded and being identified as different from their peers. Taking the time to ask the child, “Who is the main person who takes care of you at home?” goes a long way toward improving your own understanding of the child’s circumstances, subsequently improving your relationship with that child to help them maintain secure attachments. Having this knowledge allows you to know to whom you should refer and how to refer to them when having conversations about caregivers. Doing regular check-ins with these students is also important because, depending on where the child is in the foster care process, the answer to this question may change over the course of the year. Taking 1 to 2 minutes to ask, “How are things going with (name of, or term used for caregiver)?” and then empathizing with them regarding their response, lets the child know that you are thinking about them and care about their situation, which is a critical feature of secure attachments. Running parallel to the concept of using inclusive language, is developing assignments and programming that are also inclusive. If the school does

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activities for “Mother’s Day” or “Father’s Day,” contemplating ways to alter or rename these activities (e.g., “Special Friend’s Day,” or “Important Grownup’s Day”) to ensure that all children feel included is crucial to keep children in foster care from feeling “othered.” For elementary school teachers who want their students to create a family tree, it is encouraged to consider the anxiety that such an assignment might cause a child who has been abused or neglected by their family and is now in foster care. Even if such an assignment were not anxiety-provoking for a child, the completion of the assignment might be impossible if the child does not have access to any family members due to the circumstances of their placement in foster care. Contemplating alternatives to this type of assignment and being prepared to implement them with your students can increase inclusion and further promote trust. One option could be to have students complete an “important people tree” where students write the names of the important individuals in their lives, such as friends, teachers, and coaches, on the branches and then describe positive traits about those folks on the leaves. For teachers at the high school level who may have assignments that involve students exploring their family dynamics or family history, take the time to speak with students and engage with them in problem-solving to come up with alternatives. Participating in this dialogue empowers the student to take an appropriate level of control over their education, motivating them to complete assignments in a way that assures them of their value regardless of their difference, which again, could potentially strengthen the security of their attachment to the teacher. That being said, it is important to not publicly spotlight or highlight a child who is in foster care. I remember the story of one teacher who, with the best of intentions, publicly apologized to a student who reminded her that he could not interview his dad for “Father’s Day” because he was incarcerated. In reality, all the child wanted to do was to interview his grandfather—his foster parent— instead, but the teacher was a little too hasty and made the student feel like he was in the spotlight for being different. Health teachers at the middle and high school level should emphasize the importance of developmentally appropriate trauma-informed sex education. Fava and Bay-Cheng (2013), indicated that there is significant potential for overlap between the developmental issues that arise from experiences of childhood maltreatment and adolescent sexuality. According to Gardenhire et al. (2019),

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as children may rotate through foster families and different educational settings, sex education is often overlooked. As a result of this missed education, teenagers in foster care are often not properly educated about healthy sexuality as well as sexually transmitted infections (Gardenhire et al., 2019). This lack of critical education may further complicate health issues that teenagers in the foster care system experience (McGill, 2016). Having access to trauma-informed sex education may be transformative for adolescents with maltreatment histories and may help to prevent future problems and negative sexual outcomes (Fava & Bay-Cheng, 2013). It is important that all educators are aware of the parameters of privacy and confidentiality. Depending on the circumstances of the child’s placement in foster care, communicating with their biological parents may be temporarily or permanently “off-limits.” Just because a parent calls the school or a teacher directly, does not mean it is alright for the teacher to share information about the child with them. I remember an incident when working as a therapist at a public school where a teacher did not realize she was not allowed to talk to a child’s biological mother and gave the mother the location of the child’s bus stop. The result was that the mother met the child at the bus stop and attempted to take the child back. Fortunately, the foster parent arrived in time, but the whole scenario was upsetting for the child and posed a liability risk for the school. While this type of scenario may not occur frequently, it highlights the importance of this basic concept. A final consideration for teachers is the end of the school year. For children in foster care who struggle with healthy and secure attachments, the end of the school year can feel like abandonment. While the summer vacation provides a vital reprieve for students and teachers alike, preparing for the ending of the teacher–student relationship can be just as important for a child’s healthy development as the relationship building at the beginning. As the end of the school year approaches, it is important that teachers take the time to prepare their class collectively, and their students individually for the relationship ending. Having open conversations that reflect on the fun that was had, the learning and growth that took place, and the obstacles that were overcome can be empowering for all students. Teachers should help students prepare for what will come next, not just regarding summer plans but also for the next school year when they will likely have new teachers, new expectations, new environments, and hopefully

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new opportunities. Engaging in activities that help students know what to expect moving forward is a great way for a child to view the change as an exciting transition, rather than rejection.

Conclusion The experience of teaching children who are involved in foster care, or the child welfare system broadly, will be very different from child to child and teacher to teacher. Implementing strategies for working with youth in foster care within educational settings, such as emphasizing personal strengths rather than deficits and utilizing inclusive language, can go a long way in enhancing the child’s educational experience. Educators are crucial in helping these children who have been traumatized to establish a sense of safety and security. It is a role that, while complemented by other professionals, is irreplaceable and should be approached with continuous learning, ongoing reflection, and regular engagement in best practices.

References Barth, R., Crea, T., John, K., Thoburns, J., & Quinton, D. (2005). Beyond attachment theory and therapy: Towards sensitive and evidence-based interventions with foster and adoptive families in distress. Child and Family Social Work, 10, 257–268. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2206.2005.00380.x Bartlett, J., & Rushovich, B. (2018). Implementation of trauma systems therapy-foster care in child welfare. Children and Youth Services Review, 91, 30–38. http://dx.doi. org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.05.021 Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss: Vol. I. Attachment. Basic Books. Bowlby, J. (1982). Attachment (2nd ed.). Basic Books. Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2020). Reasonable efforts to preserve or reunify families and achieve permanency for children. https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/ systemwide/laws-policies/statutes/reunify/ Children’s Bureau. (2020). Protective factors approaches in child welfare. https://www. childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/protective_factors.pdf Children’s Defense Fund. (2020). The state of America’s children 2020. https://www. childrensdefense.org/the-state-of-americas-children-2020/

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Cohen, J. A., & Mannarino, A. P. (2019). Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy for childhood traumatic separation. Child Abuse & Neglect, 92, 179–195. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2019.03.006 Cox, L., Tice, C., & Long, D. (2019). Introduction to social work: An advocacy-based profession (2nd ed.). SAGE. Cozolino, L. (2016). Why therapy works: Using our minds to change our brains. Norton & Company. Crosson-Tower, C. (2013). Exploring child welfare: A practice perspective (6th ed.). Pearson Education. Fava, N., & Bay-Cheng, L. (2013). Trauma-informed sexuality education: Recognising the rights and resilience of youth. Sex Education, 13(4), 383–394. https://doi.org /10.1080/14681811.2012.745808 Fearon, R., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M., Lapsley, A-M., & Roisman, G. (2010). The significance of insecure attachment and disorganization in the development of children’s externalizing behavior: A meta-analytic study. Child Development, 81(2), 435–456. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2009.01405.x Gardenhire, J., Schleiden, C., & Brown, C. C. (2019). Attachment as a tool in the treatment of children within foster care. Contemporary Family Therapy: An International Journal, 41(2), 191–200. https://doi-org.proxy-su.researchport.umd. edu/10.1007/s10591-018-09487-1 Goldsmith, D., Oppenheim, D., & Wanlass, J. (2004). Separation and reunification: Using attachment theory and research to inform decisions affecting the placements of children in foster care. Juvenile and Family Court Journal, 55(2), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-6988.2004.tb00156.x Gross, J. T., Stern, J. A., Brett, B. E., & Cassidy, J. (2017). The multifaceted nature of prosocial behavior in children: Links with attachment theory and research. Social Development, 26(4), 661–678. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12242 Gundersen, C., & Ziliak, J. (2015). Food insecurity and health outcomes. Health Affairs (Project Hope), 34(11), 1830–1839. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2015.0645 Lefevre, M. (2017). Learning and development journeys towards effective communication with children. Child & Family Social Work, 22(1), 86–96. https://doi.org/ 10.1111/cfs.12202 Lefevre, M., Tanner, K., & Luckock, B. (2008). Developing social work students’ communication skills with children and young people: a model for the qualifying level curriculum. Child & Family Social Work, 13(2), 166–176. http://dx.doi. org/10.1111/j.1365-2206.2007.00529.x McGill, N. (2016). Connecting to care: Making health a priority for children in foster care system: Connecting to care, wherever kids are. The Nation’s Health, 46, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2016.303459

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McWey, L. M. (2004). Predictors of attachment styles of children in foster care: An attachment theory model for working with families. Journal of Marital & Family Therapy, 30(4), 439–452. https://doi-org.proxy-su.researchport.umd. edu/10.1111/j.1752-0606.2004.tb01254.x Mennen, F. E., & O’Keefe, M. (2005). Informed decisions in child welfare: The use of attachment theory. Children and Youth Services Review, 27(6), 577–593. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2004.11.011 Mitchell, M. (2017). “No one acknowledged my loss and hurt”: Non-death loss, grief, and trauma in foster care. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 35, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-017-0502-8 Palmieri, L. E., & La Salle, T. P. (2017). Supporting students in foster care. Psychology in the Schools, 54(2), 117–126. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/pits.21990 Schaffer, H. R., & Emerson, P. E. (1964). The development of social attachments in infancy. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 29(3), 1–77. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1165727 Schofield, G., Beek, M., & Ward, E. (2012). Part of the family: Planning for permanence in long-term family foster care. Children and Youth Services Review, 34(1), 244–253. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2011.10.020 Schröder, M., Lüdtke, J. Fux, E., Izat, Y., Bolten, M., Gloger-Tippelt, G., Suess, G., & Schmid, M. (2019). Attachment disorder and attachment theory: Two sides of one medal or two different coins? Comprehensive Psychiatry, 95. https://doi. org/ 10.1016/j.comppsych.2019.152139 Steenbakkers, A., van der Steen, S., & Grietens, H. (2019). How do youth in foster care view the impact of traumatic experiences?. Children and Youth Services Review, 103, 42–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.05.026 Tallandini, M., & Caudek, C. (2010). Defense mechanisms development in typical children. Psychotherapy Research, 20(5), 535–545. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10 503307.2010.493536 U.S. Census Bureau. (2011). Age and sex composition: 2010. Department of Commerce. https://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/briefs/c2010br-03.pdf U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families. (2019). Child welfare outcomes 2016: Report to Congress. https://www. acf.hhs.gov/cb/report/child-welfare-outcomes-2016-report-congress Walsh, J. (2010). Theories for direct social work practice (2nd ed.). Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Whitfield, C. L. (1998). Adverse childhood experiences and trauma. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14(4), 361–364.

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CHAPTER 18

A Call to Action: Recommendations for Teacher Advocacy in the Aftermath of 2020 Brianne Kramer, Jennifer McKenzie, and John Rodari Meisner

The traumatic stress experienced by both K–12 students and teachers due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 school years was more widespread, and certainly more prolonged, than perhaps teachers and students have ever experienced in schools. Following the COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020, public schools were forced to transition students from face-to-face to online learning in a matter of days. Neither teachers nor students were adequately prepared for this shift in instruction, resulting in increased stress for both educational professionals and students. In addition to job and academicrelated stressors, these groups also had the added stress caused by the pandemic itself. Fear of infection, dealing with illness in themselves and in loved ones, and feeling isolated from other people who could provide necessary support through the trials of the pandemic were just a few of the factors that took a toll on students and teachers. As the trauma of the pandemic grew, on May 25, the nation was rocked by news of the murder of Minneapolis, Minnesota, resident George Floyd at the hands of police. In the days that followed, people witnessed Floyd’s death via video as Derek Chauvin purposely knelt on his neck while Floyd stated he could not breathe and called out for his mother. Soon his voice went silent, but Chauvin did not change his stance until paramedics arrived. Two autopsies ruled Floyd’s death a homicide. Despite so many previous murders of Black men at the

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hands of the police, Floyd’s death set off protests and demonstrations worldwide, leading many to state that we were seeing a new social justice movement larger than the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Statues erected to showcase Confederate leaders and others who pursued inequity amongst different races were torn down, many places began renaming buildings dedicated to known racists, and people everywhere began to educate themselves about racism and inequities still present today. Some began referring to the events of 2020 as the twin pandemics—COVID-19 and racism (Bright, 2020). Because of the events witnessed in 2020, teachers need to work to educate themselves about what their students need and work as agents of change in their classrooms and communities.

COVID-19 and Teachers Similar to students, teachers have had varying experiences during the pandemic that may affect their well-being, both as educational professionals and individual human beings. Research has shown that many helping professions, like social workers, psychologists, and teachers, are at an increased risk for secondary traumatic stress (Harr et al., 2014). Figley (1995) defined secondary traumatic stress (STS) as “the natural consequent behaviors and emotions resulting from knowing about a traumatizing event experienced by a significant other—the stress resulting from helping or wanting to help a traumatized or suffering person” (p. 7). Harr et al. (2014) also used the terms compassion fatigue, vicarious traumatization, and burnout. Some of these have unique factors, such as burnout stemming from poor working conditions, lack of support or disrespect, but when derived from the experiences of another, they state that symptoms are “nearly identical to PTSD” (Harr et. al., 2014, p. 234). Teachers are susceptible to STS at any time due to their relationships with their students and knowing about the traumatic experiences their students face. Importantly, these experiences can be enhanced by teachers’ own personal struggles. Educators are advised to be aware of symptoms of “cognitive distress related to compassion fatigue [which] include the inability to concentrate, loss of memory, decreased self-esteem, apathy, preoccupation with trauma, perfectionism, and rigidity” (Harr et al., 2014, p. 235). Thus, knowing the level of trauma students experienced during COVID-19, teachers likely had

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the normal number of students confiding in them about difficult situations and, additionally, had a front-row seat to many of these experiences through virtual learning. Radey and Figley (2007) indicate that there are four main factors that contribute to compassion fatigue: poor self-care, previous unresolved trauma, inability or refusal to control work stressors, and a lack of satisfaction for the work (p. 207). These last two were most likely experienced by many teachers while schools were closed during the pandemic. Beyond contending with the realities and fears for their own health and the health of their loved ones, a 2020 study (Meisner & McKenzie, 2021) found that teachers’ self-efficacy was shaken in relation to aspects of teaching over which they had little control. This relates to students’ home environment, student motivation, and their ability to engage students in a remote setting. Teachers also frequently demonstrated dismay at a loss of personal connection that research has shown can affect job satisfaction (Brackett et al., 2010). During the pandemic, teachers received contradictory messages about their profession from parents, communities, lawmakers, and the media that could have easily caused them to question their own professional identities. When students first began full online education, teachers were hailed as unsung heroes as parents realized the depth and scope of the responsibilities of educating their children at home. Many began to call for teacher salary increases and a greater sense of respect for hard work teachers do every day (Goldstein & Shapiro, 2020). As the pandemic lengthened and calls for the return to the worries about the national economy became more influential in decision-making, the tone surrounding teachers and schools shifted to one of condemnation. Teachers were often labeled as somewhat villainous because they did not want to return to in-person classes while the virus was still active (Will, 2021). Teachers who advocated for remaining online did not do so because it made their jobs easier or more enjoyable; in fact, many teachers said their workload significantly increased when they could no longer teach in the classroom (Panisoara et al., 2020; Walker et al., 2020). Many teachers were faced with the dilemma of choosing between serving their students and community and their own family’s safety. Given that relationships and emotional connection to their students are such a large part of most teachers’ identities, being accused of not caring about students’ educations went directly against how most teachers really feel. Additionally, teachers had very little voice in any

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of the decisions made regarding the return to in-person teaching, which is also problematic for the profession. Teachers were compared to other “essential workers” but did not garner the same support and empathy from society as frontline health care workers. Teachers’ work was proclaimed essential, but their expertise was ignored. All these factors have plausibly caused undue stress on teachers and created personal trauma that needs to be addressed in the return to school.

The New Racial Justice Movement and Schools The pandemic and social justice movement seen in 2020 has laid bare many inequities that exist in our society. However, these inequities have always been present. Many families struggled with access to reliable internet or technology to access remote schooling, access to food, housing insecurity, job loss, and access to proper health care. While families from all backgrounds experienced these events, Blacks, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) experienced them to a much higher degree. McCoy (2020) compared the COVID-19 pandemic to the Spanish flu pandemic in the early 20th century and found similar effects on Black individuals and families, such as higher rates of morbidity and mortality. Unemployment and financial insecurity were also worse for Black households (McCoy, 2020). An article in the American Journal of Public Health revealed the extent of the pandemic on minoritized households in New York City: By mid-April, 44% of Latinx, 35% of Black, and 32% of White households reported job loss; 45% of Latinx households and 38% of Black households were unable to pay their rent or mortgage, compared to 21% of White households; 66% of Latinx and 43% Black households ran out of food before they could buy more; 39% of Black and Latinx households and 18% of White households ran out of money to buy food; and 56% who responded to the study’s survey in Spanish had difficulty supporting their students at home during distance/ remote learning, compared to 32% of English-speaking households (El-Mohandes et al., 2020). Galea and Abdalla (2020) studied the nationwide effects of COVID-19 and found 40 million people had filed for unemployment in 2020, and these numbers had not been seen since the Great Depression. Additionally, unemployment rates were higher for Black and Latinx workers when compared

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with White workers (Galea & Abdalla, 2020). While the pandemic had negative effects for many across the country, it is undeniable that specific racial and ethnic groups were affected at much higher rates with longer lasting effects. The pandemic was a novel experience for everyone, but the violence resulting in George Floyd’s murder was not new for many BIPOCs. This came on the heels of increasing coverage of the murder of Breonna Taylor who was shot and killed by the police in her Louisville, Kentucky home on March 13, 2020. Apata (2020) stated various sociopolitical factors of life seem to embrace democracy or freedom, but this is generally reserved for dominant groups and the same factors do not include BIPOC folx who are suffocating under racism. To support those affected, people from all backgrounds, identities, and cultures came out to protest police violence and rally for racial equity and justice. Gerbaudo (2020) stated, Police violence against Black people is an issue that long predated the pandemic. However, the racial inequity manifested in the health and economic outcomes of the pandemic has shone a light on institutional racism, precisely as we see high levels of mobilization of the state and its security apparatus. (p. 65)

Luke (2020) speculated that one possible reason for the increase in people participating in this racial justice movement was due to the pandemic exacerbating individual reactions because people were experiencing illness, death, and insecurity of resources. The fact that many Americans were now working and schooling from home also allowed more people to witness the aftermath of these police shootings in real time on TV (McCoy, 2020). People were no longer able to ignore some of the realities others faced daily and began learning about the racial justice movement and Black Lives Matter. It is estimated that more than 20 million people were involved in some kind of protest or rally surrounding the racial justice movement (Buchanan et al., 2020). Individuals were coming together to bring awareness to these systems and find others who want to work to change them. While we have seen racial justice movements in the past, this one was different. There were people who were never active in this movement before who decided to use their voice and influence to try to change systems of policing and criminal justice. While an invigorated racial

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justice movement emerged, other racial and ethnic groups were dealing with increased levels of discrimination. Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) also faced racism and violence during the pandemic at increased levels. Tessler et al. (2020) shared several violent incidents focused on AAPIs, including children and older adult victims. As these reports became more frequent, many in the highest levels of government did not seem to take these violent events seriously or as part of a growing problem. Gover et al. (2020) asserted no one from the White House, Department of Justice, or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention responded to the uptick in violence against AAPI individuals; however, Los Angeles County, California, officials alerted the public and discussed misinformation that was being spread about China being responsible for the COVID-19 virus. These events further illustrated the racism against people with minoritized backgrounds and created greater rifts in some communities.

Recommendations for Teachers We want to finish this chapter in the book by speaking directly to teachers, who are the most powerful change agents in schools. A teacher’s range and sphere of influence extend far past the school walls, as each one of your students can also work to effect change in each of their lives. One of the greatest things that happened during the COVID-19 pandemic is that teachers’ voices were finally heard through mainstream and social media. It became evident how under-resourced teachers are and how difficult the job of teaching is. Teachers rallied together to advocate for their needs and the needs of their students. It is our sincere hope that teachers will use their expertise to continue to speak out against injustices against students and teachers alike in order to revolutionize the educational systems in which they work. In the following are our recommendations for ways that teachers can advance the worthy causes we have outlined in this chapter. Much research has been conducted on compassion fatigue and/or secondary traumatic stress among the helping professions, such as social workers, counselors, and educators. The role of educators continues to expand beyond basic pedagogical instruction, and for this reason, we draw on this body of research to make these recommendations.

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Know Your Own Trauma and Advocate for Your Needs Exposure to traumatic events is a common experience in the life of nearly all people (Green, 1994). Bride (2007) states: “Although exposure to traumatic events is high in the general population, it is even higher in subpopulations to whom social workers are likely to provide services” (p. 63). And, by some earlier reports (Courtois, 2002), approximately three quarters of the U.S. general population has experienced some form of trauma. In light of the scope of traumatic events of recent years—including violence against BIPOC, gun violence, natural disasters, and the COVID-19 pandemic—it is not unreasonable to assume that the number may be closer to 100%. With this in mind, one can assume that teacher preparation programs and all educators should adequately prepare for traumatic experiences that will inevitably come. A failure to preemptively prepare new teachers for the many common stressors that accompany the job may increase the likelihood of burnout and leaving the profession early, as well as substance abuse, interpersonal relationship strain, and emotional and physical disorders (Beaton & Murphy, 1995). The implication is that these stressors are commonplace enough that education preparation programs or other educational institutions must prepare their students for these challenges. Many, if not most, enter the teaching profession because of a deep-seated desire to help others, contribute to the success of students, or just “to make a difference,” yet those same qualities must be recognized in relation to compassion fatigue and STS. Compassion, empathy, and personal relationships are necessary for teachers, so the question is how to maximize the benefits of those qualities and to mitigate compassion fatigue and STS. Radey and Figley (2007) refer to this as compassion satisfaction, as a means to benefit those in helping professions such as education. This is especially poignant considering the health and social concerns of this last year. A helping profession, such as teaching, brings with it countless sources of stress from low pay, fatigue, frustration, poor working conditions, displeasure with administrations, and more (Dunn et. al., 2017; Glazer, 2018; Vagi et al., 2019). Attrition among the teaching profession remains high and accounts for nearly 90% of annual teacher demand with less than one third of vacancies stemming from retirements, indicating that the vast majority are leaving at the beginning or midpoint of their careers due to other factors besides retirement (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2019). These

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studies, and many before them, looked at “normal” teacher attrition such as the sources of stress mentioned above. Those who remain, have learned to weather many of the same conditions that have caused others to leave. It remains to be seen how these current pandemics will affect the already problematic teacher attrition rates. Educators may find themselves working in systems or organizations that do not prioritize educator self-care may wish to work with their respective associations or unions to establish new norms as needed. Teachers in all states— unionized and right-to-work states—can work with the national, state, and local teachers’ unions like the National Education Association (NEA, n.d.) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT, n.d.) for assistance in district-level negotiations. Unions may provide teachers with more opportunities to effectively voice their concerns without fear of reprisal in the workplace, along with providing a community of educators focused on creating change within the profession. Additionally, educators may want to identify other groups or organizations that share common ideas and values. There have been numerous teacher activist organizations and other groups dedicated to assisting teachers in pushing for more autonomy at work. The solidarity that educators can find as part of a union or other organization can be very beneficial in moving toward shared goals and creating change at the school level and, potentially, the profession itself. We have included some of these resources at the end of this chapter. In a helping profession such as education, it is easy and common to fall prey to feelings of helplessness and symptoms of STS and personal trauma. The simple overwhelming nature of the job, the academic and personal struggles of students, combined with the lived experiences of educators in an unpredictable and fraught world, demand that we recognize the potential impact of these factors on our lives and our work. Therefore, it is imperative that we, as educators and education organizations, prepare ourselves for these inevitable challenges so that we may do our best work with our students.

Know Your Role in the Use of Trauma-Informed Practices Most teachers have heard of trauma-informed practices (TIP) in some fashion. What many teachers do not realize is that being trauma-informed means that you understand your students’ physical and emotional well-being must be

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nurtured before their academic skills can flourish. If this sounds familiar, it’s because the same concept appears in Maslow’s (1954) hierarchy of needs, which is taught in every educational psychology course across the country. TIP takes this theory a few steps further, saying that teachers must view student behavior through a different lens: Instead of blaming the student for poor behavior or academic skills, teachers should instead seek to understand the potential causes. In other words, the question must transition from “What’s wrong with you?” to “What happened to you?” This is the first step teachers can take toward becoming trauma-informed. Teachers often feel torn between their responsibilities to the classroom as a whole and to the students who have experienced trauma (Alisic, 2012). Although all teachers care about the unique needs of their most vulnerable students, they are often unsure where to begin in meeting their needs. There are many examples of TIPs held within the contents of this book that can be implemented in the classroom. It is likely not enough, however, for teachers to simply start implementing random strategies; rather, teachers need to have help clarifying their roles in working with students who have experienced trauma. What we are advocating is that teachers not only learn about the various applications of TIPs, but also that they encourage school leadership to embrace becoming a trauma-sensitive school. Trauma-sensitive schools are safe havens for students from all backgrounds, filled with adults who are quick to be empathetic and slow to judge. Becoming truly trauma-sensitive takes the dedication of time, planning, and resources specifically for this task. The process is a cultural change for a school, which is not likely to happen overnight, over a semester, or even over a year. It takes a commitment by all adults in a school to change the way they interact with and respond to students. Once the commitment has been made, schools can plan for the undertaking by following a framework for change, such as one posited by Guarino and Chagnon (2018) in the Trauma-Sensitive Schools Training Package. Guarino and Chagnon suggest that the key objectives to preparing a school to adopt a trauma-sensitive approach include (a) an articulated commitment from school leaders, (b) allocation of resources, (c) baseline understanding by all staff of trauma and its impact on students, and (d) formation of a formal multidisciplinary trauma-sensitive workgroup that includes student and family voices. Effort must be taken to ensure that work is not duplicated as part of this initiative: training to become a trauma-sensitive school should align as closely as

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possible to other professional development enterprises instead of being “one more thing” for teachers to do.

Teach for Social Justice Teachers need to be aware that they are complicit in a system that was rooted in White supremacy. Educators need to acknowledge that and figure out how we can participate in dismantling these oppressive systems. We need to understand our own socialization and identity by engaging in critical analysis of our experiences, beliefs, and values. Having uncomfortable and critical dialogue with others and seeking out more education about ideas that may be rooted in privilege are important steps to the process. Freire (1993) stated, “Liberating education consists in acts of cognition, not transferals of information” (p. 79). Teachers must teach students to analyze through critical means in order to change systems and institutions within their communities. The focus should not be on the teacher working to liberate students, but everyone working together in order to employ the critical skills necessary for full liberation and justice. We can accomplish these goals by teaching for social justice and exemplifying these teachings in our work outside the classroom as well. Nieto (2006) outlined four components of social justice: challenging ideas that promote inequity and discrimination based on social identities, making sure all students have the materials (physical and emotional) they need to be successful, encouraging students to use their talents and strengths in the classroom, and employing critical pedagogy that focuses on critical thinking and provides students agency. O’Connor and Daniello (2019) add the importance of building intentional partnerships focuses on the diversity of the communities and cultures that are represented in the school who are working towards specific outcomes. Districts and schools also need to provide teachers with autonomy and spaces where teachers can discuss social justice issues with their peers without fear of reprisal (Picower, 2011). Adopting a social justice perspective and framework in your life and classroom takes consistent work, but the outcomes benefit everyone. Cohen et al. (2013) found that when preservice teachers developed a social justice consciousness, it was personally liberating and opened discussions about inequities the participants experienced themselves or witnessed in others’ lives.

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Teachers are also in the same position to educate themselves and move into action. The systems will work in the ways they were designed to until we change them. Rogers (2020) states: “This new world must also be built in opposition to the racist, anti-Black ideologies that have steered this country away from justice” (para. 23). Now is the time to hit that reset button and create systems that are equitable.

Advocate for Resources As most teachers know, there are many evidence-based initiatives that teachers are expected to implement prior to having the skills and resources necessary to accomplish the task in ways that truly benefit students. To combat this, we have provided a list of resources at the end of this chapter to explore and share with other stakeholders in your schools to ensure meaningful planning, training, and implementation of TIP and teaching for social justice, many of which are quite complementary. We hope you know that you are seen and understood and that your work is of the highest value. We implore you to arm yourself with as much knowledge as you can and be empowered to make the necessary changes in your context to make schools safe and equitable for all students and adults.

Resource List • Rural Mental Health: https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/topics/mental-health • Trauma Sensitive Schools: https://traumasensitiveschools.org/ • Safe, Supported Learning (Trauma Sensitive Schools): https://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/trauma-sensitive-schoolstraining-package • School-Based Mental Health Services Grant Program: https://oese.ed.gov/offices/office-of-formula-grants/safe-supportiveschools/school-based-mental-health-services-grant-program/

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• Policy Brief: State Funding for School Mental Health: https://www.ecs.org/state-funding-for-student-mental-health/ • U.S. House of Representatives, Find Your Representative: https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative • U.S. Senate, Find Your Senators: https://www.senate.gov/senators/ • Find Your State Legislators: https://openstates.org/find_your_legislator/ • Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Concept of Trauma and a Trauma-Informed Approach: https://ncsacw.samhsa.gov/userfiles/files/SAMHSA_Trauma.pdf • Center for the Developing Child at Harvard University: https://developingchild.harvard.edu/ • SAMHSA Child Traumatic Stress Resources: https://www.samhsa.gov/childrens-awareness-day/past-events/2018/ child-traumatic-stress-resources • School Health Assessment and Performance Evaluation System: https://www.theshapesystem.com/trauma/ • Learning for Justice: https://www.learningforjustice.org • The Badass Teachers’ Association: https://www.badassteacher.org • Rethinking Schools: https://rethinkingschools.org • National Education Association: https://www.nea.org • American Federation of Teachers: https://www.aft.org • Black Lives Matter at School: https://www.blacklivesmatteratschool.com • Defending the Early Years: https://dey.org • Network for Public Education: https://networkforpubliceducation.org

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Conclusion For our closing thoughts in this work, we return to the two case examples presented in the book’s introduction, Paul and Maria, to present alternate endings to their stories and possibilities for their new educational experiences. These experiences, of course, are the result of interactions with caring adults in schools who understand how to respond to children who have experienced trauma.  Two weeks prior to the start of school, you are notified of a new student, Paul, a student in the foster care system, who will be a new second grader in your school this fall. Being a veteran administrator in a trauma-sensitive school, you realize that students in the foster care system are at a higher risk for learning and behavioral difficulties due to their exposure to trauma. You immediately set up a meeting with the appropriate stakeholders: his foster parents, Division of Child and Family Services caseworker, and the school counselor, to discuss Paul’s needs. After this meeting, you carefully consider and select the teacher and classroom that you believe will result in the most immediate success for Paul. You contact the teacher, and together with the school counselor, this team creates a plan for what you believe will be a successful transition for Paul, including use of the safe place in the classroom, regular check-ins by the school counselor, and inclusion in a second-grade friendship group that is facilitated by the counselor. Because your entire school has had training in the use of trauma-informed practices, Paul’s teacher has already planned lessons to teach classroom expectations and to start the first day of school by providing a safe environment for all students.  Paul’s first 2 weeks of school go perfectly, but on Monday of the third week, as you are in the middle of your morning routine of walking from room to room greeting students as they enter their classrooms to begin the day, you notice Paul lingering near the bookbags. You notice he looks very tired and appears to be quite zoned out. You gently say his name before approaching, which appears to startle him and he jumps back a bit. You kneel down in the doorway with a smile and say, “Good morning. I’m so glad to see you today.” Paul’s face twists a bit in what appears to be anger, and he says, “This is NOT a good morning.” He stomps his foot a little. Still kneeling, you ask Paul if he’d like to take a walk

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for a minute, since it’s such nice weather outside. He agrees and you spend the next 15 minutes just hanging out and chatting, during which time he confides that his mom, whom he has not seen in months, visited this weekend. Armed with this information, you are able to calm Paul enough to return to the classroom, with a promise of a visit from the counselor, with whom he has formed a quick bond. You also alert his classroom teacher of the situation so that she can be prepared to assist Paul to self-regulate if his emotions get too big for him to handle. With these supports, Paul makes it through the day with no significant behavioral outbursts.  Today is Thursday, and your science class is full of eighth graders who are excited for the pep rally and dance tomorrow . . . especially Maria. She nearly exploded into your classroom in constant movement and sound. Because you’ve become accustomed to this behavior from her when she is anxious, you have a check-in system with her before class begins. Maria approaches your desk with her check-in sheet and the two of you discuss her day so far. It appears that she’s had some difficulties in some classes prior to yours, especially with controlling her impulses. You ask her about the dance, and she admits that she’s not sure how fun it will be because she does not have a date. You take a few minutes to let her share what makes her anxious about the dance. While you do not attempt to solve these problems for her, you validate her feelings and ask her what she needs from you to feel more in control of herself in class. Together you decide that she will begin by helping you pass out papers to the class to stay busy. As she moves from student to student, she begins to assign each person a nickname, several of which are sexually explicit and none of them are appreciated by her peers. Just then, another female student exclaims, “It’s no wonder you don’t have a date for the dance. A person would have to be crazy to want to date you!” Knowing that Maria was already upset about this and that she would most likely have a strong reaction to this being announced to the class, you immediately step between Maria and the rest of the class, shielding her from their gaze. You direct your gaze at her and quietly state, “I can tell that you were hurt by that statement. We need to talk about what just happened.” Next, because you have taught your students the principles of restorative justice, you have a restorative chat in which the students are able to discuss what happened in order to feel seen and heard. Maria and the other students are able to share their perspectives, what they were thinking at the time, who was harmed by

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the transgressions, and how the harm can be repaired. During this exchange, another girl shares with the group that, even though she doesn’t have a date, she still got a new haircut and color for the dance and is excited to go alone. Maria’s face brightens a bit when she realizes she is not the only one going to the dance without a partner. At the end of class, Maria privately tells this peer that maybe they can hang out together at the dance and the peer agrees. As you can see, the way adults view their students’ behaviors, plan to address them, and respond when they occur can make a profound difference in the interactions between adults and students. In the wise words of Fred Rogers, “Love isn’t a state of perfect caring. It is an active noun like ‘struggle.’ To love someone is to strive to accept that person exactly the way he or she is, right here and now.” May you always be loved for who you are and aim to love others in the same fashion. Those who do this will be the agents of positive change for the children who need them most.

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Editor Biographies Brianne Kramer, PhD, is an assistant professor of education in the College of Education and Human Development at Southern Utah University, where she teaches undergraduate and graduate-level Social Foundations of Education courses. Additionally, she coordinates the Educational Foundations and Policy emphasis for the Master of Education and Master of Interdisciplinary Studies programs. Dr. Kramer began her career as a high school English and speech teacher before moving into higher education and has been an educator for 18 years. She holds a PhD in social foundations of education with a minor in educational psychology from the University of Toledo, a Master of Education from Bluffton University, and a Bachelor of Science in integrated language arts-secondary education from Bowling Green State University. Her research focuses on issues of privilege, identity, and resistance in teacher education programs, educational policy, and teacher activism. Dr. Kramer has been an active member of the Badass Teachers’ Association for 8 years and is currently on the board of directors. Additionally, she serves on the American Civil Liberties Union Utah Board of Directors. She lives in Cedar City, Utah, with her family. Jennifer McKenzie, PhD, is an assistant professor of special education in the College of Education and Human Development at Southern Utah University. Dr. McKenzie teaches all manner of special education courses but especially enjoys teaching classroom and behavior management and special education law. She holds a PhD in special education, behavior disorders from the University of Missouri, a Master of Education in secondary administration from William Woods University, and a Bachelor of Science in elementary and special education from Culver Stockton College. Dr. McKenzie has more than 20 years of experience in special education as a public school teacher, special education director, compliance and technical assistance consultant, and professor. Her research interests include evidence-based classroom management, trauma-informed practices, and retention of early-career special educators.

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Author Biographies Sarah Allen, PhD is an assistant professor in the Department of Family Life and Human Development at Southern Utah University. She received her doctorate in family relations and applied nutrition from the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. Over the past 20 years, her research and teaching have centered on individual, family, and community health and well-being. In 2016, Sarah joined the Crow Tribe and Messengers for Health partnership with Montana State University as research faculty. She is dedicated to promoting health equity for all through relationship building, education, outreach, law, and public policy. Dr. Joel Arvizo-Zavala has a PhD from the Department of Educational Leadership & Policy at the University of Utah. Their research focuses on trauma-informed education, social justice in urban education, family–school– community partnerships, and equity in teacher preparation and teacher professional learning. They currently serve as the chief executive officer of Resilient Education Consulting and have dual appointments at the California University of Science & Medicine which include being an assistant professor of medical education and the executive director for Equity, Inclusion, Diversity & Partnership. Previously they served as curriculum specialist with the Utah Division of Multicultural Affairs, and as a research consultant with the Utah Commission on Criminal & Juvenile Justice. Dr. Natalia Assis has earned a PhD in educational psychology, a master’s in psychology and a master’s in business administration, all from Texas A&M University–Commerce. Her passion for student success and higher education administration fueled her achievements in a variety of initiatives related to institutional effectiveness, research, assessment, data reporting and visualization, accreditation, and continuous improvement. In addition to English, Natalia is also fluent in Portuguese and Spanish and has taught English as a Second Language for years. Natalia’s diverse background and experiences, along with her strong belief in the transformative power of education, guide her work as she continues to identify, create, and implement innovative solutions to maximize students’ success and support the mission of higher education in ways that

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are inclusive, positive, and collaborative. Natalia is passionate about making knowledge accessible, and her academic research interests include social identity, global citizenship, human morality, and character strengths and virtues. Dr. Thomas R. Brooks graduated with his PhD in educational psychology from Texas A&M University–Commerce in August 2021 and is currently an assistant professor of psychology at New Mexico Highlands University. Thomas’s research focuses on the social cognition of human sexuality, the impact of trauma within educational settings, and the group dynamics of media fandoms. As an educator, he specializes in information and research literacies and has worked with community college students, undergraduates, and graduate students to hone their skills as psychologists and writers. Presently, Thomas’s research interests are oriented toward best practices in trauma-informed care for educators in both primarily education, as well as postsecondary education. Brianna Bull Shows, BS, is an enrolled Apsáalooke (Crow) tribal member and a descendent of the Pikuni (Blackfeet) Tribe. She grew up on the Crow reservation in Pryor, Montana, and was raised by her grandparents. Brianna studied microbiology at Montana State University and was the recipient of many prestigious scholarships, including both the Udall and Truman Scholarships. She received a $10,000 Clinical and Translational Research Community Grant to help develop an Apsaalooké Cultural Awareness Class for researchers. Her goal is to improve the relationship between Apsaalooké tribal members and the research community. Jacqueline Burse, PhD, LMSW, MSW, is currently an assistant professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She currently teaches graduate and undergraduate practice courses in policy, diversity, and racial disparities within the criminal justice system. She is a domestic violence researcher specializing in intimate partner violence, particularly women and children. She is currently on the board of directors for Arkansas Homeless Coalition and is a past board member of the Michigan Coalition against Domestic and Sexual Violence. Jacqueline’s has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience advocating, counseling, and supporting men, women, children, and families who experienced trauma.

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Shawn L. Christiansen, PhD, is a professor of family life and human development at Southern Utah University. He has also taught at Penn State Scranton and Central Washington University. He has an MS from Brigham Young University in family life education, an MSW from the University of Utah, and a PhD from the University of Delaware in individual and family studies. As a licensed clinical social worker in private practice, he uses acceptance and commitment therapy to teach clients mindfulness skills to deal with anxiety and depression. He is married to Tiffiney, and they have had four children attending school in Iron County School District. They are grateful for the teachers and administrators who have enriched their children’s educational experiences. Laura Danforth, PhS, LCSW, MSW, is a licensed clinical social worker and an assistant professor in the Department of Social Work at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She is the Chair of the Management and Community Practice (MCP) track of the Masters of Social Work program and helps students cultivate skills that will allow them to engage in community assessment and development. Her research interests include education equity, resiliency practices within marginalized communities, and using qualitative research to center voices that have been historically and structurally silenced. Rae Deernose, MS. Itaadukush (Indian name means “Always Has a Good Place to Be”) is a member of the Crow Nation and grew up in a five-generation family in Benteen, Montana, on the Crow reservation. She received her bachelor’s degree in community health from Montana State University. She joined Messengers for Health at the start of graduate school, where the Counting Coup: Developing an Indigenous Goal-Setting Tool was developed. Rae has focused her research on Indigenous research methodologies and has worked to further ignite an Apsaalooke methodology, Walk Story, in Crow agency. Partnering with the Arthritis Foundation to incorporate methodologies such as making relatives, storytelling, humor, ceremony, language, and physical activity Rae is revitalizing Indigenous methodologies. Dr. Jennifer Foster, associate professor of counselor education, has served on the faculty at Western Michigan University (WMU) since 2012. Before joining WMU, Dr. Foster worked as a licensed mental health counselor as well as a professional school counselor in the state of Florida. Dr. Foster received her

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PhD from the University of Central Florida in May 2011. Her dissertation, An Analysis of Trauma Narratives: Perceptions of Children on the Experience of Sexual Abuse, was awarded the University of Central Florida’s College of Education Outstanding Dissertation Award. Dr. Foster has made significant contributions to the field in the area of childhood trauma and has shared her research findings through multiple publications and presentations in the United States and abroad. Additionally, Dr. Foster lends her expertise as a research consultant in the community, specializing in the areas of trauma recovery and trauma-informed schools. John Hallett, MD,  is a resident physician in family and community medicine and obstetrics at the University of California, Davis. He received his doctorate in medicine from the University of Colorado School of Medicine, with a focus in rural and Indigenous health. He began working in partnership with Messengers of Health as a graduate research assistant at Montana State University in 2013. Suzanne Held, PhD, is a professor in the Department of Health and Human Development at Montana State University. She received her doctorate in the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education from the University of North Carolina School of Public Health in 1995. She has worked since 1996 as a non-Indigenous partner with community members from the Apsáalooke (Crow) Nation with the Messengers for Health program. Her research interests are to work in partnership with communities to establish trust, share power, foster co-learning, and examine and address community-identified needs and health issues using strengths-based approaches. She does this work because she believes in health equality and that equality will happen with everyone walking and working side by side. Dr. Jennifer Hernandez is a veteran special education teacher of 15 years. She has primarily taught students with emotional disturbance, mental illness, and incarcerated youth in secondary alternative settings. In the last three years of her tenure in special education, Dr. Hernandez was a special education administrator in the Ferguson-Florissant School District in Ferguson, Missouri. She was a witness and student advocate in the aftermath of the murder of Michael Brown and the community in trauma. She worked as an ally as the community responded with activism and the creation of Black Lives Matter. Dr. Hernandez

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completed her PhD in 2013 from the University of Missouri–St. Louis in educational leadership and policy studies with a minor in social justice. The crux of her doctoral research included the critical analysis of racialized policies that facilitate the school-to-prison pipeline. Dr. Hernandez began teaching pre-candidate teachers as an assistant professor in the School of Education at Quinnipiac University. She is currently teaching at Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville, Illinois, in the Secondary Program for Teaching and Learning. Dr. Hernandez focuses on antibias/ antiracism training for in-service educators and teacher candidates to address racism and all forms of oppression in public education. Dr. Johanna Higgins is an assistant professor of practice at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and coordinates the Early Childhood Special Education Graduate Program. Her current interests and research are focused on interdisciplinary teaming of behavior analysts and related service providers, training parents at a distance to embed interventions within daily routines, and the use of technology to enhance caregiver–provider communication.  Dr. Amanda Hill earned her master’s degree in social work from Salisbury University in 2010 and her PhD in social work from Widener University in 2019. Prior to joining the faculty of the School of Social Work at Salisbury University, Amanda worked with children and families involved in the child welfare system for several years. Much of this time was spent working in elementary, middle, and high schools providing school-based mental health services to students. Additionally, she has experience working in both acute and residential mental health settings and has acted as a behavioral health supervisor at various pediatric health care facilities. Currently, Amanda teaches both undergraduate and graduate students in several content areas, including ethics, research, and social work practice. Amanda lives in Salisbury, Maryland, with her husband, Joshua, and their two dogs. Maren Hirschi, LCSW, is an assistant professor of family life and human development at Southern Utah University. She earned her Master of Social Work from the University of Utah. In addition to teaching, she has practiced and continues to practice social work in a variety of settings and with a variety of populations, all of which include traumatized people. She is passionate about the creation of trauma-informed classrooms and educational settings because

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in the context of psychological trauma, teachers are often first responders who may not know it yet. Maren lives in Cedar City with her four children. Dr. Susanne James is an associate professor in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE). Dr. James is the Project Director for the SIUE Virtual Professional Practice Lab. She teaches courses in educational research, effective instructional strategies, differentiated instruction, and accommodations of core curriculum. Dr. James was a classroom teacher of students with disabilities for 13 years in instructional and inclusion settings in Kansas and Missouri. She has also been an instructional coach and educational consultant to school districts on coteaching, differentiated instruction, strategic instruction, and effective practices in teaching students with autism in the least restrictive environment. Dr. James’s research interests include virtual learning, simulation, coteaching, teacher preparation, and strategic instruction. Shannen Keene, MS, is a biracial Filipina American that grew up surrounded by the cornfields of southern Indiana. She left Indiana to serve as an AmeriCorps member in Billings, Montana. Shortly after, she earned her master’s degree in community health from Montana State University. During that time, she worked with the Messengers for Health partnership to support the Aakbaabaaniilea in leading the Báa nnilah Program. She currently works as a research manager at the Urban Indian Health Institute on a suicide prevention randomized controlled trial. Shannen is committed to actively decolonizing spaces (and herself) and working with communities to promote health equity. Meghan A. Kessler, PhD, is an assistant professor of teacher education at the University of Illinois Springfield. Her research and teaching interests include early career teacher learning and development, preservice teacher education, whole-student teaching and learning, and social studies education. Her work has been published in Teaching Education, Policy Futures in Education, and a forthcoming article in Teachers College Record. She can be reached at [email protected]. Alma Knows His Gun McCormick, BS, is a member of the Crow Nation and the executive director of Messengers for Health, a Native American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization located on the Crow reservation. Alma is a leader and

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a community activist for improved health and wellness among her people. Her educational background is in community health, including a health and wellness Bachelor of Science from Montana State University–Billings. Alma has extensive experience in conducting community-based participatory research projects through a long-standing partnership with Montana State University–Bozeman. She has traveled nationwide to present at health conferences to share the program’s successes. She has also coauthored numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and publications. She has received various leadership awards in recognition of her work. Messengers for Health has also received various national recognition awards for improved health efforts and promotion of health equity. Peter Kozik is an associate professor in the Educational Studies Division at Keuka College, where he teaches courses in classroom methods, assessment, leadership, instructional design, and wellness. He is a coauthor, with Diane Staehr-Fenner and Ayanna Cooper, of The Highly Effective Classroom: Evaluating Teachers of English Language Learners and Students with Disabilities. In addition to trauma and student-centered instruction, his current research interests include journal writing as vocational support for people who are differently abled and applications of Appreciative Inquiry in schools. He received his undergraduate degree from Williams College and his PhD from Syracuse University. Theresa Kruczek, PhD, HSPP, is a professor of school counseling and school psychology at Ball State University. She is a licensed health services provider in psychology and a school counselor. Her professional interests are in the prevention of family and dating violence as well as promoting trauma recovery. Additional interests include child and family treatment, counselor education and supervision, and school-based counseling. Dr. Kruczek primarily teaches professional practice and skill development courses. She is a member of the Indiana School Counselor Association and American School Counselor Association. She has been actively involved with the Science and Education Subcommittee of the Indiana Psychological Association (IPA), and she received the Gordon Barrows Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology from IPA in 2015. She is also involved in the American Psychological Association’s Society of Counseling Psychology. Dr. Kruczek is the associate editor of the International Journal for School-Based Family Counseling.

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Dr. Aneesh Kumar is an assistant professor of psychology and coordinator of MPhil and undergraduate programs at CHRIST (Deemed to be University) in Bengaluru, India. He is also involved in research projects, such as incorporating character strengths into early school curriculum, a major research project on student mental health through positive schooling program, and the United States–India Education Foundation project with Miami University to develop a training model for culturally competent and evidence-based mental health care for diverse societies. His research interests include child development, childhood experiences, and student mental health. He teaches in the areas of child and adolescent counseling, counseling interventions for special populations, development psychology, and qualitative research methods. He has published and presented papers in various national and international forums in the area of public health and child and adolescent psychology. Dr. Jody A. Kunk-Czaplicki completed her PhD in higher education administration at Bowling Green State University. Prior to pursuing her PhD, she served as the director of student conduct and deputy Title IX coordinator at Cornell University. Jody’s dissertation investigated the relationship between burnout and job demands and job resources in student affairs professionals who help traumatized students, and she has published a book chapter on crisis management training with her dissertation advisor. Jody earned her master’s degree in higher education student affairs from the University of South Carolina, and a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Bowling Green State University.  Yifat Gohar Levenstein is a PhD student in the Counseling Psychology program at the University of Utah. Her research interests include multicultural counseling, access to mental health, experiences of individuals who hold historically marginalized identities, and research that promotes social justice within the mental health system. Currently she is working on a study that examines the experiences of therapists who hold historically marginalized identities with client-initiated microaggressions. Marla J. Lohmann, PhD, is an associate professor of special education at Colorado Christian University. Prior to this role, she was an infant/toddler teacher and a K–8 special education teacher. Dr. Lohmann is passionate about supporting young children, their families, and their teachers to ensure success for all

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learners in the early childhood classroom. She has published over two dozen peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and is the author of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports for Preschool and Kindergarten. Dr. Jason Lynch serves as an assistant professor of higher education in the Department of Leadership & Educational Studies at Appalachian State University. His research explores how traumatic life events impact stakeholders in education, including secondary traumatic stress, organizational trauma, and trauma-informed leadership. His work is grounded in nearly a decade of experience in higher education, where he has worked in areas such as residential life, conference services, fraternity and sorority life, multicultural affairs, academic affairs, and system-level student affairs at a variety of institutions. He welcomes the opportunity to work with schools, districts, and other educational organizations to help them create environments of trauma resiliency in staff, faculty, and administrators.  John Rodari Meisner, PhD, is an assistant professor of education and the director of accreditation within the College of Education and Human Development at Southern Utah University, where teaches undergraduate and graduate-level courses. He earned his PhD in instructional leadership at Utah State University with an emphasis on curriculum and instruction. His research interests center on secondary education literacy across the content areas, lesson design, assessment, teacher quality, antiracist pedagogy, and program evaluation. John is also active in advocacy work for the LGBT+ community in Utah. Before working in higher education, he taught Secondary Education Language Arts, Spanish, English as a Second Language (ESL), and Reading. He previously served as the ESL, New Teacher Induction and Professional Development Coordinator for Iron County School District in Utah. He has also worked at the state level in curriculum, instruction and assessment. John W. Miller Jr., PhD, MSW, is the chair of the Social Work Department at Benedict College. From 2012 to 2017, Dr. Miller led the 100 Black Men of Greater Little Rock as the chapter president. Under his leadership the organization focused on mentoring and education initiatives that specifically target underserved populations. In 2013 the 100 partnered with the City of Little Rock to build a bookcase and purchase a library of African American–themed children’s

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literature to donate the Romine Elementary School Library. To date, more than 250 children have received mentoring from the men of the 100 through this initiative. Most recently, Dr. Miller has published his first textbook, African-American Perspectives: Matters of Consideration for Social Work Practice. Michele M. Miller, PhD, is an associate professor of psychology at the University of Illinois Springfield. Her research and teaching interests broadly include the study of temperament and social-emotional development in children from birth to 7 years of age, with an emphasis on school readiness. Her recent work has been published in Frontiers in Psychology and the Early Childhood Education Journal. She can be reached at [email protected]. Christiane Parrish, BS, completed her Bachelor of Science at Montana State University in community health and is currently working toward her master’s degree. She is a member of the Crow (Apsaalooké) Nation and has been working in partnership with the Messengers for Health nonprofit organization for 3 years. Her current project is “Improving Healthy Relationships in the Apsaalooké Community,” which is a community-based participatory research project aimed toward domestic violence prevention and awareness. Dr. Angie Proctor has worked with at-risk children and teens since 2001. She has extensive experience working in group care settings for children as well as with foster and adoptive families. Since 2008, Angie has studied and trained under Dr. Karyn Purvis and Dr. David Cross at the Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development (KPICD) at Texas Christian University. She is a TBRI® Practitioner and a TBRI® Mentor who helps KPICD train professionals several times a year. Angie obtained a PhD in Educational Psychology at Texas A&M University–Commerce, where is currently serves as an adjunct instructor for the Psychology and Special Education Department. As the founder of Trust-Based Counseling Services, Angie offers trauma-informed training and coaching to parents and professionals. Angie’s research interests are how trauma impacts the educational needs of harmed children, and how this knowledge can provide more training and successful interventions to the classroom. Additionally, Angie’s research also includes the impact of telehealth coaching for foster and adoptive parents. Angie has devoted her life and education to helping children who come from traumatic backgrounds.

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Dr. Doyle Pruitt is a psychotherapist in private practice. Since 2002 her clinical practice has included a specialized focus on children, youth, and families; interpersonal trauma; and juvenile delinquency. Her collaborative approach to care with children as young as 2 years old in community-based and residential treatment has incorporated a strong focus on family and school participation. Dr. Pruitt serves as a forensic evaluator and expert witness for victims and perpetrators of sexual abuse, a consultant on trauma-focused intervention practices to child welfare organizations and adult treatment facilities, and a clinical supervisor to graduate-level practitioners and students. Dr. Pruitt’s research focuses on the differential impact trauma has on individuals and various interventions intended to address this. She has presented at professional conferences nationally and internationally, and has authored peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters related to trauma and sexual aggression. Dr. Mark J. Reid is the dean for the College of Education and Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK) since July 2020. Dr. Reid taught high school biology, physical science, and chemistry for 5 years before earning a PhD in curriculum studies from the University of Texas at Austin. He also taught 1 year at an alternative high school of choice. He was named Coordinator of the Cameron Secondary Teacher Education Program (CamSTEP) at Cameron University in 1999 and served in that capacity for 4 years. He taught high school science and mathematics in the Campbell Independent School District, which had 330 students K–12 for 3 years. In 2006, he joined the faculty of the Curriculum Instruction Department at Texas A&M University–Commerce, where he become a tenured, associate professor. In 2015, Dr. Reid was named Associate Dean for the College of Education and Human Services at A&M Commerce. He served in that position until coming to UNK in 2020. His research interests have centered on decision-making related to curriculum and in recent years he worked with a research team exploring the impact of traumatic experiences on learners. Dr. Anni K. Reinking is the director of development and educational research at CSEdResearch.org and a professional learning consultant in the early childhood field. She is also an adjunct professor teaching early childhood methods courses at Illinois State University and the University of Illinois–Chicago. Her

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research interests involve examining how science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics curriculum can influence the brain development of early childhood students. Furthermore, Dr. Reinking’s current research also includes investigating how virtual learning experiences influence teacher preparedness. Dr. Reinking continues her work focused on multicultural education and the importance of such topics with young students and their teachers. Jennifer Rossman has her master’s degree in education, with an emphasis in special education. She also has postgraduate education in applied behavior analysis and works as a behavior consultant and K–12 educational interventionist. Prior to these roles, Jennifer spent 3 years working in severe needs classrooms specializing in serving students with neurodiversity and autism spectrum disorder. Jennifer is passionate about supporting families in offering quality education to their children and in helping young learners acquire socially significant skills to enrich their lives. Mark Schure, PhD, is an assistant professor of community health at Montana State University. He received in a doctorate degree in public health at Oregon State University, where he began research on the impacts of depression among older adults. His most recent research focuses on evaluating the impacts of novel interventions on mental well-being. Currently he is the principal investigator on several research projects aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of a computerized cognitive behavior therapy program to help reduce depression and anxiety among adult Montanans. He is also co-investigator of a chronic illness management program designed for the Crow Nation, with one component focusing on the effects of historical and intergenerational trauma on health. Dr. Jayme Swanke is an associate professor and the Master of Social Work Program director in the Department of Social Work at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Dr. Swanke teaches courses in social work practice with organizations and communities, substance abuse services, and research. Dr. Swanke is a prolific author who focuses her numerous publications on child welfare and substance use disorders. Her current research projects involve the evaluation of teaching methods utilized in social work classes.

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Amira Yaem Trevino is currently a PhD student in the Counseling Psychology program at the University of Utah. Her research is led with the mission to elevate oppressed voices to improve accessibility and quality of education and mental health care among historically marginalized groups. Currently her research focuses on cultural processes in psychotherapy and the impact of within-group child sexual abuse on adult Black, Indigenous, and people of color survivors. In addition to her doctoral studies, she also serves as a therapist for primarily first-generation and students of color at the Office for Student Inclusion at the University of Utah, as well as supports labs that investigate approaches for improving education and health care (e.g., social justice initiatives in the classroom, long-term impact of military injuries). Carrie Giboney Wall is an associate professor of teacher education at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, where she teaches courses on human development, educational foundations, and literacy theory and methods. She also serves as the undergraduate coordinator of the Teacher Preparation Program at Seaver College, equipping undergraduate teacher candidates. Dr. Wall earned her PhD in teaching and learning with a specialization in teacher education and professional development from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She comes from a long line of educators and has worked in the field of education for the last 32 years. Dr. Wall began her career as a secondary math teacher, later earning a master’s degree in School Counseling along with a Pupil Personnel Services credential. Her research interests include preservice teacher learning, community-based learning, resilience in education, and trauma-informed practices.

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351

Index

A abandonment, 181, 221, 301, 305, 313 abuse, 5, 23, 24, 42, 77, 93–101, 104–105, 111, 129, 131, 147, 150, 151, 181, 199, 200, 203, 247, 248, 268, 285, 287, 292, 302, 303, 304, 309, 312 cyclical, 97 domestic, 199 drug/substance, 10, 14, 18, 58, 94–95, 115, 134, 151, 211, 215, 247–248, 287, 306, 323, 328 emotional, 181 of power, 41, 222 parental, 115 physical, 74, 94, 98, 147, 225, 247, 285 psychological, 147 sexual, 23, 40, 94–95, 147, 287, 291, 294 adverse childhood experiences, (ACE) 1, 2, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 22, 73, 74, 94, 130, 147, 148, 170, 182, 192, 223, 225, 229, 233, 234, 235, 236, 243, 247, 252, 258, 303  African Americans/Black, 1, 13, 60, 97, 137, 150, 165, 222, 224, 225, 234, 236, 247, 248–258, 303, 317, 320, 321, 327 anti-Blackness/anti-Black, 221–222, 258, 327 anti-racist, 228, 258 asset-based, 309, 311 assimilation, 18, 267 attachment, 15, 24, 74–75, 79, 84, 96, 131, 133, 157, 168, 223, 301–302, 304–309, 311–313,  attrition, teacher 112, 323–324,  B behavior(s), 6, 9, 19, 25, 39, 42, 46, 61–62, 74, 81, 100, 103, 123, 132, 136–137, 148–150, 152, 155, 157, 159, 166, 168, 170, 174–175, 183, 186, 188–189, 191–192, 202, 209, 229, 233–235, 249–250, 284–285, 287, 289–292, 294, 296, 305, 307, 309, 318, 325, 334–335 abusive, 96–97 adaptive, 202 addictive, 15 aggressive, 12, 73, 223, 284, 302



antisocial, 12, 289, 302 appropriate, 167, 183 challenging, 13, 83, 186, 191 controlling, 186 delinquent, 9, 291 deviant, 289, 291 difficult, 153, 162 disorders, 7 disruptive, 24, 133–134, 176, 224, 249 expectations, 192 externalizing, 10, 133, 223 internalizing, 223 maladaptive, 253 negative, 12, 192, 257 noncompliant, 285 peer, 9 positive, 12 problem, 62, 175, 178, 203, 250, 287, 290, 295–296 prosocial, 134–135, 137, 139, 209, 305–307 red-flag, 154 risk-taking, 23, 75, 248 sexual, 15, 104 teacher, 76, 207 bias, 2, 9, 13, 16–17, 45, 50–51, 111, 210, 228, 236, 257, 276, 290  BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color), 137, 234, 235, 236, 239–243, 320–321, 323 bioecological  model, 1–25, 56  systems theory, 55–69 Black Lives Matter (BLM), 224, 328 boarding schools, 267–268, 276  brain, 5–7, 23–24, 38, 73, 129–133, 137, 152, 183, 190, 200, 203, 251–252, 276, 284 breaks, 152, 184 Bronfenbrenner, Urie, 3, 21–22, 56, 59, 67, 98 bullying, 1–2, 5, 8–9, 65, 129, 137, 170, 223, 234, 277  cyberbullying, 168 burnout  teacher, 114, 120–121, 124, 229, 318, 323

352

C Center Circle, 50 child welfare, 13, 77, 202, 301–304, 309–310, 314 chronosystems, 3, 22, 60  cognition, 23, 74, 84, 133, 202 cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS), 103 collaboration, 13–14, 16, 42, 45, 48–49, 60, 76–78, 82, 84, 104, 135, 139–140, 151, 161, 163, 204–209, 253, 255 colonization, 18, 97, 267  Common Core State Standards, 20, 39, 42, 45, 50, 52,  community, 12, 20, 22, 37, 43, 51, 66, 76–77, 98–99, 105, 122, 140–141, 148, 162, 170, 178, 192, 209–210, 212, 224, 238–239, 242–243, 254, 266, 269, 271–272, 275, 309, 318–319, 322, 326 agencies, 78, 102 assets, 137 Black, 236 classroom, 45, 48, 50, 137, 227 democratized community of learners, 228 education, 25, 125 health, 13, 265 immigrant, 14 impoverished, 94, 148, 200, 221 Indigenous, 266–268, 274–275, 277 learning, 226–228 liaison, 149–150, 156, 159–160 mental health, 101, 105, 173 norms, 41 of color, 97, 221 partnerships, 101, 204–208 professional, 117 resources, 25, 78, 94, 97, 111, 124, 199 rural, 199–201, 203, 205–209, 211–214 school, 45, 111–112, 163, 174, 192, 324 school engagement with, 19, 242 sense of, 10–11, 43, 46, 174, 227 service providers, 14, 101–102, 183 support, 16, 18, 120 violence, 1, 23, 37, 103, 129, 202, 222–223 Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR), 269 compassion fatigue, 112, 114–116, 119–120, 124–125, 151, 159, 162, 177, 207, 229, 318–319, 322–323  compassion satisfaction, 115–117, 323

CHILDREN AND TRAUMA

COVID-19, 2, 60, 135–136, 258, 317–318, 320, 322–323,  Critical Race Theory (CRT), 16–18, 226,  culture, 18, 25, 60, 67, 98, 139, 156 American, 222 classroom, 50, 137, 140 community, 80 dominant, 51, 157 hypermasculine, 40 Indigenous, 267, 271, 274–275 Latinx, 18 organizational, 254 peer, 168, 174 school, 19, 80, 123, 167, 174–175, 177, 204, 206–208, 251, 254 cultural(ly) affirming, 137 appropriate, 242, 271 assets, 160 attitudes, 59 awareness, 42 background, 66, 250 barriers, 79, 101 bias, 80 brokers, 256–257 change, 122, 325 competent, 98–99, 250, 256, 258, 276 connections, 257 considerations, 94 consonant, 272–274, 277 context, 50, 269 deprivation, 157 differences, 51, 266 diverse(ity), 39, 230 equity, 43 heritage, 18, 275 humility, 50–51 issues, 42, 44, 50, 156, 204, 253 norms, 16, 40, 98, 124, 221, 268, 272, 274, 293 responsiveness, 12, 40, 79–80, 99, 137, 225, 227–228, 230 sensitive(ity), 43, 250 stereotypes, 257 stories, 271 strengths, 269, 271, 274 subgroups, 16–18 sustaining pedagogies, 268 traditions, 18

Index

trauma, 50 values, 269, 271, 274 curriculum violence, 250 D deficit perspectives, 233, 237, 240 democratized classrooms, 226–227 development academic, 79, 139 brain, 23–24, 129–132, 200, 203 cognitive, 182, 292 human, 2–3, 8, 12, 21–22, 25, 56–61, 77, 82, 111, 147, 160, 202, 222–223, 225, 302, 309–310, 313 identity, 257 language, 75 personal, 136 skill, 5, 9–10, 40, 48, 120–121, 205 social-emotional, 3, 60, 73, 76, 82, 133, 140–141, 307 teacher, 140, 175 disability, 38, 183, 283, 288, 290, 292–295 discipline, 8–9, 13, 96,136–137, 140, 148, 150, 191, 205, 209, 223, 249–250, 256, 258, 285, 291  dysregulation, 23–24, 38, 132–133, 152–153, 158, 252 E elders, 275–276 emotional regulation, 9, 75, 96, 100, 130, 132–133, 140–141, 152, 154, 158, 162, 167, 172, 187, 190 empathy, 63–65, 67, 104–105, 115, 124, 134, 140, 170, 174–176, 226, 229, 254, 285, 290, 320, 323  empowerment, 42, 45, 71, 204, 206–207, 253, 256 eurocentric, 275 exosystems, 12, 21, 59 F family 3, 8, 10–11, 22, 25, 39–42, 50–51, 56, 59–60, 75–78, 80–81, 93–105, 111, 137, 151, 158,160, 162–163, 168–170, 201, 208, 256, 268, 272, 274, 303–304, 309, 312 African American, 253–254, 256–258 biological, 308 Black, 320 foster, 308, 310, 313 Indigenous, 268 history, 24, 312 military, 15–16

353

pre-adoptive, 311 processes, 22, 257 support, 16, 18 systems, 94, 195 therapy, 102–103 violence, 1, 202 foster care, 77, 234, 301–305, 308–314, 333 G gender, 7, 16, 24, 42, 50, 55, 69, 204, 236, 253, 257 genocide, 97, 267 H healing, 93–94, 97, 99, 101, 111,138, 148, 162–163, 214, 255, 258, 273–275 homeless, 46, 73, 169–170, 303 hypervigilance, 6, 23, 125, 130, 200 I Indigenous Knowledge Systems, 265–266 Indigenous Methodology, 272 Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA), 283 instructional strategies, 135, 226–228, 272 interventions, 13, 64, 75–76, 78–79, 81–84, 93–95, 98–99, 101, 103–105, 123, 134, 140–141, 151, 154, 156, 166–168, 171, 173, 185, 189–192, 208, 223, 233, 251, 258, 273, 293–297 iterative cycle of trauma, 201 J juvenile justice system (JJS), 13, 117, 224 L learning, 39, 49, 58, 62, 75, 79, 81, 112, 130–133, 148, 150, 152, 154–156, 162, 168, 192–193, 226, 238, 257, 266–267, 271–272, 275–277, 284, 302, 305, 310, 313 challenges, 183, 283, 286 community, 226–228 environment, 5, 8, 12, 51, 182, 211, 215, 229 experiences, 131, 237 goals, 9 opportunities, 8 outcomes, 149 paradigms, 22 process, 9, 49, 249

354





CHILDREN AND TRAUMA

social-emotional, 67, 82, 134–135, 140–141, 150–151, 157–158, 160, 162, 188–189, 236, 243, 296 virtual (online, remote), 258, 317, 319–320

M macrosystems, 14, 16,  marginalization, 221, 226, 228, 234–235, 274–275 Maslow, Abraham, 168, 200, 325 medical model, 233–234, 290 mental health, 2, 10, 13, 15–16, 18–19, 21, 73, 76–78, 82–83, 93, 98, 101, 103, 105, 130, 162, 170, 173, 177, 183, 185, 199–200, 202, 206, 211, 213–215, 225, 229, 248, 252, 273, 292–293, 296, 327–328  mesosystems, 20–21 microaggressions, 19, 240–241, 252 microsystems, 8, 20–21, 59, 98 mindfulness, 83, 123, 141, 152, 160, 168, 170–172, 189–190 multitiered system of supports (MTSS), 12, 166, 295–296 mutuality, 42, 44–45, 48–49, 63, 253, 255 N National Education Association (NEA), 324, 238 neglect, 5, 73, 93–95, 97–98, 100, 104, 111, 181, 247, 285, 302–304, 307, 309, 312 O oppression, 17, 40–41, 57, 97, 227–228, 234, 236–237, 239, 274, 342 P partnerships, 77, 101, 183, 208, 238, 269–271, 326, 338  Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), 166–167, 176   pedagogy, 19, 62, 68, 226, 239, 268 antiracist, 18, 242–243 critical, 326 culturally responsive, 137, 241–242 indigenous, 270, 272, 274 trauma-informed, 182, 237 peer support, 10, 12, 42, 44, 47–48, 174, 204, 253, 255,  person-first language, 311 police, 39, 77, 124, 223–225, 251–253, 317–318, 321  policies, 12, 17, 100, 122, 136, 200–201, 204, 208, 212, 242, 268, 273, 277 anti-Black, 221–222



anti-racist, 258 discipline, 205, 209, 223 discriminatory, 13, 16, 137, 255 finance, 19 special education, 292 trauma-responsive, 76 zero-Tolerance policies (ZTP), 13, 137, 205, 223–224, 249 poverty, 1, 13–14, 39, 41, 60, 73, 79, 111, 115, 150, 160, 165, 199–200, 203, 222–223, 234–236, 242, 252, 303  praxis, 227–228, 230 Predominantly White Institutions, 276 preschool, 13, 73–74, 76–80   prevention, 3, 25, 93–94, 96, 98, 253, 274 behavior 166 centers 77 families 101, 103 over intervention 171 privilege, 224, 226, 237, 239–240, 256, 326 professional development, 84, 112, 120, 176, 213, 227–228, 230, 326   prosocial behavior(s), 135, 137, 139, 209, 305–307 protective factors, 23–25, 42, 95, 97–99, 309  R racialized, 224–225, 342  racism, 17, 41, 59, 141, 222, 226, 234–237, 241, 248, 251–252, 254–258, 274, 277, 318, 321–322, 342 racial justice movement, 320–321 reciprocity, 48, 266, 270–272, 274–275, 277  regulation affect, 74, 84 emotional, 9, 25, 64, 75, 96, 100, 130–134, 140–141, 152, 154, 158, 162, 167, 172, 190, 202 self, 75, 132, 134–135, 161, 174, 181–182, 184, 186–188, 192, 203, 284–285, 295 Zones of Regulation, 124, 167, 184–185, 187 rejection, 152, 305–306, 314 peer/social, 38, 117, 169 spiritual, 268, 274 Relational Cultural Theory (RCT), 55, 57–58, 62–66, 68 relationality, 266, 269–270, 272, 274–275, 277 relationships, 7, 40, 48, 52, 57–59, 62–63, 65–68, 96, 118, 140, 148, 162–163, 168, 181–182, 184–185, 202, 209, 214, 227, 235, 238, 256, 266, 217, 273–274, 276, 305, 310, 323

Index



between systems, 21, 61, 237 bidirectional, 20–21 building, 75–77, 80, 82–84, 101, 137–139, 150, 155, 157–158, 174, 192, 254 family, 10–11, 41, 94 family-school, 103, 160, 182, 254 interpersonal, 288–289, 291 mentorship, 123 parent-child, 22 patient-provider, 269 peer, 8–10, 15–16, 22, 25, 47, 238  student-teacher, 133–134, 136, 150, 159, 248, 318–319 relevance, 266, 270–272, 274–275, 277 resilience, 5, 7, 9–11, 15–16, 25, 40, 57, 75, 117–119, 124, 147, 166, 182, 190, 214, 269, 272, 275–276, 295, 297  family, 99 Latinx immigrant, 18   relational, 66 respect, 13, 43, 47, 48, 50, 98, 138, 168, 238, 266, 270–272, 274, 277, 319  mutual, 138, 227 responsibility, 16, 47–48, 253, 266, 270, 272, 274–275, 277, 294, 296  collective, 139 moral, 230 shared, 69, 94 responsive classroom, 37, 43–44, 124, 134–135 restorative practices, 136, 166, 168, 174–175 retraumatization, 9, 42, 136, 162, 200–201, 205, 229, 241  risk factors, 15, 97, 235, 248, 309 rural communities, 199–215, 301, 327 S safety, 21, 37, 42, 44, 49, 100, 136, 152, 177–178, 193, 200–202, 204, 206–207, 224, 235, 252–253, 274, 284, 303, 314 emotional, 45, 175–176 environmental, 100 familial, 97, 319 neighborhood, 234 neuroception of, 190 promoting, 137–138 student, 45–46, 94, 105, 130, 168 school resource officers, 223, 253 school-to-prison pipeline, 224, 250 settler colonialism, 274

355

social and emotional learning (SEL), 67, 82, 134–135, 140–141, 150–151, 157–158, 160, 162, 188–189, 236, 243, 296 Social Foundations of Education, 242 social inequity, 226–227 social justice, 55–56, 68–69, 228, 318, 320  social justice education (SJE), 233, 237–239, 241–243, 326–327 social maladjustment, 283, 289, 292  social service agencies, 207–208 special education, 133, 154, 283, 286–295, 297 spirituality, 11, 268, 271–272, 274 stereotypes, 14, 40, 45, 228, 236–237, 250, 254, 257, 276 stress  acute, 5, 147 adaptive responses to, 171  chronic, 5, 166, 170, 171, 192, 222 complex posttraumatic stress disorder (cPTSD), 221 eustress, 5 hormones, 6, 131, 132 positive, 5  posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), 7, 14, 15, 23, 95, 96, 103, 129, 130,  221, 252, 318 responses, 181,183, 252 response system, 5, 132, 147, 284, 286 reaction, 1, 5, 6, 7, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24,  secondary traumatic, 14, 15, 112, 177, 318, 322, 323, 324 theory, 4  toxic, 5, 19, 23, 24, 130, 132, 199, 221, 222, 223, 229, 251, 252, 253 storytelling, 267, 271 systemic inequity/inequality, 137, 141, 236  T training, 58, 99, 123, 125 anti-racism, 228, 274 behavior, 296 career, 224 children, 80 clinicians, 102, 104, 183 culturally responsive, 228 parents, 99, 101, 103 school staff, 68, 100, 192, 268, 274 students, 185 trauma-specific, 21, 42–43, 116, 124, 177, 205, 207, 211, 213, 296–297, 325, 327

356

trauma











CHILDREN AND TRAUMA

acute, 113 aware, 204–205 bioecological model of, 1–25 chronic, 113 community, 14–15 complex, 10, 19, 24, 95 cultural, 50–51 cycle of, 201 definition of, 2, 147 direct, 37 familial, 105 generational, 95 historical, 18, 95, 97, 268, 276 impact on behavior, 39, 150, 192, 286, 291 impact on cognition, 38, 74, 154, 286 indirect, 37 intergenerational, 17–18, 22, 24, 97, 111 interpersonal, 1, 8–9, 98 mass (Group), 15, 97, 317 ongoing, 265, 267–269, 273, 275–276 psychological, 222–223 racial, 111, 250–252, 255, 257–258 reactions (response), 4, 5, 8, 10, 21, 38, 96, 112, 113–114, 118, 121–122, 125, 229, 284, 294 relational, 58 trauma-informed approach (TIA), 61, 69, 148, 161, 173, 185, 211, 225, 270, 274, 295 trauma-informed care (TIC), 2, 37, 42–44, 55–62, 68–69, 77–78, 125, 183, 199, 272 trauma-informed education, 58, 312–313 trauma-informed MTSS, 12, 295–296 trauma-informed pedagogy, 182 trauma-informed practices (TIP), 3, 14, 74–75, 79, 84, 100, 129, 148–150, 162–163, 166–168, 173, 176–178, 200, 203, 233–235, 237–238, 241–243, 265, 268, 272, 277, 324 trauma-informed schools (classrooms), 8, 20, 135, 204, 208–215, 221, 228, 252, 257–258, 283 trauma-informed strategy (skill), 104, 116, 135, 150, 225 trauma-informed therapy, 102 trauma-responsive, 47, 76, 129, 134–135, 137–138, 140–141, 206–209

secondary, 112, 114–116, 124–125 sensitive, 100, 205–206, 325. 327 symptoms (signs), 10, 74, 192 systemic, 69 vicarious, 126, 207  teacher preparation programs (TPP), 123, 225, 242, 323 teacher unions, 324 trustworthiness, 204, 206–207, 253–254 U urban, 221, 225, 228 W White supremacy, 239, 243, 326 wellness centers, 171–173 Y yoga, 83, 172, 174, 183, 189–190