Teacher Awareness of Trauma Informed Practice: Raising Awareness In Southeast Georgia

Abstract

While the concept of trauma-informed care has been developed in other fields, its development within the field of Education is relatively new (Thomas, Crosby, & Vanderhaar, 2019), However, as the educational field is becoming more and more aware of this approach, we recognize there is a critical need for teachers and other educational professionals to recognize the symptoms of trauma in students, the associated behaviors of trauma-affected students, and instructional and environmental strategies for addressing these to support student success (trauma informed pedagogy). This paper outlines a study examining the extent to which teachers in the region of southeast Georgia are aware of trauma-informed strategies, the theory undergirding the approach, and the resources available to them for addressing issues related to adverse childhood experiences. With participation from over 500 educators in our study, it is clear that there is a strong need to support teachers and provide resources to support trauma-informed practice.