**2. Trauma sensitive instruction**

#### **2.1 Experience of adversity and trauma**

Adversity in the educational environment has been experienced by many school systems with events such as school shootings having a major influence on the perception of safety, the experience of stress and distress, and increase the risk of trauma responses in students [18, 19]. Yet most students who experience significant adverse events in schools have been found to fully recover, there are students who will develop clinical disorders such as Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in their aftermath [18]. Traumatic exposure has been linked to a multitude of issues in children and adolescents including low academic performance, difficulties in interpersonal relationships with peers and adults, engagement in high-risk behaviors, and disruptions to the developmental trajectory [17–24]. School systems are often the entryway through which students access and are referred for mental health support services, with more students receiving help this way than seeking out community based mental health clinics [20]. Trauma exposure presents a unique challenge to educators and educational systems who must strike a balance between their primary goal of academic instruction and the reality that without support the entire child, the goal of education is not attainable [17, 20]. The use of trauma informed instruction and trauma sensitive pedagogy can help to buffer the influence of adverse events on students and educators [17] and is crucial to successful instruction and learning in the face of a global pandemic.

In non-crisis times, research suggests that half to two-thirds of all students will experience a traumatic or adverse event [19, 23, 25] with estimates from the National Survey of Children's health reporting that 46 percent of children under the age of 18 have experienced an adverse event, and 11 percent have experienced three or more adverse events Historically, the concept of trauma is often conceptualized in a pathological light which overlooks the impact of adverse events in everyday life, including the role of social traumas, that can influence the way in which individuals interact with and perceive the world [3, 26, 27]. More recent definitions have expanded trauma from a life-threatening event to include real or perceived threats to individuals physical or psychological well-being with the potential for lasting effects [26–28]. These definitions recognize that as social beings, we are influenced by interactions with those around us and the events that we are exposed to in society and that these events, when they create a real or perceived threat to our psychological well-being can create a stress response in individuals [26–28]. This definition allows for the way in which the event is experienced by the individual, the inter and intrapersonal contexts, to be the avenue by which reactions are determined [26, 27].

Covid-19 has the potential to create stress and trauma reactions in children and adults as they are facing prolonged, chaotic, and unpredictable disruptions in their daily lives, that is based on a perceived danger that is unknown to them and is outside of the control of themselves or their families [6, 16, 28]. These factors have been known to create physiological stress and distress reactions and may be particularly significant for children who have a history of exposure to adverse situations [16]. The current pandemic social distancing guidelines have also increased the prolonged exposure to adversity in home environments that are no longer buffered by time spent in school [13]. In addition, it has added additional socioemotional and financial stress to many families who may lack the coping skills or resources to effectively manage it, resulting in an increase in violence and exposure to maladaptive home environments [13, 29]. Increased family stress related to financial hardships, isolation, and an inability to meet basic needs have become increasingly common and disproportionately so in lower socioeconomic and minority groups,

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*Intentional Teaching: Building Resiliency and Trauma-Sensitive Cultures in Schools*

exacerbating pre-existent disparities [17, 26]. Stress responses and trauma are disproportionately experienced by marginalized populations [6, 13, 26] and the current pandemic is no exception with minority groups experiencing more healthrelated negative outcomes related to Covid-19 than their counterparts [30].

While trauma experiences have been correlated to specific responses and characteristics, student stress responses may not always directly reflective the typical presentation [17, 19, 31]. While educators can start by developing an understanding of the way in which trauma can influence the emotions and behaviors of students [32], in order to truly understand the multiple consequences of stress and trauma, educations can seek to adopt a trauma sensitive lens. This approach allows educators to view students in their current contexts and to recognize how stress or trauma may be influencing their current presentation [32]. The use of trauma sensitive instruction helps to shift the perception of students from a reaction to their behaviors to an exploration of the events or context that have had a hand in the development of the behaviors [17, 33] and creates increased ability to find compassion rather than negativity and to create instruction that can meet the needs of individual students. This may also be particularly important in reducing existing and exacerbated disparities in student achievement [17, 33]. It is important to recognize the cumulative impact of stress and trauma for individuals and the role that trauma sensitive instruction can play in decreasing the stress experienced by students and educators [32].

Trauma sensitive instruction is not simply the implementation of instructional strategies to enhance student learning, it is the creation of a culture throughout all levels of an educational system that is committed to the provision of instruction in a manner that recognizes trauma responses and fosters resilience [26, 32, 33]. It builds upon the goals of prevention and early intervention that are already deeply imbedded in our educational systems [24]. The implementation of trauma sensitive instruction does not seek to pathologize the experience but rather to identify effective ways to engage all students regardless of the presence of a known adverse experience [32]. A trauma sensitive instruction model assumes that all students have experienced adverse events rather than attempting to identify pathological responses in individual students [32]. These practices will need to be aligned with

current instructional methods at all levels to be effective [33].

It is a critical time to recognize the role that educators and educational systems play in creating a conducive learning environment and the direct connection between long-term outcomes and educational achievement [12, 17]. To effectively assist students in the face of not only the current pandemic but also with the recognition of the many adversities that they will face throughout their education and life, instruction that is student-centered and responsive to the frequently changing needs of students will be critical. This includes the implementation of flexible learning environments and relational pedagogy as avenues to promote student engagement and the development of resilience to stress [6, 17, 34]. In its implementation trauma sensitive instruction emphasizes the use of relational pedagogy to foster shared responsibility and decision making [6, 12, 17] breaking down the power dynamics and empowering students to co-facilitate their own educational experiences [35]. This approach recognizes the value in listening to students and respects their ability to be directive in their learning trajectories [17]. Trauma sensitive instruction promotes collaboration

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96571*

**2.2 Contextualizing student behaviors**

**2.3 Trauma sensitive school culture**

exacerbating pre-existent disparities [17, 26]. Stress responses and trauma are disproportionately experienced by marginalized populations [6, 13, 26] and the current pandemic is no exception with minority groups experiencing more healthrelated negative outcomes related to Covid-19 than their counterparts [30].
