Helpless

Today I watched a webinar entitled Trauma-Informed Pedagogy: Teaching in Uncertain Times presented by Mays Imad in which they shared research on the brain and how the brain perceives and reacts to stress.  This discussion informs how as instructors we can better serve our students by being aware that they may be in a place of trauma whether consciously or not.  This may in turn effect their behaviour in the classroom and their ability to learn, remember and engage.  

One particular quote that was shared has resonated with me.  “Any negative life event that occurs in a position of relative helplessness" Robert Scaer from "The Body Bears the Burden" was given as a second definition to trauma.  If you think about this definition, it is hard not to imagine how many times that we have all felt trauma in the past months or years.  Mays surveyed participants before the session and the majority of them identified that they perceived their stress level to be high. 

How do we teach students who are lonely, fearful and broken?  Mays modified SAMHSA's 
Six Key Principles of a Trauma Informed Approach, p. 10 to a pedagogical approach.  Ensure that your students feel safe, that you create an environment that fosters openness, that students feel supported by their peers and finally that you empower their voices and their experiences.