A Transdisciplinary Approach to Training Pre-Service Teachers on Equity-Centered, Trauma-Informed Classroom Practice

Background and Purpose: Traumatic stress is common among school-age children and is associated with a variety of barriers to learning, including classroom behaviors that teachers may find challenging. Teachers who have trauma awareness and an understanding of trauma-informed school practices are better able to support students and avoid punitive disciplinary approaches that contribute to the racially disproportionate school-to-prison pipeline. However, there is limited empirical research on the integration of effective trauma-informed teaching practices into teacher preparation programs. Grounded in sociocultural theory and using a transdisciplinary action research approach, this study infused social work content into a pilot teacher preparation curriculum for teacher candidates focused on building classroom communities using an equity-centered, trauma-informed perspective. Two research questions were explored: 1) How do teacher candidates develop perceptions of trauma-informed teaching as a component of building classroom communities? and 2) How are they constructing those perceptions?

Methods: 17 teacher candidates who were enrolled in a course on Building Learning Communities participated in the study during the first semester. Two candidates identified as Biracial, one identified as Black, and the remaining candidates as white. 12 of the 17 candidates continued with the study through a Professional Learning Community (PLC) during the following semester, revisiting topics introduced during the first-semester course. Data were collected through written class assignments (i.e., Critical Incident Descriptions) and candidate reflections on their experiences during the first semester, as well as surveys and focus groups during the PLCs that were constructed to prompt stimulated recall. Data were analyzed using descriptives for survey data and directed content analysis for qualitative data.

Results: Survey data reflected growth in the number of teacher candidates who reported confidence in their ability to identify traumatic responses in students, from 65% to 100% of teacher candidates. Findings also illustrate an increase in awareness of how their verbal and nonverbal expressions can impact a student who has experienced trauma, from 82% to 100%. Qualitative data yielded four primary themes: (1) Increasing Awareness of Trauma; (2) Relationship Building; (3) Adding Teacher Moves; and (4) Reframing Teacher Behaviors. Additionally, teacher candidates grew to use non-deficit perspectives in conjunction with trauma-informed practices. Teachers described benefitting from the opportunity to intentionally revisit trauma-informed content over a long period through PLCs as they progressed in their teaching experience.

Conclusions and Implications: Findings support the transdisciplinary use of social work and social work content related to trauma, racial equity, and social justice in training future educators, as candidates report feeling better prepared to help their learning communities support students who have been exposed to trauma. Further research is needed to expand on the iterative data collection approach utilized in this study, examining additional ways that transdisciplinary approaches to teacher training can address learning needs and provide useful supports for guiding teacher candidates in the work of being equity-centered, trauma-informed educators.