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The Hechinger Report
As the pandemic rages, more students are struggling with trauma
Tips on choice and trauma-informed teaching may help
By Ava Cotlowitz
November 11, 2020
The topic of trauma — specifically, trauma-informed teaching — has
become a focus in education. Almost 50 percent of students in the U.S.
have experienced some form of trauma, so it’s critical that educators
be equipped to support every student.
Trauma is often linked to adverse childhood experiences, including
abuse, neglect and other events that happen to people under the age of
18. All have been proven to have a negative impact on academic
performance and overall student health.
As the visual arts teacher at an elementary school in Brooklyn, N.Y., I
teach about 500 students, many of whom have experienced trauma. I teach
art via a program called Teaching for Artistic Behavior, which values
student choice and agency and aligns perfectly with trauma-informed
instruction.
I aim to create a learning space that revolves around choice — and
instruction that is interest-based, goal-oriented or social and
emotional.
Some schools across the nation are now embracing trauma-informed
approaches to teaching, which recognize that students’ actions are a
direct result of their experiences. The pandemic makes this an even
more critical time to prioritize trauma-informed instruction.
Different approaches and programs may focus on valuing relationships;
promoting safety and trustworthiness along with choice; collaboration;
and encouraging skill building and competence.
A core element is connecting through safe, consistent and trustworthy
relationships. In order to build these relationships, we must be
genuinely interested and invested in who students are as people, not
just their academic capabilities.
That means asking students what games they like to play, what shows
they watch on TV and what they do with their friends. Showing interest
by getting to know their likes and dislikes can help a trauma-informed
teacher truly connect with each and every learner.
Asking questions is also key to building critical thinking skills. The
9 Traits of Critical Thinking and trauma-informed instruction go hand
in hand.
For example, I once noticed a student was not paying attention to a drawing activity.
“I know you love robots, so would you like to build a robot out of cardboard boxes?” I asked.
The student instantly became curious. By reframing the academic
experience to align with the student’s interests, I could drive
learning forward.
Genuine, strong student-teacher relationships are foundational to
learning. The relationships I build with my students revolve around my
deep understanding of their likes and dislikes, the materials they love
using, and work they are passionate about creating. This allows me to
facilitate authentic, interest-based instruction.
During this time of increased stress, isolation and trauma, students
need opportunities to connect with one another, their teachers and what
makes them happy.
Providing students with open-ended prompts that enable them to insert
their interests into academic learning is a valuable way to connect
with their unique experiences. Encouraging and positively reinforcing
students for engaging in learning around their interests helps students
feel safe in what they know, and tells them the teacher values what
makes them happy.
Students with trauma also require choices that align with their needs.
I offer activity options for lessons that students can choose from, or
a selection of different materials or tools they can use. I also try,
as much as possible, to let them decide where and when they’ll complete
their work. Providing choices and flexibility maximizes student-teacher
trust.
For example, asking students to imagine a day in the life of their
favorite character and create a comic to illustrate their idea may be
too limiting for some. By turning this prompt into a broader
choice-based experience, teachers might suggest different ways students
can achieve the learning goals of narrative drawing and writing.
Creating a sculpture of the character and verbally narrating its
movements is one idea. Following a how-to-draw video and typing out the
character’s day is another.
Choice-based instruction is particularly important during remote
learning, when it is hard to predict what materials students might have
at hand. My virtual art lessons provide students with open-ended
prompts that can be achieved using any materials they have at home.
Finding ways to differentiate instruction is just as important. For
example, allowing students to choose whether they want to answer
questions over Zoom by writing in the chat, showing a hand signal or
speaking out loud will maximize student participation. It will also
account for the varied levels of comfort students have learning at
home, in front of a computer.
Introducing students to different digital platforms where they can
choose how to show their work, such as Padlet, Flipgrid and Google
Classroom, is another way to accommodate their needs.
During this time of increased stress, isolation and trauma, students
need opportunities to connect with one another, their teachers and what
makes them happy.
Teachers have little control over their students’ learning
environments, which is one reason why generating student interest in
learning prompts is a vital strategy to motivate participation.
This could revolve around a question of the day that asks, “What video
game character would you be and why?” It could be a project that
involves creating a board game that incorporates math and writing, or a
video that demonstrates what favorite book characters would do.
There are so many ways to imbue learning experiences with student
interest and choice; careful consideration will make all the difference
in cultivating valuable student-teacher relationships.
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