Creating A Trauma Sensitive School Environment
Many classrooms in
Jamaica are impacted by the lingering and life changing effects of trauma.
The American Psychological Association (APA) defines trauma as an emotional response to a terrible event like an accident, rape or natural disaster. According to the APA immediately after the event shock and denial are typical. Longer term reactions include unpredictable emotions, flashbacks, strained relationships, and even physical symptoms like headache and nausea.
Students in Jamaica for the most part have become collateral pawns in the almost daily incidents of domestic and intimate violence and abuse which many families experience. Recently, the all girls St. Hugh’s High School community suffered the loss of one of their brightest student when 15 year Tashi Munda died after her home was fire-bombed allegedly by her step father. Sadly, this type of trauma keeps repeating itself across the educational landscape affecting students in various school communities in both urban and rural areas. In many instances our students are forced to witness trauma in which family members are injured and or killed. Some students are naturally withdrawn so it becomes more challenging to assess any change in behaviour due to trauma. Our children are in a crisis. The Office of the Children’s Registry (OCR), reported more than 13, 000 cases of child abuse for the period January to December 2015. The OCR said it received reports of child abuse for 18 out of every 1, 000 children living in Jamaica in 2015. This number represents an 18.7 per cent increase over the figures for 2014. Jamaica recorded 1,616 murders in 2017 and of that number scores of children are among the statistics. Sadly, many cases of child abuse go unreported. In addition our students face cases of sexual exploitation, human trafficking and other forms of trauma. Unfortunately, a dismal picture emerges of a society which is uncaring as it relates to the wellbeing of our children. Patricia Jennings, associate professor at the University of Virginia, says childhood trauma can have severe immediate and long term consequences for students’ cognitive, social and emotional development. “Trauma and chronic stress change the way our bodies and brains react to the world,” according to Jennings. Part of that is protective, she added. “Humans tend to adapt to chronic stress in order to be able to survive and thrive in challenging contexts.” Jennings further stated that these adaptive behaviours can impede success in the context of the classroom. Students who have been through trauma, or who are currently experiencing trauma are likely to have more difficulty adjusting their emotions and focusing, and interacting with peers and adults in a meaningful manner. In the United States, 34 million children have had at least one adverse childhood experience (ACE), ranging from abuse or neglect to parental incarceration or addiction. Children living in poverty are more prone to have multiple ACES’.
Trauma Sensitive Teacher
In the same manner in which all teachers should be regarded as a teacher of reading, we need a paradigm shift in which we equip and empower all teachers to see themselves as trauma sensitive educators. In spite of the fact that guidance counsellors are employed to most of our schools at both the primary and secondary levels, we now need to have trained guidance counselors in our early childhood institutions. The time has come too for the education system to have full time social workers in some of our schools. We could use the current cluster system in which schools in a geographical locale are placed together in order to assign and deploy social workers. The trauma our students experience is not specific to adolescence; it covers the entire development process. As a society we tend to dismiss, delay to treat, or avoid trauma in very young children. Our schools should be viewed as a place where students can find safety and refuge even for the few hours to bring some amount of emotional stability to their lives. However, at times the opposite occurs since trauma and traumatic experiences do happen at the school. Professor Jennings research indicates that when infants and very young children experience chronic stress, it affects their sense of security and has a triple effect on future relationships. Jennings explains, “when we are infants, we are attached to our caregivers, our survival depends on them. Whatever attachment patterns we have with our caregivers, we project unto others. It’s our template.” Professor Jennings theorizes that if the parent-child relationship is inconsistent, unhealthy or interrupted it becomes difficult for children to trust other adults. A caring, trauma trained and sensitive teacher can re-create a new template regarding the trust factor for children. Jennings said teachers are uniquely positioned to ameliorate some of the effects of early trauma. “The adults in the school environment maybe the most stable and mentally well people some children have contact with.” As a society we need to be sure that our teachers are of the highest integrity before licensing and the registration of teachers. We tend to forget that sometimes teachers themselves are victims of violent attacks by students and suffer from trauma. In October of 2015 I was shot in my left ear by a male student who used a toy gun to inflict the injury while in a grade nine classroom. This was an unprovoked attack by a misguided student. The use of the word unprovoked was deliberate. I am in no way legitimatizing abuse of educators who suffer violence and trauma at the hands of their pupils. I suffered some of the symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for weeks after the incident occurred. I had flashbacks each time I returned to that class, especially when my back was turned to write on the chalkboard. It bares thought, who comes to the rescue of the teacher who experiences a similar fate? As a veteran educator with over twenty years teaching experience I find that the biggest hurdle to counter school-induced trauma is poor and ineffective school leadership. School administrators have a duty of care and responsibility to ensure the security and safety of their school. On the other hand teachers are privileged in that they are given almost unchecked access to students, and the society must ensure that this trust and good faith is justified by having in place some checks and balances in the system to ensure professionalism of the highest order. Most of our teachers try to de-escalate conflicts in their classrooms; however some do resort to historically cultural prescriptive sanctions, such as corporal punishment. I was never a supporter of corporal punishment. All corporal punishment does is to remove the layer of safety and security from the lives of our students. The Education Ministry has developed a behavior modification programme called the School-Wide Positive Behaviour Intervention Support (SWPBIS) which offers alternative strategies to address students who display maladaptive behaviours. Educators whether privately employed or those in the public school system should get themselves familiarized with the SWPBIS behavior management system. We must do more to ensure that our schools are truly safe zones in order for effective teaching and learning to take place. Dr. Trevor Forbes, Jamaican born psychiatrist who received his medical training at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine stated that trauma is an event. “Childhood trauma oftentimes results in withdrawn behaviours or acting out behaviours in children.” Dr. Forbes added many traumatized children stay to themselves, “they don’t talk much, they don’t interact with peers, and this may be a sign of depression.” Dr. Forbes said, “poor social skills, substance abuse, poor attention span, agitation, irritability and poor academic performance are usually associated with students who have been traumatized.” Dr. Forbes is of the view that psychological reaction as experienced by a life threatening trauma such as sexual assault, being shot at or sustaining a gunshot wound or being the victim of frequent physical assault, involvement in automobile accident can contribute to Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Dr. Forbes commented that flashbacks, anxiety, delusions, hallucination and paranoia propel trauma forward to the diagnostic category of Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Fostering a Culture of Trauma Free Classrooms
Educators have an awesome responsibility to support those students facing trauma. Professor Jennings stressed that teachers must remember that behaviours which are disruptive or unhelpful in the classroom might be self-protective responses to chronic stress. The Professor commented that “when teachers cultivate community, students who have experienced trauma come to believe, I am part of this community.” That sense of belonging is so very critical to the healing process. We all are guilty in rushing to judge at times without taking the time to question and analyze situations in our classrooms, schools, and life in general. It is very possible that the student who is displaying maladaptive behaviour and who we label as rude or bad may be acting in such a manner as a cry for intervention and support. Our society in general and our school in particular need to cultivate a communal sense of empathy in which we see ourselves in the same position we are perhaps terrified of or afraid to intervene in. Evidently, there will be instances in which as an educator you will have to refer a student since you cannot spend all the time dealing with students who are from traumatic backgrounds. One has to be practical while at the same time show a sense of care and offer support where one can. As in any society with a high homicide rate we tend to run the risk of normalizing trauma and as a result the victims are left to fend for themselves. The intersection of trauma and maladaptive behaviours in students continue to pose many challenges, not only for the classroom experience but also as it relates to having well- adjusted adults who will contribute positively in society. The fact is a lot of our students are hurting and in order for such students to maximize their full potential we must ensure that they receive all the support possible. However, those of us who suffer from ephebiphobia should avoid entering the teaching profession since our impact will not be as meaningful. We should not be imprisoned by a culture of the past, instead as educators we need to embrace a change of mindset regarding how we view and use punishment to reinforce positive change. Corporal punishment is a relic of a bygone generation and is redundant and ineffective for the twenty first century learner. Learning and school should be associated with fun and critical thinking not fear and intimidation. In the words of Alfie Kohn, if children feel safe, they can take risks, ask questions, make mistakes, learn to trust, share their feelings and grow.
@WayneCamo
The American Psychological Association (APA) defines trauma as an emotional response to a terrible event like an accident, rape or natural disaster. According to the APA immediately after the event shock and denial are typical. Longer term reactions include unpredictable emotions, flashbacks, strained relationships, and even physical symptoms like headache and nausea.
Students in Jamaica for the most part have become collateral pawns in the almost daily incidents of domestic and intimate violence and abuse which many families experience. Recently, the all girls St. Hugh’s High School community suffered the loss of one of their brightest student when 15 year Tashi Munda died after her home was fire-bombed allegedly by her step father. Sadly, this type of trauma keeps repeating itself across the educational landscape affecting students in various school communities in both urban and rural areas. In many instances our students are forced to witness trauma in which family members are injured and or killed. Some students are naturally withdrawn so it becomes more challenging to assess any change in behaviour due to trauma. Our children are in a crisis. The Office of the Children’s Registry (OCR), reported more than 13, 000 cases of child abuse for the period January to December 2015. The OCR said it received reports of child abuse for 18 out of every 1, 000 children living in Jamaica in 2015. This number represents an 18.7 per cent increase over the figures for 2014. Jamaica recorded 1,616 murders in 2017 and of that number scores of children are among the statistics. Sadly, many cases of child abuse go unreported. In addition our students face cases of sexual exploitation, human trafficking and other forms of trauma. Unfortunately, a dismal picture emerges of a society which is uncaring as it relates to the wellbeing of our children. Patricia Jennings, associate professor at the University of Virginia, says childhood trauma can have severe immediate and long term consequences for students’ cognitive, social and emotional development. “Trauma and chronic stress change the way our bodies and brains react to the world,” according to Jennings. Part of that is protective, she added. “Humans tend to adapt to chronic stress in order to be able to survive and thrive in challenging contexts.” Jennings further stated that these adaptive behaviours can impede success in the context of the classroom. Students who have been through trauma, or who are currently experiencing trauma are likely to have more difficulty adjusting their emotions and focusing, and interacting with peers and adults in a meaningful manner. In the United States, 34 million children have had at least one adverse childhood experience (ACE), ranging from abuse or neglect to parental incarceration or addiction. Children living in poverty are more prone to have multiple ACES’.
Trauma Sensitive Teacher
In the same manner in which all teachers should be regarded as a teacher of reading, we need a paradigm shift in which we equip and empower all teachers to see themselves as trauma sensitive educators. In spite of the fact that guidance counsellors are employed to most of our schools at both the primary and secondary levels, we now need to have trained guidance counselors in our early childhood institutions. The time has come too for the education system to have full time social workers in some of our schools. We could use the current cluster system in which schools in a geographical locale are placed together in order to assign and deploy social workers. The trauma our students experience is not specific to adolescence; it covers the entire development process. As a society we tend to dismiss, delay to treat, or avoid trauma in very young children. Our schools should be viewed as a place where students can find safety and refuge even for the few hours to bring some amount of emotional stability to their lives. However, at times the opposite occurs since trauma and traumatic experiences do happen at the school. Professor Jennings research indicates that when infants and very young children experience chronic stress, it affects their sense of security and has a triple effect on future relationships. Jennings explains, “when we are infants, we are attached to our caregivers, our survival depends on them. Whatever attachment patterns we have with our caregivers, we project unto others. It’s our template.” Professor Jennings theorizes that if the parent-child relationship is inconsistent, unhealthy or interrupted it becomes difficult for children to trust other adults. A caring, trauma trained and sensitive teacher can re-create a new template regarding the trust factor for children. Jennings said teachers are uniquely positioned to ameliorate some of the effects of early trauma. “The adults in the school environment maybe the most stable and mentally well people some children have contact with.” As a society we need to be sure that our teachers are of the highest integrity before licensing and the registration of teachers. We tend to forget that sometimes teachers themselves are victims of violent attacks by students and suffer from trauma. In October of 2015 I was shot in my left ear by a male student who used a toy gun to inflict the injury while in a grade nine classroom. This was an unprovoked attack by a misguided student. The use of the word unprovoked was deliberate. I am in no way legitimatizing abuse of educators who suffer violence and trauma at the hands of their pupils. I suffered some of the symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for weeks after the incident occurred. I had flashbacks each time I returned to that class, especially when my back was turned to write on the chalkboard. It bares thought, who comes to the rescue of the teacher who experiences a similar fate? As a veteran educator with over twenty years teaching experience I find that the biggest hurdle to counter school-induced trauma is poor and ineffective school leadership. School administrators have a duty of care and responsibility to ensure the security and safety of their school. On the other hand teachers are privileged in that they are given almost unchecked access to students, and the society must ensure that this trust and good faith is justified by having in place some checks and balances in the system to ensure professionalism of the highest order. Most of our teachers try to de-escalate conflicts in their classrooms; however some do resort to historically cultural prescriptive sanctions, such as corporal punishment. I was never a supporter of corporal punishment. All corporal punishment does is to remove the layer of safety and security from the lives of our students. The Education Ministry has developed a behavior modification programme called the School-Wide Positive Behaviour Intervention Support (SWPBIS) which offers alternative strategies to address students who display maladaptive behaviours. Educators whether privately employed or those in the public school system should get themselves familiarized with the SWPBIS behavior management system. We must do more to ensure that our schools are truly safe zones in order for effective teaching and learning to take place. Dr. Trevor Forbes, Jamaican born psychiatrist who received his medical training at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine stated that trauma is an event. “Childhood trauma oftentimes results in withdrawn behaviours or acting out behaviours in children.” Dr. Forbes added many traumatized children stay to themselves, “they don’t talk much, they don’t interact with peers, and this may be a sign of depression.” Dr. Forbes said, “poor social skills, substance abuse, poor attention span, agitation, irritability and poor academic performance are usually associated with students who have been traumatized.” Dr. Forbes is of the view that psychological reaction as experienced by a life threatening trauma such as sexual assault, being shot at or sustaining a gunshot wound or being the victim of frequent physical assault, involvement in automobile accident can contribute to Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Dr. Forbes commented that flashbacks, anxiety, delusions, hallucination and paranoia propel trauma forward to the diagnostic category of Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Fostering a Culture of Trauma Free Classrooms
Educators have an awesome responsibility to support those students facing trauma. Professor Jennings stressed that teachers must remember that behaviours which are disruptive or unhelpful in the classroom might be self-protective responses to chronic stress. The Professor commented that “when teachers cultivate community, students who have experienced trauma come to believe, I am part of this community.” That sense of belonging is so very critical to the healing process. We all are guilty in rushing to judge at times without taking the time to question and analyze situations in our classrooms, schools, and life in general. It is very possible that the student who is displaying maladaptive behaviour and who we label as rude or bad may be acting in such a manner as a cry for intervention and support. Our society in general and our school in particular need to cultivate a communal sense of empathy in which we see ourselves in the same position we are perhaps terrified of or afraid to intervene in. Evidently, there will be instances in which as an educator you will have to refer a student since you cannot spend all the time dealing with students who are from traumatic backgrounds. One has to be practical while at the same time show a sense of care and offer support where one can. As in any society with a high homicide rate we tend to run the risk of normalizing trauma and as a result the victims are left to fend for themselves. The intersection of trauma and maladaptive behaviours in students continue to pose many challenges, not only for the classroom experience but also as it relates to having well- adjusted adults who will contribute positively in society. The fact is a lot of our students are hurting and in order for such students to maximize their full potential we must ensure that they receive all the support possible. However, those of us who suffer from ephebiphobia should avoid entering the teaching profession since our impact will not be as meaningful. We should not be imprisoned by a culture of the past, instead as educators we need to embrace a change of mindset regarding how we view and use punishment to reinforce positive change. Corporal punishment is a relic of a bygone generation and is redundant and ineffective for the twenty first century learner. Learning and school should be associated with fun and critical thinking not fear and intimidation. In the words of Alfie Kohn, if children feel safe, they can take risks, ask questions, make mistakes, learn to trust, share their feelings and grow.
Wayne Campbell is an educator and social commentator
with an interest in development policies as they affect culture and or gender
issues.
waykam@yahoo.com@WayneCamo
©
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