Building on comprehensive research conducted in US schools, this accessible volume offers an effective model of school leadership to develop and implement school-wide, trauma-responsive approaches to student discipline. Recognizing that challenging student behaviours are often rooted in early experiences of trauma, the volume builds on a model from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to walk readers through the processes of realizing, recognizing, responding to, and resisting the impacts of trauma in school contexts. Research and interviews model an educational reform process and explain how a range of differentiated interventions including Positive Behaviour Interventions and Supports (PBIS), social-emotional learning (SEL), restorative justice, and family engagement can be used to boost student resilience and pro-social behaviour. Practical steps are supported by current theory, resources, and stories of implementation from superintendents, principals, and teachers. This text will benefit school leaders, teachers, and counsellors with an interest in restorative student discipline, emotional and behavioural difficulties in young people, and PreK-12 education more broadly. Those interested in school psychology, trauma studies, and trauma counselling with children and adolescents will also benefit from the volume.

Building on comprehensive research conducted in US schools, this accessible volume offers an effective model of school leadership to develop and implement school-wide, trauma-responsive approaches to student discipline. Recognizing that challenging student behaviours are often rooted in early experiences of trauma, the volume builds on a model from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to walk readers through the processes of realizing, recognizing, responding to, and resisting the impacts of trauma in school contexts. Research and interviews model an educational reform process and explain how a range of differentiated interventions including Positive Behaviour Interventions and Supports (PBIS), social-emotional learning (SEL), restorative justice, and family engagement can be used to boost student resilience and pro-social behaviour. Practical steps are supported by current theory, resources, and stories of implementation from superintendents, principals, and teachers. This text will benefit school leaders, teachers, and counsellors with an interest in restorative student discipline, emotional and behavioural difficulties in young people, and PreK-12 education more broadly. Those interested in school psychology, trauma studies, and trauma counselling with children and adolescents will also benefit from the volume.

Developing a Trauma-Informed Perspective in School Communities: An Introduction for Educators, School Counselors, and Administrators provides future and current school counselors, educators, and leadership teams with relevant research on brain and human development to assist them in developing a trauma-informed perspective. Readers are encouraged to leverage this knowledge to create positive and formative change within schools and provide effective support for students struggling with potentially traumatic experiences, as well as those without trauma histories to ensure positive and healthy development. The text introduces key topics in brain and trauma research including attachment, neuroscience, adverse childhood experiences, toxic stress, mindfulness, restorative discipline, self-care, and resiliency. Readers learn how to recognize the signs of potential trauma and how to best support individuals exhibiting certain behaviors through a whole-school approach. The text demonstrates how a holistic and collective approach that addresses student behaviors through relationships to encourage development of self-efficacy skills is more effective than the "quick fix" often used to address student issues. Throughout the text, opportunities for personal connection, practice, and reflection underscore key concepts and build relevant knowledge that may be applied to future work with students and school staff. Developing a Trauma-Informed Perspective in School Communities is an ideal supplemental resource for courses and programs in education. It is also a powerful reference for professionals currently working within school and community settings.

Covering both theory and practice, this book will teach educators everything they need to know about developing restorative practices in their education settings, in a way that is also trauma-informed. The first part of the book addresses the theory and philosophy of restorative approaches, and of trauma-informed and trauma-sensitive schools. The second part outlines the five restorative skills (mindfulness, honest expression, empathy, the art of asking questions and the art of requests), what they look like in practice (including using circles, respect agreements and restorative dialogue), and how to implement them. Every strategy is clearly explained and adapted to be appropriate for children and adults who have experienced trauma. Everything the book discusses has been especially designed to be adapted for different school settings and their particular challenges.

"Building Trauma-Sensitive Schools is a practical, accessible guide to building learning environments that ensure safety, develop regulation skills, and grow caring relationships for all students, including those who have experienced trauma"--

Trauma is a public health crisis. High rates of trauma exposure among youth and the impact that experiences of trauma can have on students’ psychosocial and academic outcomes are well-established. These traumatic events do not live outside of the scope of schools and teaching. As children and teachers develop communities within their classrooms and schools, trauma comes with those who have experienced it, whether invited or not (Bien & Dutro, 2014). This extended time that teachers spend with students inherently provides opportunity to witness students’ lived experiences (Caringi et al., 2015; Motta, 2012). These experiences capture many facets of students’ lives, including traumatic events; however, many teachers indicate that they feel unprepared to address students who have experienced trauma in meaningful and sustainable ways (Caringi et al, 2015). In response, many schools and districts have adopted trauma-informed practices (Overstreet & Chafouleas, 2016). This text addresses the gap in the literature in embedding trauma-informed practices into pre-service teacher education. This text provides examples of the various ways educator preparation faculty are developing and implementing trauma-informed practices across their programs, instituting broader curricular shifts to incorporate trauma-informed practices, shifting pedagogical practices to include trauma-informed practices and collaborating across disciplines in order to ensure that teacher candidates are thoughtfully prepared to address students’ needs and create classroom environments that are equitable, safe and sustainable for students and teachers.

Educators must both respond to the impact of trauma, and prevent trauma at school. Trauma-informed initiatives tend to focus on the challenging behaviors of students and ascribe them to circumstances that students are facing outside of school. This approach ignores the reality that inequity itself causes trauma, and that schools often heighten inequities when implementing trauma-informed practices that are not based in educational equity. In this fresh look at trauma-informed practice, Alex Shevrin Venet urges educators to shift equity to the center as they consider policies and professional development. Using a framework of six principles for equity-centered trauma-informed education, Venet offers practical action steps that teachers and school leaders can take from any starting point, using the resources and influence at their disposal to make shifts in practice, pedagogy, and policy. Overthrowing inequitable systems is a process, not an overnight change. But transformation is possible when educators work together, and teachers can do more than they realize from within their own classrooms.