Student Counseling and Personnel Services Commons^™

Teaching Students About Trauma, Stress, And Brain Regulation, Kathy J. Van Horn

National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference

All students are impacted by stress and can improve learning through understanding the brain and brain regulation. For students who have experienced trauma this information is critical to their success. This presentation will provide guidelines, ideas, and strategies for teaching students key trauma-informed principles including strategies for physical, emotional, and cortical regulation. These principles and strategies can be taught to students individually or through group and classroom settings. Practical ideas and examples will be given along with feedback and lessons learned from the students we have taught.

Challenging The Norm: Raising The Bar For Educators Of Foster Youth, Valerie A. Storey, Fletcher Roschanda

All Faculty and Staff Scholarship

An increasing number of foster youth find themselves representing a vast majority of the most academically vulnerable population. The trauma and neglect experienced by foster youth is but one of many factors influencing educational achievement. The role of educators in foster youth educational attainment is critical. It requires teachers and school leaders to understand the complexities of trauma; to positively develop comprehensive knowledge of trauma-informed practices; and the ability to create a learning environment where foster youth feel supported in their educational journey.

Escapando Las Trampas: Teacher Preparation For Mexicanas, Larissa Perez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Developing Maestras face and overcome linguistic, academic and cultural forms of gatekeeping while trying to navigate through our current education system. For this Capstone Project, the impact that gatekeeping has on developing Maestras and how it affects their academic and professional aspirations was investigated. This is an important issue for developing Maestras, the University of Gringolandia as well as for the education system of Nepantla county. The success of developing Maestras Mexicanas closes the racial gap and directly impacts the student success rate within Nepantla county. The literature and data results analysis indicate that the gatekeeping practices that keep Mexicanas …

Judgment Doesn't Heal The Hurting, Kara Lasater

Educational Considerations

Judgment interferes with the development of all relationships. For students and families who have experienced trauma, judgment can be particularly devastating as it may further damage the survivor’s already compromised sense of safety, trust, and belonging. As educators, we must develop non-judgmental attitudes toward students and families, yet sometimes our lack of self-awareness and problematic ideological positions lead us to judge. In this essay, I describe my personal journey with families and the ideological shift I experienced as I became more self-aware and attentive to others’ stories. It is my hope that my experiences will challenge other educators to engage …

Increasing The Buy-In And Effectiveness Of A Social And Emotional Learning Class Program In A Single Sex, Urban And Charter High School: Social And Emotional Learning Specialists And Student Perceptions Of Its Implementation., Kizawanda A. Olowe

Dissertations

Social-emotional learning has yet to be implemented in many schools in America. Without adequate social and emotional skills, students struggle to navigate their academic and social environments. Students attending a single-sex, urban charter school participated in focus groups and completed surveys about their perceptions of a social-emotional learning program that was implemented during the 2015–2016 school year. Social-emotional learning facilitators completed surveys and participated in focus groups to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of the program. Graphs and themes based on the information gathered from the surveys, open-ended questions, and focus groups were used to analyze the data. Both students …

Increasing School Social Worker Supports For Schools In Illinois: Policy Recommendations For Supporting Student Learning And Growth., Kizawanda A. Olowe

Dissertations

Administrators and board members at the Illinois State Board of Education recommended that schools with certain demographics hire one social worker for every 350 students. The policy has yet to be implemented despite high rates of student poverty, lagging test scores, school bullying, suspensions, and an increased number of school shootings. The Illinois State Board of Education’s social and emotional learning standards guide educators and policy makers to interact and educate each student. School social workers equipped with the necessary skill set provide services, implement district-wide social and emotional learning programs, and work with various stakeholders to monitor progress. A …

Surviving Or Thriving: Educator Change Following School-Based Trauma, Mona M. Johnson

Ed.D. Dissertations in Practice

Situated in the Pacific Northwest, this qualitative study explored coping, change, and systemic support experienced by thirteen K-12 educators following a school-based trauma. It is based on a theoretical framework of posttraumatic growth, the systematic study of how individuals are changed by traumatic encounters in positive ways. Study participants witnessed school shootings, physical assaults, or accidents resulting in injury or death and were responsible to care for the life and death needs of others.

Research questions guiding this study: (1) How do educators cope following school-based trauma? (2) How do educators change following school-based trauma? (3) What systemic supports are …