ABSTRACT
Trauma is prevalent among the general population; studies have found about 66 percent of the US population has experienced at least one adverse childhood event. A mid-western middle/high school located in the United States utilises a three-tiered approach (targeted professional development training, practice tools [i.e., “Monarch Room”], social and emotional learning curriculum) to address trauma and improve academic and social outcomes of court-involved, female students living in a residential school. The school uses an adaption of “The Heart of Teaching and Learning” a professional development programme for teachers of children in trauma, to guide professional development. The principles of compassionate teaching require teachers, staff, and administration to create trauma-informed environments where students are empowered and given unconditional positive regard. The teachers, staff, and administration are trained to refrain from assuming and instead observe and ask questions. Throughout these interactions effective communication is being modelled, and students are guided on how to engage in helpful participation. Using a three-tier approach allows teachers, staff, and administration to address the needs of the students. This includes trauma-informed teaching methods, inclusionary methods of discipline, the Monarch Room, sensory tools in the classroom, and increasing growth in critical soft skill areas (socioemotional learning) through structured instruction and practice opportunities.
