Formative Submission: Inclusive Practice Intervention

Earlier this year, I had a confronting experience with a student who wanted to create a project pitched as: “Michael Jackson: He’s innocent!” 

I ran through a litany of potential responses but ultimately I froze. After class, I messaged Sophia Luu, a friend and founder of Secrets Worth Sharing, for advice. Sophia is a designer-researcher and survivor of child sexual abuse (CSA). Secrets Worth Sharing aims to create a space for information on CSA, similar to educational spaces for consent and safe sex. (Sophia Luu, ‘About Us’, 2024.) In our conversation, Sophia introduced me to a concept: trauma informed research. 

Trauma Informed Research

In data research, this method works to reduce the psychological impact of research on participants before, during, and after the research process. (Corporation for a Skilled Workforce, ‘An Introduction to Trauma-Informed Research’, 2024.) In design-centred research, it considers the impact of topics on audience and responsibly conveying information. There are 6 principles of trauma-informed design: safety, trust, choice, collaboration, empowerment, and cultural consideration. (‘Using Trauma Informed Principles in Content Design’, 2023.)

This was a useful recommendation for my student and something to consider in my own practice. I then began thinking about trauma informed teaching.

‘‘Trauma-informed educators recognize students’ actions are a direct result of their life experiences. When their students act out or disengage, they don’t ask them, ‘What is wrong with you?’ but rather, ‘What happened to you?’” 

Guidance for a trauma informed approach, Huang et al., 2014

I considered experiences of my own that have undeniably impacted my teaching and learning. For example: I found Kimberlee Crenshaw’s text on intersectionality (Crenshaw, ‘Mapping the Margins’, 1991.) difficult to read, seeing direct parallels to my lived experience. It was required reading this unit and undeniably important, so how could this text have been delivered in a trauma informed manner?

For my intervention this unit, I would like to respond to this research into trauma informed pedagogy and introduce it to my colleagues.

Benefits of Trauma Informed Teaching in my Context

• Inclusivity: trauma-informed teaching is an inherently intersectional method, BAME, disabled, and LGBTQ+ students are statistically more likely to have experienced trauma. (Marchi et al., ‘Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among LGBTQ People’, 2023. Andrews et al., ‘Polyvictimization, Income, and Ethnic Differences in Trauma-Related Mental Health during Adolescence’, 2015.)
• Responding to student artwork: many people use art to process traumatic events, our students included. (Gerevich, ‘[Facilitating role of traumatic experiences in art]’, 2017. Translated to English from Hungarian.) This can be confronting for tutors, who may feel uncomfortable or unsure how to respond. Being informed can help tutors confidently guide students through these projects safely. 
• Modelling behaviour: Lecturers should model the behaviour we would like our students to have! Being sensitive and empathetic to the experiences of others is a good example to set. 

Plan

Create a guide to trauma-informed teaching including core principles and a glossary of terms. This will be directed towards lecturers. Following the principles of trauma-informed design, the tone will be light with emphasis on positive actionable steps we can take to create better teaching environments. 

Format

I’m currently undecided on the format of this intervention, but in my teaching context (illustration), zines, comics, and animation are common formats for this kind of content. Below is an example from Sophia Luu, who created a comic book exploring CSA. You can read it here.

Feedback

I would like to speak to my co-workers about their understanding and experience of trauma-informed teaching, prior to engaging with my intervention. After I have completed the intervention I will ask for written feedback including from experts in the area.

Bibliography

Andrews, Arthur R., Lisa Jobe-Shields, Cristina M. López, Isha W. Metzger, Michael A. R. de Arellano, Ben Saunders, and Dean G. Kilpatrick. ‘Polyvictimization, Income, and Ethnic Differences in Trauma-Related Mental Health during Adolescence’. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 50, no. 8 (1 August 2015): 1223–34. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-015-1077-3.

Content Design London. ‘Using Trauma Informed Principles in Content Design’, 2 June 2023. https://contentdesign.london/blog/using-trauma-informed-principles-with-content-design.

Corporation for a Skilled Workforce. ‘An Introduction to Trauma-Informed Research’. Corporation for a Skilled Workforce (blog), 19 March 2024. https://skilledwork.org/an-introduction-to-trauma-informed-research/.

Crenshaw, Kimberle. ‘Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence against Women of Color’. Stanford Law Review 43, no. 6 (1991): 1241–99. https://doi.org/10.2307/1229039.

Davidson, Shannon. ‘Trauma-Informed Practices for Postsecondary Education: A Guide’. Education Northwest, 2019.

Gerevich, József. ‘[Facilitating role of traumatic experiences in art]’. Orvosi Hetilap 158, no. 17 (April 2017): 668–77. https://doi.org/10.1556/650.2017.30748.

Huang, L. N., Flatow, R., Biggs, T., Afayee, S., Smith, K., Clark, T., & Blake, M. (2014). SAMHSA’s concept of trauma and guidance for a trauma-informed approach (SMA No. 14-4884). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Marchi, Mattia, Antonio Travascio, Daniele Uberti, Edoardo De Micheli, Pietro Grenzi, Elisa Arcolin, Luca Pingani, Silvia Ferrari, and Gian M. Galeazzi. ‘Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among LGBTQ People: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis’. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences 32 (11 July 2023): e44. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2045796023000586.

Sophia Luu. ‘About Us’. SecretsWorthSharing, 2024. https://www.secretsworthsharing.com/about.

Secrets Worth Sharing: How to Talk About Child Sexual Abuse. 2021. Digital print zine, A5. https://www.sophialuu.co.uk/post/comic-book-on-child-sexual-abuse.