Contents

1. Introduction
2. Before
3. During
4. After
5. Soon?
6. Bibliography
7. Appendix

Introduction

Positionality Statement

This statement is intended to offer context for my perspectives and interests as a student and educator – without re-victimisation. 

I have chosen to create a project on the topic of trauma. It is important to therefore disclose that this interest arises from recent lived experiences. I am in a period of healing and processing, so I am choosing to maintain boundaries and not disclose the nature of this experience while still acknowledging that this obviously influences my perspectives on the subject.

I am also mixed race and recognise the trauma of existing as a non-white person in British society. I have an interest in intergenerational trauma, arising from both of my heritages suffering colonial injury recent and historic.

A Guide to Trauma Informed Teaching

I have written and designed an introductory guide to the principles of trauma informed teaching. Trauma informed teaching recognises that ‘students’ actions are a direct result of their life experiences.’ (Huang et al. 2014) It centres cultural and historical contexts for trauma, and therefore is an inherently inclusive framework. The guide acts as an introduction to the main concepts. It is available in digital and printed forms, it can also be printed at home. It features the following content:

1. What is trauma informed teaching?
2. The Key Principles of Trauma Informed Teaching
3. What actions can you take? (The Four ‘R’s)
4. Resources 
5. Glossary
6. Fold-out Poster

The full guide is available to read in two formats in the Appendix of this report. This reflective report uses the outline of ‘Before’, ‘During’ and ‘After’ as an homage to the practice of ‘Realising the impact’ outlined by Thompson and Carello in ‘Trauma-informed Teaching: A Guide for Responding to Crisis and Inequality in Higher Education’ (2022). The research compiled in this particular publication informed so much of this project. I am very grateful for the generous knowledge sharing demonstrated by the contributors.

Before

When asked to create an intervention that furthers inclusive practices, I immediately thought of the unique but also universal experience of trauma. The Covid-19 pandemic not long in the rearview mirror, current research suggests 1 in 5 experience on-going psychological distress due to the pandemic. (Kaubisch et al., 2022) With multiple conflicts occurring across the globe, a seemingly endless culture war on the marginalised, and a news cycle that would make the worst misanthrope weep, trauma is an ever present companion. With that in mind, I wanted to design an intervention that would raise awareness amongst educators and equip my colleagues with a basic understanding of the principles of trauma informed teaching.

In my teaching context, I see evidence of the ubiquity of trauma in the content of student projects and pastoral issues raised in tutorials – so much so that I reached out to a colleague and friend, Sophia Luu, for advice. (You can read more about this exchange in my intervention proposal.)

In my research, I learnt that intersectional identities are at a higher risk of polyvictimisation. (Marchi et al., 2015.) The trauma informed framework is one that centres intersectionality. Knowing that I teach a diverse cohort, in terms of age, gender, race, and ability, I feel there is a need to address trauma and it’s presence in the studio. The data collection of the NSS is imperfect but on paper: 5% of students are over the age of 25, 1% of students are non-binary, and 14% have a declared disability. (University of the Arts London NSS Results, 2023 – 2024)

Initial Survey

To begin, I surveyed a selection of my peers. Some are fellow lecturers, others work in activism, mental health care, and special educational needs. The survey was intended to gauge the current knowledge base and gaps.

There were several recurring themes in the responses:

1. Recognition of trauma’s presence in the classroom
2. Concerns about professional versus personal boundaries
3. Impact of trauma responses on lesson planning and implementation
4. Desire for training

Overall, the respondents expressed feeling a desire to be trauma informed but feeling unsure of where to start. I decided at this point that the content of the guide should be foundational, not referring to specific scenarios or case studies. Hopefully this would emphasise the flexibility of trauma informed teaching. 

During

Re-Inventing the Wheel

Figure 1 is a diagram developed by Phyllis Thompson and Heidi Marsh. (2022) This diagram summarises the key principles of trauma informed teaching. At it’s centre are cultural, historical and gender issues. They state that the decision to format the principles as a wheel highlights:

1. That the principles are relational, not separate
2. That equity informs the interpretation, understanding and implementation of each principle
3. That healing happens in relationship

Fig. 2 shows my own illustration developed for this project. In my diagram, I have chosen to put the cultural and historical context in the roots of the flower. I wanted to convey that sometimes the cause of trauma is unseen, undetectable and historic. (I explored this in some depth in my blog on faith.) I also wanted to show that our cultures and histories can be the foundation to healing and resistance. In my context as a lecturer in Illustration, this kind of reading of an image is another effective method of communicating ideas.

The wildlife theme of the illustrations in the guide were prompted from a desire to emphasise the goal of trauma informed pedagogy to create an environment, one that organically flexes and adjusts for different needs and contexts. I have been interested in reframing the studio or classroom as an ecosystem since engaging with ‘The design critique and the moral goods of studio pedagogy’ (McDonald and Michela, 2019).

Peer Feedback

Once I had written a draft of the guide, I went to my peers for feedback. As well as receiving general feedback on the quality of the work, I was keen to know what terms should be defined in a glossary. Sophia Luu’s work ‘Secrets Worth Sharing’ (2021) makes the point to define the language specific to her context, I felt it appropriate to do the same for trauma related vocabulary.

The feedback was positive on a whole, in particular my peers appreciated the breaking down of the principles and the four Rs. They did not feel overwhelmed by information.

Some feedback for improvement included adding case studies to the guide. This was something I considered previously, however I felt it would be more appropriate for a follow up to the guide – perhaps a workshop or activity sheet. Should I continue to expand this project I will definitely include case studies.

A Social Model of Trauma?

I took a moment at this stage to also pause and reflect on my progress in this project. I had a moment of clarity when I learnt that trauma responses were not restricted to the negative. I only thought of my trauma as the cause of disassociation, hyper-vigilance and derealisation. I knew that these were defensive mechanisms: to create distance from the events and to prevent them happening again. Learning that a trauma response can be positive totally reframed my perspective and understanding of the topic and myself. I understood that my desire to educate others about trauma, to be a trauma informed practitioner, and to create trauma resistant work spaces, were also ways for the body to heal, protect and resist. I’m reminded of the social model of disability, how that shifting of perspective can be so empowering. I would like to return to this quote from Thomas Shakespeare, previously referenced in my disability blog post:

When it comes to disability, patient empowerment can be beautiful. I notice how people sit differently after I explain to them that many of their problems are down to social barriers, not the disability itself. They leave the room differently from how they entered because of the power of this understanding of disability.

‘Recognising Lived Experience Is Essential to Empowering Disabled Patients’, 2022.

A question I would like to explore is: can we reframe trauma to fit a social model?

After

The physical version of the guide is in three separate parts:

1. Glossary bookmark
2. Binding band
3. Poster zine

The yellow band acts as a physical barrier, the reminder written on it is important, so I wanted to make it unavoidable. Part of my decision making on the format was that I wanted the learner to engage in time and space that feels safe to them. A workshop about trauma could be in itself traumatising. A video or audio format may not allow space for contemplation. The text ‘Engage in a place you feel space.’ invites the reader to take control of how they consume this information, this is a part of the ‘Voice and Choice’ principle of trauma informed pedagogy. The ability to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ without pressure or coercion is empowering.

The guide itself is a poster zine layout, it folds from a booklet into a large poster. I hoped this would encourage colleagues to keep and display the poster, perhaps in their desk spaces, it may indicate safety to a student.

The glossary is in the form of a book-mark. This is one aspect of the guide I’m not completely satisfied with. In it’s current form, the words ‘coercion’ and ‘trigger’ peek out of the guide. Not ideal! I would consider adding the 4 ‘R’s to the reverse of the glossary too, as these were particularly popular with my peers.

The Last Word

For my final feedback I asked my peers to give short responses to the guide, some were given the guide in person and others used the alternate formats, available in the Appendix of this blog post.

The feedback was very positive and affirmed my intentions. Participants described the guide as ‘accessible and educational’. They felt the illustrations were ‘joyful’ and helped to ‘simplify a complex topic’. Those who do not work in higher education but have completed degrees expressed hope that trauma could be less of a taboo topic in the classroom and studio.

Soon?

So, now what? I’d like to continue exploring trauma informed practices, including more of what interests me in illustration: narrative, autobiographical works, and comedy. When term starts in October, I will bring my guides to hand out to my colleagues. For now, a short break.

Bibliography

Amy Edmondson (1999) ‘Psychological Safety and Learning Behavior in Work Teams’, Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), pp. 350–383.

Andrews, A.R. et al. (2015) ‘Polyvictimization, income, and ethnic differences in trauma-related mental health during adolescence’, Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 50(8), pp. 1223–1234. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-015-1077-3.

Bloom, S. and Sreedhar, S. (2008) ‘The Sanctuary Model of Trauma-Informed Organizational Change.’, Reclaiming Children and Youth: From Trauma to Trust, 17, pp. 48–53.

Kaubisch, L.T. et al. (2022) ‘The COVID-19 pandemic as a traumatic event and the associated psychological impact on families – A systematic review’, Journal of Affective Disorders, 319, pp. 27–39. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2022.08.109.

Marchi, M. et al. (2023) ‘Post-traumatic stress disorder among LGBTQ people: a systematic review and meta-analysis’, Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, 32, p. e44. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S2045796023000586.

McDonald, J.K. and Michela, E. (2019) ‘The design critique and the moral goods of studio pedagogy’, Design Studies, 62, pp. 1–35. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.destud.2019.02.001.

Thompson, P. and Carello, J. (eds) (2022) Trauma-Informed Pedagogies: A Guide for Responding to Crisis and Inequality in Higher Education. 1st ed. 2022 edition. Palgrave Macmillan.

University of the Arts London (2023) ‘Student Profiles – Summary Grids’. ActiveDashboards. Available at: https://dashboards.arts.ac.uk/dashboard/ActiveDashboards (Accessed: 1 August 2024).

What is trauma? (no date). Available at: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/trauma/about-trauma/ (Accessed: 18 July 2024).

Appendix