Ways Trauma-Responsive Strategies Support Kindness in School Communities
DR. BOBBI GILLHAM, MIDDLE SCHOOL PRINCIPALMore than ever, school leaders are seeking ways to encourage kind actions and calm atmospheres within their school communities. As a middle school principal, I have spent years trying to find the magic solution to combat behavior incidents that interfere with learning opportunities and buffer the impact of negative challenges many students experience outside of school. Research indicates that educators who model problem-solving and relationship-building behaviors also help students minimize disruptive behaviors, so fewer interruptions to teaching and learning occur (Blitz et al., 2016).
During the last five years, trauma-responsive school strategies have provided an option within the middle school I lead. They have served as an antidote to students' negative experiences and offered ways teachers can create school environments that prioritize safety, emotional well-being, and healthy relationships. Trauma-informed school practices provide a unique opportunity for educators to immerse students into learning environments that insulate them from negativity and inundate their school experiences with consistently positive influences (Blitz et al., 2016; O'Gorman, 2018). Enhancing skills in kindness and compassion are outcomes educators can promote by consistently utilizing trauma-responsive school strategies within their classrooms and school communities.
Empathy is cultivated when kindness is prioritized. Trauma-responsive practices teach students and educators to recognize the impact of trauma and understand that misbehaviors often stem from emotional pain or stress. This knowledge fosters empathy and reduces punitive reactions, creating a more compassionate school culture that values kindness and compassion. The increased awareness within the mental health community of trauma's impact on students during the last three decades has resulted in emerging research on the relationship between trauma-informed school practices and school success (Gillham, 2023). When educators model kindness for students, pathways to emulate these positive behaviors are established.
Eighty-five percent of the middle school students who responded to a 2023-2024 school climate survey indicated that 93% view school employees as helpful and encouraging. Eighty-six percent of the students who responded to the survey felt that the school community made learning and spending time with friends enjoyable and that fair and consistent procedures were in place for students. Parents also responded to a school climate survey at the beginning and again at the end of the year. Parental responses revealed a 14% increase in those identifying teachers' attitudes as caring and respectful in their instructional practices and communication with families.
Trauma-responsive interactions make it possible to build safe, trusting relationships between students and teachers. Healthy relationships can be an outgrowth of Implementing trauma-responsive strategies. Positive connections between teachers and students encourage mutual respect and consideration, essential elements of healthy relationships. Additionally, when relationships are grounded in trust, students feel cared for and are likelier to exhibit kindness toward others.
One strategy we implemented to create an environment where healthy relationships can grow is establishing two days weekly when students can have lunch with their teachers. Students submit a request form to the school counselor to coordinate a lunch date with the teachers of their choice. Once the school counselor coordinates the date with the teachers, students take their lunch trays or lunchboxes to the teacher's classroom, and they have one-on-one or small group time to visit during their lunch period. These opportunities have quickly become a favorite component of the school community for teachers and students alike.
Third, trauma-responsive schools prioritize emotional and physical safety, creating supportive atmospheres where kindness can flourish. Safety and security can be deficits for students who carry a history of trauma with them into school each day since they have often experienced environments that lack these safeguards. Thus, responding to students' physical and emotional safety gaps during school hours is essential for school communities. In environments where students feel secure, they are more likely to be kind and supportive to their peers, helping to build a sense of community and belonging.
During the 2023-2024 school year, 94% of parents surveyed felt that the middle school provided a safe learning environment responsive to students' physical and emotional needs. These results were very encouraging. However, only 75% of students responding to the school's climate survey revealed at least one adult they felt comfortable speaking with about safety concerns or problems, and 85% of students felt confident adults at school could keep them safe in emergencies. After reviewing these results, school leaders knew safety needed to be emphasized for the upcoming school year. As a result, beginning in August of 2024, the visibility of the School Resource Officer was increased, and the district made numerous safety and security upgrades to the campus to combat feelings of insecurity among middle school students.
Fourth, reducing reactive discipline promotes emotional support for students. Traditional punitive discipline approaches can escalate negative behaviors, whereas trauma-responsive strategies focus on restorative practices and logical consequences. These practices emphasize repairing harm and fostering understanding, leading to a culture where students are encouraged to be kind, patient, and forgiving rather than punitive or judgmental. Teachers are vital role models for calm and compassionate responses when students make mistakes.
Replacement behaviors are sometimes suggested as ways for students to exchange negative responses for positive ones. This concept inspired our school's leadership team to reinvent the punitive approach commonly used in the Alternative Detention Center (ADC) with a more restorative approach, the Reset Room. Instead of isolating students in cubicles and expecting them to work silently on their assignments, the team developed a schedule that includes social-emotional and academic support. A day in the Reset Room begins with students meeting with the school LPC for meditation and discussing why the consequence was assigned. The LPC works with students to develop strategies they can use to make better behavioral choices in similar situations. Flexible seating is utilized, including stationary desk bikes. Certified teachers sit with students at group tables during academic support sessions, offering guidance and instruction for class assignments when needed. Students also complete independent modules or reflection writings related to their misbehaviors and examine how they can use what they learned from the negative experiences to make more positive choices in future situations.
This is the first year the Reset Room has been in place at our school, but the preliminary results are very positive. At the end of the school year, we will examine behavior intervention data and use the information gained to make decisions about its effectiveness in reducing chronic behavior issues. We hope that for students who struggle with positive behavior decisions, the skills taught during bi-weekly guidance sessions and reinforced during Reset Room sessions will promote emotional regulation techniques, which can reduce impulsive reactions such as anger or frustration. As students become more self-aware, they can manage their emotions better. These skills make them more likely to respond to others with kindness and patience rather than aggression or withdrawal.
Finally, trauma-responsive strategies encourage inclusivity and promote peer support. Trauma-informed approaches often emphasize recognizing the diverse backgrounds and challenges students face. By promoting inclusivity and understanding, schools create environments where differences are embraced and kindness is extended to all students, especially those struggling. Trauma-responsive schools encourage students to develop resilience and support one another through challenges. Peer support initiatives, mentoring, and group activities often emerge in these environments, where students are encouraged to look out for one another and offer kindness and support to their peers.
Two years ago, we noticed students' poor behavior choices were more prevalent on Fridays. The leadership team considered ways to encourage positive behaviors and reduce impulsive actions among students. Through an OG&E grant, we were able to purchase a variety of challenging puzzles and Lego sets. We set up tables for small groups in an available classroom. Students qualified to participate in the group activities by completing all assignments and having no office referrals for the week. Up to 25 students could participate in each class period. Our school counselor supervised students, played soft music, and encouraged students to work together in cooperative learning groups. The students could join any group with open seats, resulting in the completion of puzzles and Lego sets by a constantly changing set of students. When the Lego sets were completed, they were displayed in the school as visual reminders of the positive experiences and reinforcing the value of students working together. One of the things we noticed was that the groups varied, and often, students who didn't normally interact with one another developed friendly conversations centered around shared interests. We observed a significant decrease in office referrals occurring on Fridays. We also noticed that their peers quickly assisted and encouraged students when they became frustrated with completing one of the puzzles or Lego sets.
Perhaps one of the most significant connections between trauma-responsive school practices and kinder, gentler interactions is the potential for a greater understanding of mental health and emotional well-being. Reducing stigma around trauma and related behaviors encourages students to approach one another with kindness instead of judgment. Students have opportunities to express themselves in healthy ways and feel heard. When students feel valued and understood, they are more likely to reciprocate this respect and care, spreading kindness and understanding within the school community.
Trauma-responsive strategies not only provide targeted support for students dealing with trauma but also foster an environment of empathy, emotional safety, and connection. This leads to a culture where kindness and mutual respect are central to daily interactions within the school community. Effective trauma-responsive strategies can vary between students and situations. They are not foolproof, and the results are not instantaneous. However, as Shawn Achor (2010) stated in his book, The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology that Fuel Success and Performance at Work, "Small changes ripple outward to create larger changes. And the best part is that they don't add up; they compound."
A trauma-responsive approach is more than the sum of its parts within a school community. For educators, trauma-responsive strategies require training and practice to shift from a mindset that values supportive behavior interventions over enforcing strictly punitive consequences. The compound effect of consistently implemented trauma-responsive strategies results in school environments where kindness prevails. Empathy is cultivated. Safe and trusting relationships develop. Emotionally and physically safe, supportive atmospheres grow. Preventive rather than reactive behavior interventions are more prevalent, and inclusive cultures that promote understanding of mental health and emotional well-being are present. These key components allow kindness to become a schoolwide expectation and a dominant element of a school's culture and identity.
DR. BOBBI GILLHAM
Dr. Bobbi Gillham is a career educator and public school advocate who has devoted 32 years to Oklahoma public education as an art and ELA teacher, librarian, assistant principal, Curriculum Director, JOM and Indian Education Director, and principal. She leads a trauma-responsive middle school in its fourth year as an OK A+ Schools network member, promoting arts-integrated, project-based learning experiences for students.
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References
Achor, S. (2010). The Happiness Advantage: The seven principles of positive psychology that fuel success and performance at work. Crown Business/Random House.
Blitz, L. V., Anderson, E. M., & Saastamoinen, M. (2016). Assessing perceptions of culture and trauma in an elementary school: Informing a model for culturally responsive trauma-informed schools. The Urban Review, 48(4), 520–542. Assessing Perceptions of Culture and Trauma in an Elementary School: Informing a Model for Culturally Responsive Trauma-Informed Schools | SpringerLink
Gillham, B. (2023). The Impact of Trauma-Informed Practices on Positive School Outcomes. (Publication No. 30489995) [Doctoral dissertation, Southern Nazarene University]. ProQuest Dissertations.
O’Gorman, S. (2018). The case for integrating trauma-informed family therapy clinical practice within the school context. British Journal of Guidance & Counseling, 46(5), 557–565. https://doi.org/10.1080/03069885.2017.1407919