Becoming a Student of Your Students: Trauma-Informed, Culturally Relevant Practices for Physical Education Teachers

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to first provide PE teachers with an understanding of the different types of trauma students face, including traumatic events, historical trauma experienced by members of racial, ethnic, sexual, and religious minorities, as well as how trauma exposure interferes with student learning. Second, it will encourage teachers to build their own trauma-informed skills, such as self-awareness, self-care, self-regulation, and mindfulness in order to help them model healthy social and emotional skills for their students. Third, since PE teachers operate in a different environment than their classroom counterparts, they require a specialized set of guidelines for trauma-informed instruction that provides safety for all.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Val Altieri

Val Altieri, Jr. is a health teacher at Ridgefield High School in Ridgefield, CT.

Mariah Rooney

Mariah Rooney is a clinical social worker, adjunct professor in the School of Social Work at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN, and co-founder of Trauma Informed Weight Lifting at the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at JRI.

Lou Bergholz

Lou Bergholz is the founder of Edgework in Boston MA.

John McCarthy

John McCarthy ([email protected]) is a clinical associate professor in the Wheelock College of Education and Human Development and director of the BU Institute for Athletic Coach Education at Boston University in Boston, MA.