COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

ED300 Introduction to Childhood Trauma and Its Effects

In this introductory course, the focus is on building the student's awareness around trauma, adverse childhood experiences, the impact on brain development, relationships, and learning. Being trauma-aware helps change the way we interact and respond to challenging children and adolescent behaviors. This course is beneficial for anyone interested in learning more about how trauma can negatively affect an individual physically, cognitively, socio-emotionally, and neurologically. This class is important for teachers, early learning professionals, parents, social workers, and anyone who works with or interacts with children and youth or adults who were impacted by childhood trauma.  

*It is strongly advised to take this course before or at the same time of any of the other courses offered.

ED301 Trauma-Informed Practices & Strategies

The implementation of a trauma-informed approach requires a profound paradigm shift that deepens and unfolds over time and influences the practices and strategies one uses when working with individuals impacted by trauma. This course will explore trauma-responsive practices and strategies and is an overview of how trauma looks in the classroom.  Students will acquire foundation skills and will learn how to look beyond the behavior to find and treat the stressor instead of using traditional methods and practices.  Students will apply trauma-responsive practices to classroom scenarios and case studies as well as their own classrooms to improve discipline practices and policies, student resilience, and educational outcomes.

ED302 The Trauma-Informed Classroom

This course answers the essential question, "What is a trauma-informed classroom?" Students will explore a comprehensive set of components and criteria to help schools create, sustain, and assess trauma-informed classrooms. The rationale, research, and 5 domains of a trauma-informed classroom are explored in depth. These domains provide an organizing system of where to start and how to continually create and sustain an effective classroom designed to meet the needs of all students, especially those who have been impacted by trauma.

*ED 301 should be taken before or while take ED 302.

ED303 Suicide Prevention, Intervention, and Postvention: A Culture of Caring

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for youth between the ages of 10 and 19. Because students spend so much time in the school, either in person or virtually, teachers and staff are on the front lines of suicide prevention. In this course, students will explore the basics in suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention and beyond for school personnel. Students will learn how to strengthen protective factors by creating a culture of caring. They will also learn to identify risk factors, recognize warning signs, and know what action to take.

ED304 Special Topics in Trauma-Informed Perspectives and Practices

1-3 Credit Hours

This course offers an in-depth study of specialized topics and practices in the field of trauma and trauma informed perspectives. 

• Provide students the opportunity to explore the most current knowledge possible, by introducing the latest perspectives, practices, and challenges.
• Encourage students to discuss these topics, with an eye towards applying them in practice.