Trauma Essay

Introduction

Trauma, this is a word with many connotations. Typically, the word trauma is associated with appalling abuse or a terrible car accident, however the word trauma is beginning to take on a new meaning, in terms of its impact on children. Trauma in this context can be loosely defined as any negative experience that causes a child psychological or emotional stress or damage (Bath, 2008).

Trauma has many implications on people’s lives. It also has tremendous impacts on teaching and learning in classrooms everywhere. The most obvious implications involve bloom’s taxonomy. When students are abused, neglected or have experienced other forms of severe trauma, often learning math or reading is not at the forefront of their concerns, consequently

There are three overarching forms of trauma: acute, chronic, and complex. Acute trauma refers to a single event such as a natural disaster or car wreck. Chronic trauma is repeated exposure to assaults of the mind or body such as domestic violence or abuse. Complex trauma refers to the exposure to chronic trauma generally by the child’s primary care-givers and the impact of such exposure over time (Burr-Harris, 2012). Children who experience complex trauma are often afraid of and don’t trust adults such as teachers, counselors, and principals. These traumatized children are afraid of adults because the adults in their lives are the people exposing them to the trauma they experience (Bath, 2008). The most pervasive and far reaching impact of complex trauma is the dysregulation of emotions and impulses. It has also been observed that the ability to manage emotions adaptively or to self-regulate is one of the most “fundamental protective factors” for healthy development (Alvord & Grados, 2005; Bath, 2008). Complex trauma has so many impacts in addition to the trauma itself. It is one of the largest hurdles many children can face during their