As Early Childcare Programs Reopen, New Trauma-Informed Training Series Prepares Educators and Caregivers to Support Students, Equitably, Amid Crisis

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Sept. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A new, five-part professional learning series, rooted in anti-racist, anti-bias practice, is available to early childhood and elementary education providers and educators to strengthen their interactions with children who have been affected by traumatic life experiences. The series is now being offered online by Teachstone, which delivers the nationally recognized Classroom Assessment Scoring System, or CLASS™.

"Now, more than ever, the interactions between teachers and students matter so much," said Teachstone CEO Dr. Bridget Hamre. "Amid the ongoing public health crisis and the nation's moment of reckoning with systemic racism, many students are facing trauma and massive uncertainty in their lives. For many young children, we know that expressing trauma in a classroom setting can often be misunderstood as behavioral challenges—and that children of color are far more likely to be disciplined. There's perhaps never been a more critical time than now to ensure our educators are prepared to help children process and move through trauma."

Over the last decade, a growing body of research has documented the concerning racial disparities in the rise of both school discipline and adverse childhood experiences. According to data from the U.S. Department of Education, while black children account for 18 percent of the preschool population, but make up almost half of repeat suspensions. Their white peers are 43 percent of preschoolers, but account for only 26 percent of repeated suspensions.

The new series, called "Interactions at the Heart of Healing," equips educators--working with students from age 3 to grade three-- to develop trauma-informed practices, understand the impact of trauma on behavior, cultivate connections after trauma, and promote children's resilience. The series guides educators through actions and approaches to beginning—or extending—their journey to become anti-biased, along with opportunities for reflection; explains how to create an environment that is warm and nurturing for all children; and addresses how to respond when children's words or actions mirror a racist or biased idea to which they have been exposed.

"The issue of anti-racism is rarely discussed within trauma-informed care. When we speak of trauma, we are often referring to only physical abuse and neglect. But racism is dehumanizing, and that in itself is traumatic," said Dr. Iheoma U. Iruka, the chief research innovation officer and Director of the Center for Early Education Research and Evaluation at HighScope Educational Research Foundation who recently presented a webinar on this topic and leads one of the training modules titled "Know, Then Grow: Becoming an Antiracist, Antibiased, Trauma-Informed Educator." "In order to build an anti-racist, anti-biased, and trauma-informed learning environment, educators must take a hard look at their classrooms and at their own behaviors."

Broken into five, on-demand online modules, educators are guided through content and have access to eight in-depth interviews with national experts on topics like minimal levels of learning, learners with exceptional needs, family child care, tribal learners and more.

Through the modules, the professional learning series aims to:

• Provide understanding. Educators will learn concepts and vocabulary that will cultivate their understanding of what it means to be a trauma-informed educator.
• Enhance classroom practice. Educators will learn strategies to help them interact with children in ways that are trauma-informed.
• Engage families. Educators will learn strategies for interacting with families that help them better understand children's experience and position them to support healing.
• Promote self-care. Educators will learn strategies to care for themselves to help them show up as a consistent warm and structured relationship for children.

"This course is a must-have," said an educator who participated in the series. "There are some courses you only do because you have to do and then there are some courses that you really get into and feel like you're taking something from the course, that it is really going to be helpful in your classroom ... This is that course."

The professional learning series is available now. In addition, group webinars and tool kits are available for purchase. Learn more and register at https://teachstone.com/interactions-at-the-heart-of-healing/.

About Teachstone
Teachstone® was founded in 2008 to deliver the Classroom Assessment Scoring System® nationwide and around the globe. Developed through years of research, the CLASS® observation tool measures interactions between teachers and children, which have been shown to drive learning and lifelong achievement. CLASS, adopted as part of the federal Head Start monitoring protocol in 2010, is used to assess the effectiveness of teacher-student interactions. Teachstone's CLASS tool is making a difference in classrooms in 50 countries worldwide. For information visit www.teachstone.com.

SOURCE Teachstone

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