Course Objectives

This course focuses on student acquisition of knowledge, skills, and attitudes for use of 12 trauma-informed practice elements/components in the intervention and treatment of traumatized children, adolescents, and their families. The course conceptualizes a trajectory of intervention that considers the impact of trauma, intervention objectives and practice elements that accomplish the intervention objectives.

At the end of the course the student will be able to:

1. Apply the 12 Core Concepts as a conceptual lens to prioritize the engagement and assessment of traumatized children and their families.
2. Demonstrate knowledge and awareness of how racism, discrimination, and oppression in all its forms affects trauma and trauma treatment.
3. Apply critical reflection, self-awareness, and self-regulation to manage influence of bias, power, privilege, and values in the therapeutic relationship with traumatized children and their families.
4. Use critical reasoning to make judgments about the purpose for which a specific trauma-informed practice element is selected and employed with a child, adolescent, or family.
5. Apply the 12 Trauma-informed Practice Elements skillfully in intervention and treatment with traumatized children and their families.
6. Implement Trauma-informed Practice Elements in the context of a strong therapeutic relationship that is developed with an understanding of the intersection of the therapist and client positionality.
7. Use the literature and other resources to support/inform the case analysis, intervention objectives and therapist-client interactions.

This course is taught using a Problem-based Learning methodology (PBL) to enhance student engagement and learning. PBL presents learners with complex problems that resemble those encountered by practicing professionals. These problems involve multiple decision-making points and require learners to process and integrate case information. The Core Components and Skills for Trauma-Informed Practice course uses full-length cases to exemplify a range of different situations a professional might encounter. These cases vary by type of problem, race and ethnicity, client population, and the professional decisions needed to provide trauma-informed care. 

 PBL is a student-centered approach in which students learn about a subject by working in groups to solve an open-ended problem. This problem is what drives the motivation and the learning.  Rather than teaching relevant material and subsequently having students apply the knowledge to solve problems, the problem is presented first through three case scenarios.  Students work in small groups for case analysis and treatment planning.