Multi-tiered Approaches to Trauma-Informed Care in Schools: A Systematic Review

A qualitative analysis of the experiences, training, and support needs of school mental health workers regarding student trauma

“…This result should also be considered in light of research highlighting the inadequacies of teacher knowledge and training in relation to student trauma and classroom management (Alisic, 2012;Howard, 2018). Thus, recommendations from this study focus on whole-school tiered approaches to training and supervision for staff, with more general training and feedback for teachers, and more specialist training and individualised consultation for school mental health staff (Berger, 2019).…”

“…This finding illustrates the importance and potential impact of research exploring Australian school staff perceptions and approaches in response to trauma-impacted students. Further to this, in a recent systematic review of the literature, Berger (2019) found whole-school trauma interventions and teacher training increases staff trauma knowledge and referral of students, improves student school engagement, reduces student disruptive behaviours and school suspensions, and decreases posttraumatic stress and depression among traumatised students (Berger, 2019). Berger (2019) presented a multi-tiered framework for enhancing training and consultation between teachers and school mental health staff with regard to student trauma.…”

“…Conducting this research will allow greater insight into mental health workers experiences of student trauma, and availability of training and support in the schooling context. Overall, research demonstrates the critical role that the school environment and in particular school mental health workers play in identifying and addressing student trauma (Berger, 2019). Given the established lack of understanding regarding staff experiences and needs with reference to student trauma, further research is needed to expose the facilitators and barriers to effective trauma responding in schools.…”

“…Results of this study indicate that provision of external supervision and more specialist training modules are required for school mental health staff. Extension of school mental health staff knowledge could occur through greater individualised consultation and specialist training provided by other mental health professionals (Berger, 2019). Such training would be best embedded into current Australian and international traumainformed training protocols and school-wide positive behaviour support frameworks to create greater school "buy-in", with a focus on providing different levels of training for staff based on their level of expertise and level of exposure to student trauma (Berger, 2019).…”

The Relationship of Gifted Program Enrollment to Race/Ethnicity, Gender, and SES.

“…Cattell (1963) conceptualized Gf as the following: (1) the capacity to perceive relations and educe correlates, (2) is mostly biologically and physiologically determined, (3) is affected by gestation period influence and later physical trauma and physiological change, and 4operates independent of cultural knowledge or experience. However, research subsequent to Cattell's work has documented the strong interactional nature between variables such race, SES, and experiences such as trauma (e.g., Berger, 2019). As such, there exists sound logic and data to argue that the idea of reasoning processes that operate independent of the actual world is illusory.…”