Teaching the Traumatised

Everybody has felt how a headache affects the ability to think straight. Perhaps you have even felt how much energy and mental effort a bad injury or long term illness demand of you. If you have had the unpleasant experience of being bullied you know it will be on your mind months and years. If you had a death in the family, sudden or otherwise, you may have experienced how this can consume your waking and sleeping hours. I think most can relate to these different events as different levels of life's unpleasant surprises that are acknowledged to impact on our ability to get though the day and not least – to learn.  

                                                                                              
Image: demotivationalposters

But what if you are a student and you grew up with an alcoholic parent? What if the your partner beats and threatens you regularly? What if you are a survivor of rape or systematic abuse? What if the thought of suicide is crossing your mind regularly?

If we are not accepting that these kinds of trauma are sure to affect the long term ability to learn, we are ignoring what may be the single most important reason why some students cannot function (Chen et al. 2006, Knox 2010, Basch 2011a, Basch 2011b, Coohey et al. 2011, Karande and Kuril 2011, Krishnakumar et al. 2011, Makrill and Hesse 2011, Afifi et al. 2012, Snyder et al. 2013, Swanston et al. 2013)! Failing to respond when being exposed to individuals caught in such abuse would not only be to fail as teachers, but also as human beings.

In January 2013 I participated in the international conference “Higher Education – Higher Level Learning?” in Tallinn with national and internationally renowned experts in educational development. There was not one word on the importance of social issues in affecting learning outcomes. So, not being an expert, I raised the question myself – several times. In all forums, it was considered important – and that it should be addressed. 

At least I was confirmed that my wonder was justified. But the silence on the matter was deafening.  

Image: Arizona Department of Public Safety

In other institutions, like the military, a stable person is recognized as being of importance for the success of the mission, unit, and the function of the organ as a whole. I was once told that the elite forces in Denmark, and elsewhere, are expected to “clean up” at home before going on a mission. This means that you go home and solve your private problems: settle arguments, say your goodbyes, get issues out in the open, discussed, and closed. A person on a military mission with issues at home is considered unable to function optimally and may be a serious liability to the whole group.

Young persons entering the military and academia are about the same age – but it is not my impression the young adults are helped in academia to address these imperative skills for success.

I currently teach veterinary students in Estonia. So, if I look at my classroom of 100 apparently normal students as a statistical representation of Estonia the group would roughly contain the following:

- around 17 of the females would have been physically attacked by the person they have chosen as partner within the last year (Laanpere et al. 2012). The numbers for males being attacked are unavailable, but likely similar.

- around 4 of the females would have been exposed to sexual violence (rape or attempt of rape) within the last year (Laanpere et al. 2012). The numbers for males are unavailable.

- as the European country with most alcohol-related deaths, many of the students would either have experience with alcoholism themselves or in their network (EUROSTAT, 2013).

- One would have HIV/AIDS (Laisaar et al. 2012)

- With the second highest age adjusted suicide rate in Europe, at least one is likely to have considered suicide or know a person in their network that did commit suicide (Schneider et al. 2009, EUROSTAT 2013). 

- Currently ranking third place in homicides in Europe, there is also a chance of a person having lost somebody to violence (EUROSTAT, 2013).

Or in other words, several of my students are likely to carry some kind of severe trauma that no human should have to endure. Should I as a teacher be aware of that when evaluating my student’s performance or just chase the thought out of my head as somebody else's problem?

Image: triplehelixblog.com

The problems is, that if it is somebody else’s problem in Estonia, finding that person who will actually do something is very hard; at least to my personal intensive experience on the subject. And those persons I have been in contact with have a very high acceptance towards violence (“that is just how it is”), and a much looser view on upholding the country’s laws that I used to think were instated to protect people from harm.  

There is a strong rhetoric from many governments that we need to educate skilled young people with our educational system. My point is: is that possible without addressing the crushing social issues openly and actively in an effort to reshape the culture from its current status of silently accepting abuse? How fragile is your country if you build it on ignoring broken people and only pay lip service to your laws?

I am sick and saddened to my core every time I hear about a child witnessing their parent beat or kill the other, or themselves getting beaten or tortured! I hear some teachers and social service workers almost casually play it down to a “the child also have problems at home and have good days and bad days in school”. It has appeared to be impossible to make psychiatrists, psychotherapists or social services even blink when repeatedly asking if they have considered domestic violence in such a case (I have personal experience of this).   

I was presented with an interesting viewpoint when writing this article. Perhaps education is also a welcome escape to persons who carry a trauma! Schools and university may be a place where they get a feeling of worth to counter a feeling of less-worth that may be imposed by abusive peers or self-inflicted. Or, education may be a physical escape option in life from a secret treadmill of violence. These points may very likely be the case for some individuals. On the flip-side, then are very tough educations, like the veterinary education I am involved with. The pressure of high expectations could amount to an enormous personal stress from both personal and educational life.

TED: Pearl Arredondo: My story, from gangland daughter to star teacher

Improving on the situation will take decades, perhaps generations – certainly longer if we do not address this problem openly.

I can accept that there are finite resources to address the many problems of a country and specifically education. What I personally cannot accept is the silence that allows the problems to continue generation after generation and impair personal development and the society as a whole.

TED: Ken Robinson: How to escape education's death valley

Various traumatic experiences are a natural part of life whether inflicted or naturally occurring. Being silent about the life-long trauma students may experience, such as violence, is also stigmatizing them – even if they are far from alone with their problems. In such an environment, the survivors have to endure two types of attackers: the actual person attacking them and those who cover for the attacker with the silence. In my personal experience, the latter is the one that I find the hardest to accept.

If you are a teacher I urge you to be brave enough to talk about the importance of a stable and violence-free social environment as a perquisite for successful learning. I hope this can be done without falling into the rhetoric’s of only accepting conservative family concepts (a good background can be many things) or accept labeling people as non-fitting as self-explanatory for learning difficulties - which may cause more damage than good if placing these above the need of the persons in question.

Good luck working on your morals and your courage!

More food for thoughts:

Estonian Ombudsman for Children

    

WAVE Country report 2012, REALITY CHECK ON DATA COLLECTION AND EUROPEAN SERVICES FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN SURVIVORS OF VIOLENCE, A Right for Protection and Support?