Moving Forward Together

Promoting Resiliency in Teaching and Learning

Trauma-informed teaching recognizes that students’ emotional and physical wellbeing, sense of security and belonging, and their past and current traumas influence their ability to learn. In other words, it responds to the reality that students are whole people with whole, complicated lives, in and out of the classroom. As such, classroom instructors must prepare for how they will respond when personal crises (e.g., a family emergency, mental health concerns) or collective crises (e.g., environmental disaster, a mass shooting, racist or xenophobic events) occur.

This site provides guidance for faculty to incorporate trauma-informed practices in their teaching to promote resiliency in students. While this site has been developed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to note that NIU students have been and will be affected by other incidences of trauma.