The Awareness, Action, and Advocacy (AAA) Framework: A guide for pre-service teacher education faculty embedding equity-centered, trauma-informed content in existing elementary methods courses

The incidence of trauma among students in our classrooms is increasing, which can negatively impact their ability to learn. It is critical that teachers have the knowledge and skills to work with students in their classrooms who are impacted by trauma. The problem this study addressed is that our teachers are not prepared to support these students. This study proposed the use of the Awareness, Action, and Advocacy (AAA) Framework to guide the integration of equity-centered, trauma-informed education (ECTIE) in pre-service teacher preparation programs. The purpose of this study was to understand the experience of instructors and field experience supervisors at a large university in the Midwest as they integrated ECTIE content in an Elementary Education teacher preparation program, guided by the AAA Framework. Conventional and directed Qualitative Content Analysis were used for analysis of semi-structured interviews with participants. The data analysis resulted in four themes: (a) Strategies instructors used to integrate and model ECTIE content varied across instructors and courses, (b) Instructors and supervisors saw examples of successes and challenges as pre-service teacher candidates worked to apply their knowledge and understanding of ECTIE concepts in courses and field placements, (c) There are challenges to the integration of ECTIE concepts, the biggest of which is behavior management, and (d) The use of the AAA Framework has to be more scaffolded and implemented systematically throughout the teacher preparation program to further this important work. This study contributes to the limited research on inclusion of trauma-informed education in pre-service teacher preparation and higher education.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Special Education

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2024

Author dc:creator

• Burdick, Lynn S

Contributors dc:contributor

• Corr, Catherine
• Mason, Erica
• Mercier, Emma
• Hug, Barbara

• Trauma
• Trauma-informed Education
• Teacher Preparation

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2024 Lynn Burdick

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/124288

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F124288