Trauma-informed initial teacher training: identity orientations in the case of dual traumas

This qualitative case study unpacks the practiced, imagined and trauma-informed identities of a group of English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) student teachers in the case of dual traumas. The student teachers experienced catastrophic earthquakes during their third year of study at university. Six months after the earthquakes, they were engaged in 5-week online discussion sessions on trauma-informed pedagogy through scaffolded practices that were followed by individual reflection writing. They raised awareness of how to cultivate a safe, engaging and responsive classroom environment, and how to incorporate the basics of trauma-informed pedagogy into EFL classes. The data were collected through metaphorical representation sheets which were employed before and after the online discussions. Constant-comparative analyses demonstrated a shift towards a stronger sense of agency and perception of adequacy, indicating positive identity orientations. Considering its potential to foster identity development, trauma-informed pedagogy can be added to initial teacher training curricula as a sub-branch of teacher knowledge base.