Writing through wounds: towards a trauma-informed writing centre pedagogy in South African higher education

There is increasing recognition internationally that students’ writing can reflect emotional distress. This challenge is particularly pronounced in the South African higher education context. Despite increasing emphasis on student wellbeing, trauma-informed approaches remain largely absent from writing centre pedagogy. This conceptual paper addresses this gap by proposing the CARE-WRITE model, a theoretically grounded framework for trauma-informed writing centre practice. Drawing on trauma-informed care, relational pedagogy and decolonial theory, CARE-WRITE reimagines writing support as an ethical, inclusive practice responsive to students’ emotional and structural realities. It centres cultural responsiveness, empathy and empowerment, positioning the writing centre as a potential site of healing and resistance. Moving beyond technical proficiency, this framework advocates for inclusive, socially just academic writing support, acknowledging the complex interaction of psychological, cultural and institutional factors. This paper contributes to the international scholarship on trauma-informed education and offers a foundation for future inclusive writing pedagogy research and practice.