Creating a Trauma-Sensitive Environment for Teaching Human Rights

Abstract

Kelly A. McBride provides context and practical guidance for human rights educators seeking to create a trauma-sensitive classroom environment. This is extremely important for HRE, since its unique curriculum creates an increased risk for students becoming distressed by intense subject matter. Yet these practices can and should be implemented across the university setting in general, since many students (and their professors) have experienced trauma and may be triggered and/or re-traumatized in the absence of strategies to prevent emotional triggering and re-traumatization. As a mental health professional and a human rights educator, McBride discusses the globalized student population within university settings, the impacts of experiencing trauma and how they present themselves in the classroom, and steps toward creating a trauma-sensitive environment.