9:15 - 10:15
Plenary Workshop 3
Advancing Equity
Advancing Equity
Click here for Zoom link to this session!
Moderator: Revati Borkhade, UMass Amherst
Erica Light, UMass Amherst
Anxiety and depression is on the rise amongst college faculty, staff, graduate, and undergraduate students alike. At the same time we are facing the emergent and interdisciplinary challenges of climate change, public health fallout, workplace austerity, and widespread injustice. How can our teaching prepare the next generation to address these global problems without overwhelming our students and ourselves? This 75-minute workshop applies a trauma-informed lens to the STEM college classroom to foster a more convivial and authentic learning experience for the benefit of both students and instructors.
We will draw from the crisis counselor toolkit for facilitating posttraumatic growth and apply strategies like the empowerment model, de-escalation, the growth mindset, active listening, self-care, boundary setting, and rekindling trust and connection. Workshop materials will explicitly link these tools to inclusive teaching best practices associated with student success in STEM. Participants will reflect on their own teaching goals, hold discussions with peers, and collaboratively workshop any barriers they face to implementing trauma-informed inclusive teaching. By the end of the session, participants will be able to see teaching through a trauma-informed lens, identify signs of posttraumatic stress, explore tools for facilitating posttraumatic growth, connect posttraumatic growth to inclusive teaching principles, apply trauma-informed principles to their own teaching, and connect with colleagues who are similarly invested in manifesting trauma-informed and mutually supportive institutions.
Key takeaway: A trauma-informed STEM classroom is more inclusive, connects to social justice goals, and may help address burnout amongst faculty and students.