Educational institutions accept and work with all children, including those who have experienced or are still experiencing traumatic experiences. Although trauma is often difficult to recognize, some behavioural and emotional signs may indicate that a person has had a traumatic experience, so it is crucial that the school is supportive and understanding and does not add to the student's trauma burden. It should therefore work through a trauma-infomed approach or some other approach that provides a safe and supportive environment.
In the theoretical part, I first define the trauma-informed approach and explore its role in the education system, focusing also on schools in Slovenia. I then focus on children with experiences of trauma in primary school, where I place greater emphasis on complex trauma, on poverty and social exclusion as trauma, and on the trauma of immigrant and refugee children. Finally, I highlight the role of social work in the primary school counselling service and the double-edged role of the school, which can support or retraumatise the traumatised child.
In the continuation of the thesis, I attach six interviews I conducted with social workers working in school counselling services in primary schools across Slovenia, where I explored their knowledge of working with children with trauma, how they understand and implement the principles of a trauma-informed approach in their practice, how the school provides a supportive and safe environment, how it avoids retraumatisation, and where school social workers perceive a need for additional empowerment when working with children with trauma.
|
