Dealing with Student Trauma: A Qualitative Case Study

The purpose of this case study was to explore the emotional and behavioral student support training for K-12 teachers in Kentucky school districts. The central research question was, "What are the experiences of special education teachers when working with students who have emotional and behavioral disabilities?" Maslow's theory on the hierarchy of needs (Maslow, 2011) was used as it explains how the needs of students generated trauma in their lives. A qualitative study was conducted using a sample of teachers in public school settings who have knowledge of and experience with students who have had traumatic experiences. Data were collected and analyzed using individual interviews, journal questions, and document analysis. which was organized by themes, and common themes were grouped. Notes gathered during the interviews were interpreted to clarify the meanings of the data. The journals allowed participants to change or add to the answers given during the interviews. Common codes were grouped and interpreted for meaning. The researcher completed document analysis by reviewing the behavior data recorded before and after using the identified programs. Data synthesis triangulated all data collected by common codes and compared these with the behavior results recorded during document analysis. The results indicated that each special education teacher used one or more different programs when helping their students deal with trauma and confirmed that Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Maslow, 2011) in the areas of physiological, safety and security, and/or love were found to be lacking in their students.