The training on the impact of trauma on children and families is based on the research done for the book Understanding the Trauma of Children from Institutions. A training manual for case workers, supported by additional research on trauma and societies in a broader sense. The training manual (which you can order in hard copy HERE and in PDF or audio version HERE) explains how growing up in an institution causes trauma in children. But it does more than that. It explains the mechanisms and adaptations in the brain and the stress response system connected to trauma and the long-term consequences for health, behaviour, and reaction, as well as ways to provide support.
Who Is It For?
The intensive, interactive, in-person training programme is designed to help participants to deeply understand the core principles involved and to connect the training content with their own work experience, through active engagement. The training will highly benefit social workers, those managing the alternative care reform process, NGO workers, local authorities who make child protection decisions, and those building capacity around child protection reform. Train-the-trainer programmes are also possible.
Comment from a training participant: ‘… the knowledge that was imparted was an eye opener just to realize that there is more to how and why children behave differently’
Training Options
The table below gives an overview of some training content options, though other possibilities can be discussed. For more detailed information on the 12-day training programme on children from institutions, go HERE.
For all of the shorter trainings, ‘Mechanisms of trauma’ should be completed by the participants before starting other modules. This is because in practice if they have not covered this, the training will mostly consist of answering questions related to those mechanisms and not much of the module topic can be covered in the time available.
It is possible to do training online, but there are challenges. Because it has to be divided into two-hour sessions and the interactive recap can take up to half of each session, a lot more time is needed. Additionally, given the topic, it is important that I am able to respond to non-verbal reactions of participants as well, meaning that cameras need to be on, which in some places is challenging due to connectivity.
Feel free to email [email protected] for more information and to discuss how the programme can be adapted to fit your needs.