EDSE 513 - Cultivating a Supportive Classroom Environment: Prioritizing Safe Learning

Studies show that exposure to school violence can impair students’ cognitive functioning, social development, psychological well-being, and health. Although providing students with a safe, supportive learning environment is an essential prerequisite to academic achievement, districts and schools often prioritize standards-based instruction and standardized test scores. Instead, educators should consider putting safe learning first to better guarantee your students’ success.

In this course, you’ll receive the knowledge, tools, and techniques you need to cultivate a safe and supportive classroom environment where your students can engage with and focus on learning. You’ll reflect on your teaching methods and share best practices with fellow educators, and you’ll learn how to help your students self-identify and self-manage their emotions, develop social awareness, collaborate, and interact positively with others. In addition, you’ll explore evidence-based strategies to prevent and de-escalate violence and encourage positive behavior interventions and conflict resolution, and you’ll examine the benefits of trauma-informed teaching strategies and practical ways to implement these strategies in your classroom.

Using the techniques from the course, you’ll be able to create a positive, safe, and supportive classroom environment that will allow your students to thrive mentally, emotionally, socially, and academically.