Deakin University embeds trauma-informed practice in teacher education

In an Australian first, Deakin University will integrate trauma-informed practice across all its early childhood, primary and secondary initial teacher education (ITE) courses from 2026.

The initiative, developed in partnership with Berry Street, will see future educators complete the Berry Street Education Model (BSEM), a program designed to help teachers understand the impacts of trauma on learning and behaviour.

“Embedding the Berry Street model, which focuses on helping every student to learn and thrive, will prepare Deakin teaching graduates to recognise when a student is struggling and give them the skills to respond effectively,” said Professor Damian Blake, Head of Deakin’s School of Education.

The four-day program will teach pre-service educators how to:

• recognise signs of trauma in children and young people
• create safe, predictable and supportive learning environments
• use strategies that help students regulate emotions, build persistence and develop resilience.

The initiative has strong relevance for the early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector, where educators frequently work with children experiencing the effects of family stress, grief, or community trauma. Embedding trauma-informed understanding into pre-service training could strengthen the sector’s capacity to respond to complex needs early in a child’s life.

The BSEM program aligns closely with the National Quality Standard (Quality Area 2: Children’s health and safety) and supports services striving to embed wellbeing and inclusion at the heart of their practice.

Deakin is the first Australian university to adopt the Berry Street model across all ITE programs, setting a new benchmark for trauma-informed education.

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