There are many strategies and ideas for creating a training environment that helps people feel safe and respected while engaging with material that can be challenging or upsetting at times.

Creating Space

For sexualized violence training to be successful, learners need to feel comfortable, safe, and respected. As you prepare to facilitate, consider factors such as when and where to hold the training, key messages on promotional materials, the use of group guidelines, ensuring diverse representation, using icebreakers, whether activities require self-disclosure, and ways of working with co-facilitators or guests. In this section, we discuss several strategies for helping to create a positive learning space.

Opening with Intention

Facilitators have an enormous role to play in setting the tone for a session. Be sure to arrive early and as people enter the space (online or in-person), you can welcome them and help them get oriented. Before you start, share “housekeeping information,” such as where the bathrooms are, where they can put their things, or how to use online interactive features. As you begin your session, you can use opening questions that help create inclusivity such as correct pronouns, check-in questions, or information about accessibility needs and requests. If you are offering this training over a longer period (two or more hours) you might consider doing a brief icebreaker activity with the participants.

Community or Group Guidelines

Community or group guidelines help participants understand how to interact and support each other. This training offers a list of group guidelines in slide 5. When introducing the group guidelines, ask participants if they feel comfortable with them and if they have something they would like to add or change. You could also ask participants to agree to a list of guidelines or a code of conduct when they register or sign-up for the training.

If you are offering a longer workshop (three or more hours) or offering the training over multiple sessions, you may have time to ask participants to create group guidelines together.

You can remind learners of the guidelines if the discussion is getting difficult or at the beginning of each session. Important group agreements relate to listening to and showing respect for others, such as ensuring others’ confidentiality, not talking when others are speaking, not making rude comments, and not talking on the phone.

Examples of Community or Group Guidelines

Community guidelines come in all shapes and sizes. Some groups have a few guidelines while others have many. Often, groups will change or add guidelines as needs and ways of working together evolve. Here are suggestions of possible guidelines:

• Share the learning, not the names or the stories (confidentiality).
• Participants have the right to “pass” on activities or questions that feel uncomfortable.
• It is all right to feel uncomfortable or not to know the answers to everything.
• Treat others with respect.
• Be mindful of your language; respect everyone’s names and pronouns.
• Remember that survivors of sexualized violence may be present.
• Speak for yourself. Use “I statements” to state opinions or feelings.
• Seek to replace judgment with curiosity.
• Take care of yourself and offer care to others if you’re able to.
• Take space, make space (allow everyone a chance to participate).

Content Warnings

Content warnings (also called trigger warnings) are statements made before sharing potentially difficult or challenging material. The intent of content warnings is to provide learners with the opportunity to prepare themselves emotionally for engaging with the topic or to choose to not participate.

Different departments and institutions will have different approaches to content warnings, and this may guide your decision about including content warnings on registration or sign-up forms, in learning materials, and in the learning environment. Below is an example of a content warning:

“We will be discussing topics related to sexualized violence in this training. During the training, you can choose not to participate in certain activities or discussions and can leave the room at any time. If you feel upset or overwhelmed, please know that there are resources to support you.”

There are a number of other facilitation strategies you could consider in addition to or instead of a content warning:

• When discussing difficult content, check in with learners from time to time. Ask them how they are doing and whether they need a break. Let them know that you are aware that the content is difficult.
• Ask participants to be mindful of other learners during the discussion and remind them that survivors of sexualized violence are present in the room (regardless of whether this information has been shared with others).

Trauma Awareness

Experiences of trauma and violence are common in our society. Many people participating in sexualized violence training will have experiences of past or current trauma and many facilitators will have experiences of trauma themselves. As a facilitator, here are some possible signs to watch for that may indicate that you, your co-facilitator, or a participant(s) may be having a trauma response:

• Sweating
• Change in breathing (breathing quickly or holding breath)
• Muscle stiffness, difficulty relaxing
• Flood of strong emotions, such as anger or sadness
• Rapid heart rate
• Startle response, flinching
• Shaking
• Staring into the distance
• Becoming disconnected from present conversation, losing focus
• Inability to concentrate or respond to instructions
• Inability to speak

(BC Mental Health and Substance Use Services, 2013).

There are many strategies you can use to help create a trauma-aware learning space and to create a “workshop container” in which participants who experience a trauma response can regulate and hopefully come back into a state in which learning and engaging feels possible:

• At the beginning of the workshop, acknowledge that the topics you will be discussing are difficult and let learners know that they have the right and freedom to take care of themselves in a way that works for them. Let learners know that they can leave the room or choose not to participate in an activity. You could say something like “If at any time you feel you need to leave, that’s fine with me. You are empowered to take care of yourself.” You can also let learners know that reactions to difficult material can sometimes be delayed and that they may wish to connect with you a few days after the training or to access support from family, friends, or other people in their lives.
• If you notice that someone has left the group and you suspect that they were reminded of previous trauma by the session, follow up with them one-on-one after the session to check in and offer them any resources that you think might be helpful.
• During the workshop, if the conversation becomes intense or you believe some learners have become overwhelmed or affected by the discussion, take a break or use an activity that involves the body or movement to help people reconnect to the present moment.
• Sometimes, during training on sexualized violence, learners may realize that they have experienced things that are defined as violence. Before you start facilitating, you will want to ensure that you are knowledgeable about receiving disclosures and how to support trauma survivors as well as available support and resources at post-secondary institutions and in the community.
• Some institutions have developed practices such as expedited counselling for learners who might need support after a training session or making intensive crisis support available for a short time after a training or initiative.
• Similarly, some learners may realize that they have done violent things to others. You may need to provide them with some initial support before referring them to post-secondary and community resources and services. It’s also worth noting that BCcampus offers a training guide, Accountability and Repairing Relationships: Training and Facilitation Guide, that can be used by post-secondary institutions for such occurrences.
• Let learners know that you will be available after the training if they would like to debrief or share their responses to the session or how they are feeling. If possible, schedule at least 30 minutes after a session so that you can be available to your learners. If you are delivering training in an online context, you can let learners know that they can private message/email you.
• If you feel comfortable, share information about grounding activities or a link to a resource. Grounding activities are simple activities that can help people relax, stay present, and reconnect to the “here and now” following a trauma response. Examples include pressing or “rooting” your feet into the ground, breathing slowly in and out for a count of two, repeating a statement such as “I am safe now. I can relax,” or using your five senses to describe the environment in detail.
• If you are concerned about a learner, ask them if they would find it helpful for you to check in with them later in the day or the following day. You could also ask them if they have a support person to speak with following the training. If so, help them make a plan to connect with their support person, (e.g., via phone or text or in person or at a certain time).