Trauma sensitive approaches are being adopted in schools across the U.S. While responding to children's trauma is imperative, this analysis points to significant limitations posed by individual pathology-focused science and neoliberal influences, including an outline of fundamental contradictions. This is followed by a conceptualization of trauma which illustrates alignment with and the necessity of critical pedagogy as a means for developing critical knowledge and world views that are resistant to domination and may counter the effects of trauma.