Youth Mental Health: Be Proactive with School Surveys

Depression, anxiety and other mental illnesses are on the rise among teens, preteens and young adults. In fact, it is estimated that “five to eight times as many high school and college students meet the criteria for diagnosis of major depression and/or anxiety disorder as was true half a century or more ago.”[1] And that’s not simply a sign of doctors over-medicating “moody” teens – this substantial increase in youth mental health issues holds true even when considering the same criteria for diagnosis.

In addition, according to the National Center for Children in Poverty, approximately 20 percent of teens have a mental health disorder.[2] That means that one in every five students at your school may be experiencing poor mental health symptoms, like those of depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder or other illnesses.

But what’s most alarming for teachers and parents alike is what these mental disorders can lead to if not properly treated – like violence inflicted upon oneself or others. Just recently, suicide has become the second-leading cause of death in teens and young adults, aged 15-24[3], previously ranking third behind homicide and accidental causes. Plus, school shootings appear to be on the rise, with the average number of yearly U.S. mass shootings increasing from 6 to 16 since the year 2000, most of which occurred at schools.[4]

While the jury is still out on whether or not there is tangible evidence that mental illness may lead to gun violence in schools, we must recognize the fact that people with serious mental illness are three to four times more likely to be violent than those who aren’t.[5] And what we do know for certain is that educators and administrators want to do everything in their power to improve the mental health of students and increase the safety of their schools.

Many may find it difficult to gauge a student or child’s mental state, thanks in large part to the social stigma associated with mental illness and the unlikelihood that a student will reach out for help on his/her own. However, conducting school surveys is an efficient way for educators and administrators to determine if there is a youth mental health problem at their institution, without directly imposing on students’ privacy.

Several of our surveys help thoroughly inspect youth mental health by asking students about many different – and often difficult topics – such as alcohol and drug abuse, absenteeism, bullying, family life, discipline problems, social and emotional skills, perceived school climate and more. By examining the resulting survey statistics, educators and administrators can get a better understanding of the state of their students’ mental health and can become more proactive at addressing any obvious causes or addressing any trends in the future.

[1] Gray, Peter. “The Decline of Play and Rise in Children’s Mental Disorders.” January 26, 2010. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/201001/the-decline-play-and-rise-in-childrens-mental-disorders on December 15, 2015.

[2] Schwarz, Susan Wile. “Adolescent Mental Health in the United States.” June 2009. Retrieved from http://www.nccp.org/publications/pub_878.html on December 15, 2015.

[3] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Suicide Trends Among Persons Aged 10–24 Years — United States, 1994–2012.” March 6, 2015. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6408a1.htm on December 15, 2015.

[4] Federal Bureau of Investigation. “FBI Releases Study on Active Shooter Incidents.” September 24, 2014. Retrieved from https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2014/september/fbi-releases-study-on-active-shooter-incidents/fbi-releases-study-on-active-shooter-incidents on December 15, 2015.

[5] Beckett, Lois. “Myth vs. Fact: Violence and Mental Health.” June 10, 2014. Retrieved from http://www.propublica.org/article/myth-vs-fact-violence-and-mental-health on December 15, 2015.

Cyberbullying in the Millennial Era: Know the Signs of Cyberbullying

As many parents and teachers know, cyberbullying has become one of the most common forms of harassment a child will experience. In this day and age of easily-accessible technology and ubiquitous social media sharing, it’s important for adults to recognize the signs of cyberbullying, so that they may more readily protect their children or students from it in the future.

Cyberbullying, as you may have learned from a previous blog article from our series on the phenomenon, is defined by the experts at cyberbullying.org[1] as “when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones.”

What’s most troubling about cyberbullying is its sheer prevalence in today’s young society – according to BullyingStatistics.org[2], more than half of adolescents have been bullied online, and about the same amount have engaged in the activity itself. The average cyberbully is also persistent and unrelenting, as more than 25 percent of teens have experienced cyber threats repeatedly through their cell phones or over the internet. What’s more, evidence of cyberbullying is easier to hide, and victims are unlikely to reach out to trusted adults for support – well over half do not tell their parents it has even occurred.[3]

Due to its anonymity and obscurity, as well as its growing number of potential technological outlets, cyberbullying can go undetected for a long time. But there are subtle signs that your child or student is experiencing cyberbullying, expressed both in school and at home. According to the National Crime Prevention Council[4], here are a few behaviors that may indicate your child is being cyberbullied:

In SchoolAt Home
  • • Gets into trouble at school
  • • Shows unease at leaving for school or skips classes entirely
  • • Loses interest in academic or extracurricular performance
  • • Sudden drops in grades
  • • An abrupt changes in friends
  • • Suddenly stops using the computer or mobile devices
  • • No longer wants to participate in activities once enjoyed
  • • Becomes withdrawn or shy
  • • Shows signs of depression
  • • Changes eating or sleeping habits[3]

 

According to the experts at the NCPC[5], the most telling sign is a child’s sudden withdrawal from technology, whether it be from their cell phone or computer. If you’ve noticed this or any other signs of cyberbullying in your child, it may be time to reach out to them and express your concern. While you may not be able to prevent cyberbullying altogether, you can help limit your child’s exposure to it and provide the emotional support they may need to recuperate from its effects on their self-esteem.

Educators and school administrators can also help in the war on cyberbullying – to learn about potential policies and other actions teachers may want to take to prevent cyberbullying in schools, check out the next blog article in our Cyberbullying in the Millennial Era series.

[1] “What is Cyberbullying, Exactly?” StopCyberBullying.org. Retrieved from http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/what_is_cyberbullying_exactly.html on March 14, 2016.

[2] BullyingStatistics.org. Retrieved from http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/ on March 14, 2016.

[3] “Cyber Bullying Statistics.” BullyingStatistics.org. Retrieved from http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/cyber-bullying-statistics.html on March 14, 2016.

[4] “Cyberbullying: Spotting the Signs.” National Crime Prevention Council. Retrieved from https://www.ncpc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/NCPC_Cyberbullying-TipSheet-TipsForTeens.pdf on March 14, 2016.

[5] “Cyberbullying: Spotting the Signs.” National Crime Prevention Council. Retrieved from http://www.ncpc.org/topics/cyberbullying/cyberbullying-tip-sheets/NCPC%20Tip%20Sheet%20-%20Spotting%20The%20Signs.pdf on March 14, 2016.

What is Cyberbullying

Traditionally, bullying has been seen predominantly as an “in-person” behavior—that is, it occurs as a face-to-face interaction or confrontation between two or more individuals (a “bully” and a “victim”). In old movies, books, and TV shows, schoolyard bullies harass their victims in the hallways and threaten them on the playground.

But bullying is just as prevalent in other forms, such as social or indirect verbal bullying, both of which can occur in written or spoken form, but are typically conducted without the victim’s presence. For example, in Tina Fey’s 2004 movie Mean Girls, the bullies (in this case, a group of popular adolescent girls) use a “Burn Book” to gossip about and denigrate their fellow classmates.

In today’s age of technological advancement, just as with many other aspects of life, bullying has now migrated into the digital sphere. The advent and popularization of dozens of social media sites and apps, as well as the proliferation of mobile devices, has contributed to a recent and sudden spike in what is now collectively referred to as “cyberbullying.”

A Definition of Cyberbullying

So what is cyberbullying? The phenomenon is defined as “when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones.”[1]

Just as with traditional bullying, cyberbullying can be both addressed directly towards the victim, or behind the victim’s back. With over 80% of teens using a cell phone regularly, it is by and large the most common medium for cyberbullying.[2]

While cyberbullying can occur on mobile phones and tablets via texting, phone calls, and video calls, it is far more likely to occur on content platforms and sites reached through the internet. Cyberbullying can be found across a wide variety of sites, including social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; photo and image messaging services and apps such as Snapchat and WhatsApp; and anonymous community message boards such as Yik Yak, Whisper, and After School.

Cyberbullying Facts and Statistics

One of the biggest factors affecting the rise of cyberbullying is increased access to the web for preteens, teenagers, and young adults via personal mobile devices. The Pew Research Center reports that 92% of teens report going online at least once every day, while three quarters of surveyed teens (aged 13 to 17) own or have access to a smartphone.[3]

As adolescents are getting online more (and in a less supervised capacity), instances of cyberbullying are increasing as well. According to 2015 data from the Cyberbullying Research Center, nearly 35% of students reported that they had experienced some form of cyberbullying in their lifetime, while 16% admitted that they had cyberbullied others.[4]

Cyberbullying vs. Traditional Bullying

As its name suggests, the primary difference between what we consider traditional bullying and cyberbullying is that “cyberbullying is a form of interpersonal harassment that is conducted electronically.”[5]

But the differences go beyond simply the medium. What makes cyberbullying so drastically different (and perhaps more dangerous) is that it affords an added degree of anonymity to the attacker. Whereas, with other forms of bullying, the victim may know (or have an idea of) who is bullying them, the anonymous nature of the internet and many technologies allows bullies to better hide their identities behind their attacks. This makes both coping with and reporting cyberbullying much more difficult for the victim.

From the other end, this perceived online anonymity also allows attackers to psychologically distance themselves from both their actions and their victims. Without having to witness the impact of their actions and with a feeling of safety and obscurity, attackers are likely to feel less guilty and be more aggressive in their cyberbullying[6].

Our Cyberbullying Series

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be taking an in-depth look at cyberbullying, providing a wealth of information and research, as well as offering practical strategies for students, teachers, parents, and administrators, to help you combat cyberbullying in and out of school.

 

[1] “What is Cyberbullying, Exactly?” Retrieved from stopcyberbullying.org/what_is_cyberbullying_exactly.html on December 10, 2015.

[2]Connolly, Ciaran. “Facts About Cyber Bullying.” Retrieved from nobullying.com/facts-about-cyberbullying on December 14, 2015.

[3] Lenhart, Amanda. “Teens, Social Media and Technology Overview 2015.” April 9, 2015. Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/09/teens-social-media-technology-2015/ on December 14, 2015.

[4] Hinduja, Sameer and Patchin, Justin W. “2015 Cyberbullying Data.” May 1, 2015. Retrieved from cyberbullying.org/2015-data/ on December 10, 2015.

[5] “Differences between Cyberbullying and Traditional Bullying.” Gale Student Resources in Context. Detroit: Gale, 2013. Student Resources in Context. Web. Retrieved from http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/suic/ReferenceDetailsPage/DocumentToolsPortletWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&p=SUIC&action=2&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CEJ2181500310&source=Bookmark&u=groves&jsid=5e74052923277a97aa40482b4c0d4da3 on 14 Dec. 2015.

[6] “Differences between Cyberbullying and Traditional Bullying.” Gale Student Resources in Context. Detroit: Gale, 2013. Student Resources in Context. Web. Retrieved from http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/suic/ReferenceDetailsPage/DocumentToolsPortletWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&p=SUIC&action=2&catId=&documentId=GALE%7CEJ2181500310&source=Bookmark&u=groves&jsid=5e74052923277a97aa40482b4c0d4da3 on 14 Dec. 2015.

Cyberbullying in the Millennial Era: How to Handle Cyberbullying at Your School

In today’s technologically advanced society, cyberbullying is a critical issue that many schools and educational institutions are facing. As administrators, teachers, counselors, coaches, and staffers, you want to protect the students in your school, as well as the learning environment in which you work.

When approaching cyberbullying from an administrative perspective, it’s important to first understand the difficult predicament in which schools find themselves. In handling cyberbullying cases involving students, schools must walk a fine line between doing too much and not doing enough.[1]

For example, it is likely that a large portion, if not a majority, of cyberbullying occurs outside of the school. But if schools try to discipline their students for cyberbullying activities that occurred off school property and without school computers, they risk infringing on the students’ first amendment right to freedom of speech. At the opposite end of the spectrum, if cyberbullying cases are largely ignored or poorly handled, schools also risk severe backlash and legal complications.

So, although it’s certainly much easier said than done, the best course of action administrators can take is to seek out an acceptable middle ground for cyberbullying policies and management, accompanied with a healthy dose of education and awareness.

“‘It’s not something you can legislate or arrest your way out of,’ cautions Stephen Balkam, chief executive officer of the Family Online Safety Institute in Washington, D.C. ‘It’s always going to be a combination of tools, rules, and schools. The emphasis needs to be on creating a culture of responsibility online. Kids need to think about the content they create and post.’”[2]

While different cyberbullying policies and procedures will be necessarily dependent on the laws and precedents set for your particular state (and we strongly recommend that you consult your specific state’s laws before enacting any changes or taking any action), below are several strategic ways educators can approach the daunting task of how to deal with cyberbullying.

Cyberbullying Education & Awareness is a Critical First Step

The best way to begin combating cyberbullying is by recognizing it in the first place. Take steps to ensure that you and all applicable faculty and staff members in the school have a comprehensive knowledge base around cyberbullying. It may be helpful to hold a training program to help teachers and other faculty members learn how to deal with cyberbullying. Cyberbullying goes widely unreported (a National Crime Prevention Council study found that only about 25% of teens were likely to report cyberbullying to an adult[3]), so it’s critical that authority figures in the school environment are able to recognize signs and intervene if they suspect cyberbullying is occurring.

Along the same lines, cyberbullying, by definition, is a pervasive type of bullying that occurs entirely on electronic devices, predominantly mobile phones or tablets. So it’s critical to stay up to date on the latest app trends and popular sites that students in your school are using. It may seem like teens latch on to a new favorite app every day, thus making this undertaking daunting. But remember, you’ll never be able to truly confront the cyberbullying problem if you don’t understand the environment in which it is occurring.

Preventing Cyberbullying with Policies

Most schools already have pre-existing policies regarding bullying. It’s advisable to work to update your school’s bullying policy to include a comprehensive section on cyberbullying. The updated policy should include a clear definition of what cyberbullying is and how to report it, as well as language indicating that it is absolutely not tolerated within the school or using school electronics. A sampling of potential disciplinary measures can also be included, but since cyberbullying situations can vary wildly from case to case, there should be wiggle room to allow administrators to customize corrective actions on a per-case basis. The policy should also consider instances of cyberbullying that occur outside of school, but that have an impact inside. For example, if acts of cyberbullying occur after school or on the weekends, but the results have an impact on lunchroom behavior or classroom environments, a policy to address such should be in place.

As mentioned before, schools are in a difficult position when trying to monitor and discipline cyberbullying. Searching a student’s personal phone or computer has fourth amendment[4] implications, while trying to police student cyberbullying has potential first amendment[5] infringement dangers as well. Therefore, it is a good idea to have a lawyer look over your policies (and even help write them, if possible), to check for appropriate language and that your institution is not including anything that could potentially have constitutional or legal ramifications in the future.

Another one of the best ways schools can help stop cyberbullying is through effective reporting measures. Encourage students, parents, and teachers to report any and all instances of cyberbullying that they see or suspect. Because many cyberbullying witnesses or victims may fear retribution if they report bullies, you should establish, maintain, and publicize safe, anonymous ways for reporting, such as a dedicated e-mail address or forum, or even simply a box outside the counseling office.

How to Deal with Cyberbullying Victims & Bullies

After identifying a victim and a bully in a cyberbullying situation at your school, it’s important that your response is not solely focused on meting out punishment to the appropriate parties. While some measure of disciplinary action should be taken, it’s crucial to focus also on education and counseling, for both the bully and the victim.

Since cyber bullies are able to easily psychologically distance themselves from their actions, work with them to consider the impact that their actions have on others. Educating students about not only the effect that cyberbullying actions have, but also the legal consequences (e.g. charges of libel, cyberstalking, online harassment, sexual harassment, etc.) that can result from their actions, can serve as a very powerful deterrent.

For cyberbullying victims, ensure that they feel safe and heard, and work with their parents or guardians to provide them with any coping or counseling services they may need. A study from the Cyberbullying Research Center found that “cyberbullying victims were almost twice as likely to have attempted suicide compared to youth who had not experienced cyberbullying.”[6] Additionally, with cyberbullying, victims can just as easily become bullies and vice versa, perpetuating a vicious circle.

Conclusion: Proactive Schools are Key to Fighting Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is clearly a major issue in today’s world, and with the continued advancement of technologies, it isn’t a problem that will be going away any time soon. Thus, schools need to be proactive and intentional in their efforts to prevent, manage, and stop cyberbullying.

Disclaimer: This article should in no way be considered or construed as legal advice, or acted upon as such. The material is available for informational purposes only.

 

[1] Hoffman, Jan. “Online Bullies Pull Schools Into the Fray.” June 27, 2010. Retrieved from www.nytimes.com/2010/06/28/style/28bully.html on December 15, 2015.

[2]Adams, Caralee. “Cyberbullying: What Teachers and Schools Can Do.” Retrieved from www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/cyberbullying-what-teachers-and-schools-can-do on December 14, 2015.

[3] National Crime Prevention Council. “Teens and Cyberbullying: Executive Summary of a Report on Research” February 28, 2007. Retrieved from http://www.ncpc.org/resources/files/pdf/bullying/Teens%20and%20Cyberbullying%20Research%20Study.pdf on December 15, 2015.

[4] “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated…” Amendment IV to “The Constitution of the United States of America.” Retrieved from https://www.law.cornell.edu/constituion/fourth_amendment on December 14 2015.

[5] “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press…” Amendment I to “The Constitution of the United States of America.” Retrieved from https://www.law.cornell.edu/constituion/first_amendment on December 14 2015.

[6] Hinduja, Sameer and Patchin, Justin W. “Cyberbullying Research Summary: Cyberbullying and Suicide.” 2010. Retrieved from cyberbullying.org/cyberbullying_and_suicide_research_fact_sheet.pdf on December 11, 2015.

The Importance of Anonymous Surveys

In 2013, an Illinois teacher named John Dryden made headlines by informing his students that they did not have to fill out a school survey if they did not wish to, after noticing that the surveys had the students’ names printed on them. Dryden was reprimanded for doing this, even though there are a multitude of problems with surveys such as the one his students were given. For example, without anonymous surveys, schools can face any of the following issues:

  • •   Students will misrepresent themselves. By including names on a survey, students will fear consequences to their answers and fill out the questionnaire without disclosing true information about their behaviors inside and outside of school.
  • •   Data from the surveys will be skewed and therefore less effective. As a teacher or administrator, you may be very well aware of a drug or alcohol problem at your school, and you may have decided to conduct surveys to gather information and develop a plan of action. However, without an anonymous questionnaire, you students may be less than honest in their answers, and you could find it difficult to react to the problem to your best ability.
  • •   The school could attract negative publicity. As the Illinois school in the story above did, you might set off a small media firestorm, after which you’ll have to answer to reporters, faculty, school system administrators, and parents.
  • •   A multitude of legal issues could surface. As Dryden pointed out to his students that day, you are essentially taking away your students’ Fifth Amendment rights if you insinuate that they must complete a survey with their names printed on them.

Dryden’s story, which can be found in full here, illustrates the importance of anonymous surveys, for the benefit of the students and the school – especially when dealing with sensitive information. As Rainesford Alexandra at the Huffington Post explains, “Any student whose answers raised ‘red flags’ was sent to the school’s social workers and counselors.”

Had the school issued an anonymous questionnaire, they would have avoided negative media attention, and students would have been more likely to provide truthful answers without feeling betrayed by their school.

How to Ensure Anonymous Questionnaire Results

Using anonymous surveys is the best method to protect student identity at all times. To help ensure that your results are valid, we’ve included the following tips that will come in handy the next time you conduct a student survey:

  1. 1.   Include instructions notifying the students that they can choose not to complete the questionnaire without consequences.
  2. 2.   Provide schools with notification letters to distribute to parents allowing them to “opt-out” their child if they do not want them to participate in a survey.
  3. 3.   Instruct teachers not to move around the classroom and not to answer questions, except to say, “If there is something you do not understand or you feel uncomfortable answering, skip the question.”
  4. 4.   Make sure that no data can be used to identify individual students or teachers by always using at least 10 valid respondents. This guarantees that one cannot look at a data set and deduce who certain people are by race, gender, etc.
  5. 5.   When storing survey results and data online, keep it password-protected and maintain strict policies about authorized users of data.

The myriad of benefits to conducting a student questionnaire far outweigh any potential problems – but to avoid any mishaps, like skewed data or the ability to detect student identity, schools should utilize anonymous surveys whenever possible.

Know Thy Students: How to Engage Students in the Classroom

As an educator, you arguably have one of the most challenging jobs in the world: engaging your students in the classroom so you can teach them. Knowing how to engage students is critical to being an effective educator; if students aren’t engaged, they’re likely not learning[1]. The modern age doesn’t make it any easier, either. Teachers today can often face larger classroom sizes[2] and potentially shorter student attention spans[3]. Furthermore, many teaching methods that were successful 20 years ago may not be as effective[4] at engaging students today

For instance, the average 21st-century child has been exposed to technology since birth and thus may have a shorter attention span, but they may also have a more natural understanding of how to work a computer. Thus, incorporating technology in the classroom may be a way to help some children absorb more information. Some students, however, may prefer to learn out of a book, as it is more concrete to them than words on a screen. Educators, more than most, are well aware of the variety of methods through which students learn, but finding a way to engage a whole classroom of students is a real challenge.

According to the National Institutes of Health[5], our brains retain information by the process of learning in three types of memory: short-term, long-term, and working memory. Studies show[6] that engaging students by stimulating their curiosity and igniting their interest in the subject material is the most effective means of transferring information into their long-term memory. Get them interested, and you get them learning and retaining information more readily.

However, every student is different, and identifying the learning needs of each child is important. Not every student benefits from the same method of learning. Unfortunately, teachers generally do not have enough time to instruct each student on an individual level according to his or her singular needs. Therefore, discovering which methods of teaching will engage a classroom of students is one of the most crucial and difficult challenges an educator will need to overcome.

How Surveys Can Help You Engage Your Students

When teachers are faced with classrooms full of new students at the beginning of a term, how can they determine what will motivate them? With all of the possible variations in learning styles, educators need to ask questions to determine how to engage your students. But it’s also important to know which questions to ask, as well as how to quickly and accurately evaluate your students’ responses.

Thankfully, student surveys and questionnaires comprise research-based questions, which are tested and proven over time to produce the most informative data on engaging students. Plus, a high-quality student survey will provide valid and reliable information quickly, information that can be applied both on a school-wide scale and in individual classrooms, so teachers can get their students on track from the start.

In addition to the basics, like gender, ethnicity, and age, student surveys can provide the following information about your student body as a whole, and much more:

  • • Student-teacher relationships at school
  • • Information about students at home and in the community
  • • Teacher involvement
  • • Student alcohol, tobacco and other drug use
  • • Student mental health
  • • School climate
  • • Other student behaviors such as:
    • o Violence
    • o Bullying
    • o Absenteeism and suspension

 

Knowing these factors gives you an edge in determining how best to approach a lesson to stimulate your students’ interest in what you have to teach them. Studies show[7] that students who are engaged in their work are keener to learn, they try harder when challenged with something that they are encouraged to master, and they take delight in their accomplishments. As a teacher, knowing how to engage your students is crucial to ensuring that they retain subject material so that they can succeed in their courses and beyond. By using surveys periodically, you can determine not only how to begin a term’s lessons, but how to adjust and improve your teaching strategy at different points during the semester as well. Therefore, surveys could help make your job as an educator just a little bit easier.

[1] de Frondeville, Tristan. “How to Keep Kids Engaged in Class.” Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/classroom-student-participation-tips on March 7, 2016.

[2] Litvinov, Amanda. “Budget Cuts + Teacher Layoffs = Larger Class Sizes.” National Education Association. Retrieved by http://www.nea.org/home/35617.htm on March 7, 2016.

[3] Richtel, Matt. “Technology Changing How Students Learn, Teachers Say.” New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/01/education/technology-is-changing-how-students-learn-teachers-say.html?_r=4 on March 7, 2016.

[4] Bajak, Aleszu. “Lectures Aren’t Just Boring, They’re Ineffective, Too, Study Finds.” American Association for the Advancement of Science. Retrieved from http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2014/05/lectures-arent-just-boring-theyre-ineffective-too-study-finds on March 7, 2016.

[5] Cowan, Nelson. “What are the Differences between Long-Term, Short-Term, and Working Memory?” National Institutes of Health. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2657600/ on March 7, 2016.

[6] Bernard, Sara. “Science Shows Making Lessons Relevant Really Matters.” Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/neuroscience-brain-based-learning-relevance-improves-engagement on March 7, 2016.

[7] Collier, Laura. “Grabbing Students: Researchers have Identified Easy Ways to Boost Student Success by Increasing their Engagement in Learning.” American Psychological Association. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/monitor/2015/06/grabbing-students.aspx on March 7, 2016.

Defining and Creating a Positive School Climate

We all want the best for the students in our schools, and the greatest gift we can give them is a positive school climate in which they can learn, develop relationships, and discover their own identities as they grow older. However, it can be difficult to determine exactly what constitutes a positive learning environment as well as the most effective methods to achieve one.

David Osher, the Vice President of the American Institute of Research (which works to further the scientific community and literature in the social sciences), offered insight into creating a positive school climate in a 2013 testimony at the U.S. House of Representatives Education and Workforce Committee Hearing on “Protecting Students and Teachers: A Discussion on School Safety.” As you can read in detail in the official release , he clearly defines a successful learning environment as one in which:

  • •    Students can develop good social and emotional skills
  • •    Students feel physically and emotionally safe
  • •    Students are supported by and feel connected to their teachers
  • •    Students are engaged in lessons

 

Describing how to achieve a positive school climate, Osher continues, “[Safe and successful] schools do this by employing a three-tiered approach to social emotional learning, positive behavioral support, the support of student and family engagement, and addressing students’ academic and mental health needs.”

David offers further advice to schools that are trying to implement a positive learning environment in their school when he says, “Promotion and prevention are more effective, improve conditions for learning, and have less counterproductive or harmful side-effects than do suppression and punishment.”

If you’re hoping to achieve a positive school climate that meets the criteria offered by Osher, your first step should be collecting data to gauge the existing strengths and weaknesses of your school. Conducting school surveys can help educators like you gain an understanding of their current learning environment – including how it is perceived by students, faculty, and even parents.

A letter to ONDCP Director Michael Botticelli

August 12, 2014

The following is in response to an email sent out mid August 2014 about the 2015 ONDCP strategy.

 

Dear Mr. Botticelli,

Thank you for requesting feedback on the 2015 National Drug Control Strategy —  a sound and robust strategy grounded in research and projected outcomes necessary for a national effort. However, there is one glaring omission that I would like to bring to your attention: the rationing of drug prevention programming from federal agencies to our nation’s schools.

I use the term rationing because the shrinking and competitive nature of the funding is very selectively made available for school drug prevention efforts. Although the ONDCP 2014 Strategy Plan cites several examples of federal funding, much of this funding supports programs such as epidemiological workgroups, coalitions and other technical assistance programs and very often does not trickle down to the school level. When it does, the award process is so competitive that it naturally skews toward districts with the best grant writers and motivated personnel rather than those with the most problems that need to be addressed. . Much of the funding mentioned in the Strategy refers to national or state efforts in prevention that allow only a small percentage of schools to actually implement drug prevention programming.

Yet, our nation’s children and adolescents spend the largest percentage of their waking day in a school environment. In many cases, schools suffer from lack of funding to support staffing and programming that can affect change and make a difference in a youth’s life.

Title IV Safe and Drug Free schools funding, which expired in 2007, funded schools based on school enrollment. The funds were dedicated to prevention efforts, including program implementation and data collection to assess and improve performance. The elimination of this funding was gradual, from a high of $374,000,000 dispersed among all states to the final year of funding at $270,147,294.

Since 2007, we have seen attitudes change toward less perceived harmfulness of drugs, as cited in the Strategy and in our own data collected from hundreds of thousands of students across the nation. While perception of harm continues to decline, self-reported student drug use has slowly increased. While correlation is not causation, I cannot help but see the writing on the wall. Without consistent and fair funding to all schools for prevention efforts, all other efforts will be reactionary to preventable problems.

You say in your plan explicitly that, “Preventing drug use before it begins— particularly among young people— is the most cost-effective way to reduce drug use and its consequences. In fact, recent research has concluded that every dollar invested in school-based substance use prevention programs has the potential to save up to $18 in costs related to substance use disorders.”

With your own words in mind, I would recommend that you not only re-instate the Safe and Drug Free Schools funding but double it from the previous funding levels along with a fair and equitable system for dispersing the funds based on need and enrollment.

 

I would welcome a conversation with you about this possibility and would be happy to work on a Task Force to investigate the re-birth of the Safe and Drug Free Schools funding initiatives. Please reach me at jaygleaton@pridesurveys.com

 

Sincerely,
Jay Gleaton
CEO
Pride Surveys

The original email this is responding can be read below.

 

 

 

Your feedback requested for the 2015 National Drug Control Strategy

August 12, 2014

Dear Friends:

In July, the Administration released its science-based plan to reduce drug use and its consequences, founded on the latest research regarding the nature of substance use.  The 2014 National Drug Control Strategy (Strategy) is based on the scientific consensus that addiction is a disease of the brain that can be prevented, treated and from which people can recover, not a moral failure on the part of the individual.

The 2014 Strategy builds on the Administration’s record of drug policy reform by outlining a series of actions that will continue to expand health interventions and “smart on crime” alternatives proven to reduce drug use and its consequences in America.  It is the product of extensive dialogue and consultation with partners, policy makers, practitioners, and subject matter experts across the Nation and around the world.  This process of consultation led to a number of enhancements in the 2014 Strategy, including highlighting the series of actions currently underway to reduce the impact of the opioid epidemic in the United States.

As an important stakeholder and partner, thank you for your contributions to the Strategy and for the work you do every day to reduce drug use and its consequences.  We are beginning the development of the 2015 Strategy, and your input will be vital as we seek to continue the Administration’s record of drug policy reform.  Pleaseemail your comments directly to 2015Strategy@ondcp.eop.gov.  We would appreciate receiving your feedback no later than September 15, 2014. 

Thank you for your input and continued partnership.

                                                                        Sincerely,

                                                                        Michael P. Botticelli

                                                                       Acting Director

What Do Students Most Need To Engage Them During Lessons?

What Do Students Most Need To Engage Them During Lessons?

January 21, 2014

Your students are the beneficiaries of your knowledge, but how do you know how to communicate information to your students in a way that they will retain information. The problem all educators face is pupils have different ways of learning and it is the job of the teacher to find which methods engage their students the most.

Knowledge is stored in the memory by the process of learning, and psychologists now know our memories work in three stages; short term, long term and working memory. Test show that to transfer information into the long-term memory of a child you have to stimulate their curiosity and engage them in the subject.

One of your responsibilities as an educator is to determine how you can best engage each of your students so that they learn in class and retain the information for the exam. Another problem teacher´s face is identifying which method of learning is best for pupils when you only have them for short periods of time.

Engaging pupils

At the beginning of the term when you get a new classroom full of pupils, how do you know what will motivate them? Generations change, and teaching methods that were successful twenty years ago may not be as effective with a 21st century child who has been exposed to technology since birth. Children these days subsequently have shorter attention spans.

It would make your job a whole lot easier if you knew what engaged your pupils, together with replacing methods that are not proving effective. How do you interest the curiosity of a particular child, do they produce better results when they are allowed to be creative or do they need to follow guidelines?

Studies show that students that are engage in their work are keen to learn, try harder when challenged with something they cannot master and take delight in their accomplishments. As a teacher this is how you know which students are responding and which are not. But it can take time to gather this information.

Student surveys

In order to understand your students you need to know about them, their behavior outside of the classroom, gender, ethnicity, hopes, fears and attitudes – are they positive or negative. You may also want to know about the environment they are in, is it conducive to learning? Are there any other barriers to learning that may be affecting my students’ ability to learn in the classroom.

In order to determine this information you need to know which questions to ask. You need to be able to identify the needs of the students before you can address those needs and be better able to teach them.

To understand your students you need to analyze and evaluate, but to get it right takes time which you do not have. A good student/teacher survey has researched based questions that get straight to the root of the issue and will provide valid and reliable information quickly so you can get your students on track from the beginning.