Middle School Violence and Prevention Through Conflict Resolution and Peer Mediation

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Middle School Violence and Prevention Through
Conflict Resolution and Peer Mediation

• Stacey Britner
• EDUC 531
• Staff Development
• 12-12-05

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School Violence and CultureWhat are they?

• School Violence
• Guns ( 20 carry a gun)
• Bullying
• Physical force
• Violation of school rules
• Fighting
• Disrespect for authority figures
• Cutting class
• Theft (every 6 seconds of every school day)

• School Culture
• Obedience to school rules and regulations
• Honesty
• Hard work
• Respect for persons, property, and authority
• Integrity and responsibility for ones behavior

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Causes of Violence in Our Schools

• Patterns of student behavior
• Patterns of communication and relationships
• Polarization among student groups
• Institutional imbalances
• School/community connection
• Conditions in the community

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SomeStatistics
Crimes
Bullying
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How to remedy violence in schools

• Clearly define the schools mission and purpose.
• Honestly acknowledge the cultural and ethnic
  differences in the lifestyle, values, and beliefs
  that exist.
• Give teachers time and freedom to teach, and
  children the time and freedom to learnfreedom
  from fear, intimidation, bodily harm, murder, and
  rape.

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How to remedy violence in schools

• Establish orientation programs to teach schools
  culture as compulsory attendance for all
  students.
• Establish peer mediation teams and conflict
  resolution teams in schools.
• Establish a transition school for students who
  are disruptive elements in the regular school
  environment.
• Teachers and school personnel must be helped by
  the Central Office staff and personnel to be
  firmly in control of the schooling enterprise.

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What is Peer Mediation?

• One or more mediators handle each case.
• Trained mediators work with peers to find
  resolutions to conflicts.
• Both mediators and disputants benefit from the
  mediation training and conflict resolution
  process.

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What are the benefits of Peer Mediation?

• Students who are taught the skills of mediating
  disputes learn political skills which can be used
  beyond the classroom. Student mediators learn to
  listen effectively, summarize accurately, and
  think critically. Further, they develop skills
  on how to solve problems, to lead, to write, and
  to foster meaningful discussion among disputants.
  Disputants involved in mediation also learn many
  of these same lessons.
• Success rates of 58 to 93 have been achieved at
  various sites where success was measured by
  whether an agreement was reached and maintained
  at the time of a follow-up evaluation.

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What are the benefits of Peer Mediation?

• Students have reported using their mediation
  skills to resolve disputes at home with their
  siblings and in their community with peers.
• Peer mediators successfully resolved 86 of the
  conflicts mediated.
• There were fewer conflicts and physical fights on
  school grounds.
• Mediators mediation skills and self-esteem
  increased.
• Effective mediators focused disputants on the
  specific problems requiring mediation.

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Peace Makers

• 5 steps to teaching students about becoming
  peacemakers
• Learning what is and what is not a conflict.
• Negotiating integrative agreements to conflicts.
• Mediating classmates conflicts.
• Implementing the program.
• Receiving ongoing training.

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Peace Makers

• The training of these students resulted in more
  conflicts being solved than students who tried to
  solve the issues on their own without training.
• Using these skills academically also helped the
  students learn the material and be able to
  interpret the information in insightful ways.

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Programs that can be implemented in your school

• S.T.O.P. (Schools Teaching Options for Peace)
• Find information at this website
  httpwww.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2/conte
  nt_storage_01/0000000b/80/25/ab/1a.pdf
• Fighting Violence without Violence
• Find information at this website
  httpwww.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2/conte
  nt_storage_01/0000000b/80/27/30/64.pdf
• Safe School Resource Guide
• Find information at this website
  httpwww.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2/conte
  nt_storage_01/0000000b/80/26/18/ca.pdf

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Summary

• School violence is increasing
• Teachers need to help students resolve conflicts
  in a non-violent manner.
• Peer mediation, community involvement and parent
  awareness will also help decrease the amount of
  violence in schools.

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References

• Robert Fontenot. (1993). The Culture of School
  Violence. ERIC(ED369730). Retrieved from
  http//search.epnet.com/login.aspx?directtruedb
  ericanED369730.
• Naomi Baden. (1995). School Violence in Context.
  ERIC(ED428158). Retrieved from http//search.epnet
  .com/login.aspx?directtruedbericanED428158.
• National Center for Educational Statistics.
  (2003). Indicators of School Crime and Safety,
  2003. Retrieved from http//www.nces.ed.gov/pubs20
  04/crime03/.
• LeBoeuf, D., Delany-Shabazz, R. V. (1997).
  Conflict Resolution. Fact Sheet 55 (ED416301).
  Retrieved from ERIC http//search.epnet.com/login
  .aspx?directtruedbericanED416301.
• David Keller Trevaskis. (1994). Mediation in the
  schools (ED378108). Retrieved from
  http//search.epnet.com/login.aspx?directtruedb
  ericanED378108.
• Johnson, D. W., Johnson, R. T. (2001). Teaching
  students to become peacemakers A Meta-analysis
  (ED460178). Retrieved from http//search.epnet.com
  /login.aspx?directtruedbericanED460178.

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References

• Judith Eisler. (1994). Project Schools Teaching
  Options for Peace (STOP) Teen Mediation Project
  (ED380750). Retrieved from http//search.epnet.com
  /login.aspx?directtruedbericanED380750.
• Rowicki, M. A., Martin, W. C. (1994). Fighting
  Violence without Violence (ED385388). Retrieved
  from http//search.epnet.com/login.aspx?directtru
  edbericanED385388.
• Counseling and Student Services. (1994). Safe
  Schools Resource Guide (ED381718). Retrieved from
  http//search.epnet.com/login.aspx?directtruedb
  ericanED381718.
• Peter Coleman and Morton Deutsch. Cooperation,
  Conflict Resolution, and School Violence A
  Systems Approach. Choices Briefs Number 5
  (ED439198). Retrieved from http//www.eric.ed.gov/
  ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2/content_storage_01/0000000
  b/80/10/c4/16.pdf.