This article presents the results of an evaluation conducted by two middle school counselors, in collaboration with university researchers, to assess the effectiveness of a classroom intervention designed to impact academic achievement. The intervention utilized was a standardized conflict resolution curriculum, which then was linked to…

This article presents the results of an ethnographic case study of an Israeli Arab middle school whose staff and students are Arab Israelis from the Moslem, Druze, and Christian population sectors. Against the Israeli backdrop of multiculturalism, political tensions, and terrorism, this school has created a multi-faceted curriculum for teaching…

Youth violence is widely recognized as a critical social issue in the United States, and many approaches to prevention have been developed in recent years. Emerging research suggests that only approaches that are deeply embedded in cultural, community, and organizational contexts are likely to be powerful enough to have a meaningful collective…

This article explores how districts negotiate the conflict that emerges as they attempt to de-legitimize inequity by prompting institutional and organizational-level changes that create equitable access and outcomes for all children. To this end, this article highlights the contentious nature of this pursuit as well as the intended and unintended…

This essay provides interrelated principles for teaching and learning in times of heightened awareness of wars, disasters and human suffering. Purposeful teaching in times of crisis should occur both with children directly impacted by catastrophic events as well as with those less directly impacted. As a direct reflection of the author's most…

The purpose of this study was to examine age and gender differences in peer conflict, particularly in regards to conflict issues and resolution strategies reported by children and adolescents. Students from grades 4 and 8 (60 boys, 60 girls) were asked interview questions and given 3 hypothetical scenarios to respond to. Teacher and self-reports…

This article describes an anti-bullying program with young adult literature as its centerpiece that the authors created. It explores the nature of bullying and its emotional impact on the victims, focusing on its prevalence in schools, and then describes the comprehensive anti-bullying program instituted in grades 6 to 8 at Wood Oaks Junior High…

The relationship between bullying or harassment and LGBT youth is examined in this article. Recent research has exposed a relationship between gender-based and sexualized forms of violence and harassment in school, and it's been theorized that heterosexism-- the belief that heterosexuality is superior to other forms of sexuality -- is the…

In post-genocide Rwanda, education is being seen as a tool for development, reconstruction and reconciliation. This article explores three different ways in which international influence on the education agenda is being experienced, with particular focus on Rwanda as a post-conflict society. The three quite different dimensions and sources of…

Contact intervention programs are being used as the main vehicle to enhance positive relationships between conflict groups. Current research seeks to reveal the force driving processes that lead to positive contact between conflict groups, and points to the importance of emotional modification. Acknowledging the centrality of emotional…

Girls' bullying is more subtle and less physical than that perpetrated by boys; however, it can be just as powerful, and the emotional repercussions of bullying among girls can be more destructive and longer lasting than the effects of more obvious forms of bullying. Teachers report that quarrels between girls are far more time-consuming and…

"The principal is the instructional leader of the school" has been reiterated and restated repeatedly in the past 30 years. Theoretically this concept is the idea, however, the reality of building administrators' lives seldom leave appropriate time to plan, let alone implement reasonable curricular and building goals. When an administrator is new…

The Conflict Cycle model offers a practical strategy for understanding how mutual interactions can create timelines of stress, feeling, and thinking that can easily escalate into undesirable outcomes. This article applies this model to resolving conflicts which arise in family situations. (Contains 1 figure.)

The author presents three educational products for kids: (1) "Novel Perspectives" by Shelley Harwayne; (2) "Summarization in Any Subject--50 Techniques to Improve Student Learning" by Rick Wormelt; and (3) Voices Reading, the new comprehensive reading and character development program for Grades K-2 from Zaner-Bloser. "Novel Perspectives" carries…

When interventions with youth are not successful, it is easy to point fingers of blame. Professionals may see parents as uninvolved while parents feel unsupported. Such polarization leads to adversarial relationships that undermine parenting, education, and treatment. This article considers common defensive reactions of parents and professionals…