This paper examines the use of corporal punishment in public schools. It presents a brief history of corporal-punishment practices and explains why corporal punishment remains a legal means of control in the schools of 23 states in the United States. Opponents of corporal punishment argue that it should be abolished from schools because it models…

This book provides a multicultural curriculum that can be used alone or as a supplemental program for language arts and social studies instruction in kindergarten through grade 6. It uses the pluralistic values of the students' heritages to develop their social and problem-solving abilities. Each of the 30 units contains quotations that exemplify…

Current research on school effectiveness concludes that differences among schools affect students' academic achievement. An important characteristic of effective schools is providing a safe and secure environment. An example of programs that address this issue are peer mediation or conflict resolution programs. These programs require the combined…

Young people need to learn and to use alternative dispute resolution skills at school as well as in their daily lives. Ways in which to instruct high school and middle school students in these skills are detailed in the leader's guide and accompanying video. In addition to demonstrating the mediation process, the video presents ideas and…

This paper consists of 13 chapters that describe a study of the effects of training in conflict resolution and cooperative learning in an alternative high school in New York City. Three of the school's four campuses participated, with Campus A receiving conflict resolution training, Campus C receiving cooperative and Campus B receiving training in…

Developed by teachers and staff developers and blending research with personal experience, this book offers more than 200 problem-solving strategies suitable for elementary, middle, and high school. It includes problem-solving and decision-making models, observation checklists, reflective logs, divided journals, social contracts, and graphic…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 32 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) the analysis of conversational sequencing in group systems; (2) the effects of hearing aids on interpersonal perceptions; (3) styles of communication between…

The purpose of this paper is to report on the development and validation of the Social Problem Situation Analysis Measure (SPSAM), a measure of the ways in which children understand and attempt to resolve problematic social situations. The SPSAM is an assessment procedure in which children are shown cards depicting sequences of unfolding action in…

Faced with increasing concerns of educators, parents, and students regarding the lack of school discipline, this study evaluated a social skills program to reduce inappropriate behavioral incidents in urban middle and rural high school students. Students' inappropriate behavior, such as talking back, not preparing for class or not participating in…

This action research project evaluated the impact of a program for enhancing interpersonal problem-solving skills on academic achievement in elementary students in an industrial, urban Illinois community. The lack of social skills and inability to think critically were documented through office referrals and teacher observations of kindergarten,…

Many children enter school demonstrating excessive aggressive and impulsive behaviors, causing classroom disruption and interpersonal conflict. This intervention was designed to help first graders achieve social competence through conflict resolution training, problem solving, and anger management techniques to reduce aggressive and impulsive…

This training manual provides materials for conducting a workshop on problem solving and creating good agreements in special education. The first section of the manual provides a brief introduction to the world of special education and discusses why special education law is complex. Section 2 explores why conflict is created, seven types of…

This action research project examined the effectiveness of a program to improve kindergartners' prosocial behaviors. Students' lack of social skills was documented by means of teacher and parent surveys, teacher anecdotal records, and behavioral observation checklists. The intervention had four components. The teacher directly taught social skills…

Examined effects of problem-solving training on acquisition of interpersonal problem-solving skills by kindergartners. Consisted of pretesting, training, and post-testing activities. Showed that problem-solving training was effective in helping children acquire interpersonal problem-solving skills, specifically an increase in solutions generated…

Describes efforts to apply the action-research process to design and evaluate a theory-based program of intervention to reduce and prevent youth violence in high-risk urban environments. Twelve objectives were developed to design and evaluate "Responding in Peaceful and Positive Ways," a violence-prevention curriculum for sixth graders.…