Well-disciplined schools make appropriate school discipline a part of every curriculum, program, and practice. Key organizational variables include staff and community involvement, sensitivity to students' racial and socioeconomic concerns, and effective intervention strategies, such as the anger-management seminars, awareness discussion groups,…

Addresses youth violence and gangs and describes two initiatives that have effectively responded to gang-related problems. The development and characteristics of school crime and gang activity are discussed, including the political context that conditions intervention, and the proactive strategies that can reduce safety risks and provide better…

Schools are taking many different steps to prevent violence, among them improving relationships with students and building on the relationship with local law enforcement. A comprehensive strategy should definitely include a good crisis plan. All school personnel should know what the plan says as well as their roles in implementation. One sidebar…

Summarizes several articles on safety in the science laboratory, an article on the science and history of chocolate, and an article on teaching nuclear physics from an historical perspective. (WRM)

This article explores psychometric characteristics of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey (YRBS), one of the most widely used instruments to assess the prevalence of violent and other high-risk behaviors in secondary school settings. Response patterns were analyzed for a subset of 414 youths who indicated that they had carried a weapon to…

While politicians and the media have devoted a great deal of attention to the "problem" of school violence, classrooms teachers remain an underutilized source of information and inspiration about the frequency of school violence, its causes, its consequences, and appropriate interventions. In essence, teachers have been given little, if any,…

This article examines a number of areas of campus life where transgender students experience discrimination because of gender-exclusive policies and practices: health care, residence halls, bathrooms, locker rooms, records and documents, public inclusion, and programming, training, and support. The specific obstacles faced by transgender students…

Academic achievement and high test scores are not the only indicators of a successful school. A good school is also a safe school. Unfortunately, every year in the United States, approximately 3.7 million students suffer an injury at school severe enough to require medical attention or to limit activity. Most of the injuries are preventable. Data…

This article starts with a story of 14-year-old Robbie Kirkland who committed suicide after a four-year struggle to accept and find peace with his homosexuality. Robbie knew he was gay at age 10, told his family, and his family loved, accepted, and supported him. But that was not enough, because every day Robbie had to go to school and face the…

In this report, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) provides a summary of its FY 2005 accomplishments. Also, in recognition of the 25th anniversary, some of the significant cases that OCR has resolved over the years are highlighted. The last quarter century was eventful and challenging for OCR. Major U.S. Supreme Court decisions, such as "Grove…

In an effort to assess students' perceptions of victimization in their schools, as well as their schools' safety, over 1,900 students from elementary, middle, high, and alternative schools were administered a 154-item questionnaire. The responses on the items were used to establish the psychometric properties of 19 theoretically driven scales and…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducts the School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) periodically to monitor the extent to which school health policies and practices are addressing the leading causes of death, illness, and social problems among young people and adults. SHPPS 2006 assessed the characteristics of…

The United States has a higher child mortality rate than most other industrialized countries, but most childhood injuries, although called "accidents," are the result of predictable and preventable behavior. This book demonstrates how teachers, parents, and caregivers can provide and maintain safe environments while teaching children how to avoid…

This guidebook shows how schools can form partnerships with law-enforcement agencies and communities to develop a comprehensive safe-school plan. The planning guide is based on four principles: that safe schools are caring schools, are built through cooperative efforts of all stakeholders, communicate high standards, and stress prevention. This…

As part of a series of studies on the concerns and aspirations of American teachers, this report illustrates the concerns of teachers, students, and law enforcement officers about the increasing violence and fears of violence in U.S. schools. The survey is based on interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,000 teachers from grades 3…