My latest book, The Violence Continuum: Creating a Safe School Climate, was released a few weeks ago and is the featured title on the publisher’s home page.
It is now available online at:
Blog Archives
Create a no competition zone
Posted by lizmanvell
Competition…
- For the teacher’s attention
- grades
- prizes
- approval
- To be first in line
- most popular
- richest
- prettiest
- coolest
…undermines the positive learning climate we need in our classrooms. We now realize the damage competition does if left unchecked and recent anti-bullying and safe school climate efforts require that we actively work to make school an emotionally, socially, and physically safe place for every child.
This is especially important when we look at the unique nature of a school. Children go to school to learn things they don’t know or cannot yet do. Progressing from not knowing to knowing is an incremental process that requires risk taking and tenacity, and makes students vulnerable. The classroom is not like an athletic field, where the players already have the requisite knowledge and skills to compete. Students are still in the process of learning and classroom competition does not build character or a strong work ethic. What does build good character is challenge and encouragement, realistic goals, and working hard to reach them – and all the while treating others with respect and compassion.
School, then, is inherently stressful.
Everything we do in our classroom, intentionally or without knowing, affects the stress level. Healthy classrooms thrive on cooperation, collaboration, and mutual support, which reduce this stress. In this climate, under the patient guidance of the teacher and community of respectful peers, students feel safe and can keep trying until they master the material or skill.
But the stress of the organized competition we sometimes use to motivate children and of the competition that happens when children vie for social status compound each other. Being compared to others and put on the spot to perform breed insecurity and can interfere with a student’s academic learning. We have learned that competition in the classroom leads to diminished, not increased, personal and group effort. Why? Because it substitutes extrinsic motivation for development of self-discipline and an internal desire to try hard and to do well. Students work only as hard and as long as it takes to reach the artificial goal, or, when they see they cannot win, they give up or act out. The competition establishes a pecking order, and students do not learn how to cooperate and help each other learn. Instead they become competitors and the climate of the classroom becomes more stressful and less conducive to learning.
This competition is harmful to school climate and our students because it…
- Puts children in a heightened emotional state of flight, fight or freeze.
- Causes fear and embarrassment.
- Labels students as good or bad at something.
- Leads to winners and losers.
- Defines an in and an out crowd.
- Creates a power imbalance.
- Leads to emotional and physical bullying.
- Fosters fear of failure and a tendency to give up.
- Is a constant reminder of self-defeating beliefs children may already have.
- Increases performance anxiety in highly driven students and those expected by themselves or others to be perfect.
Competition and rewards also reinforce existing social hierarchies where the more socially and academically adept get the bulk of the positive feedback, rewards, and sense of accomplishment. So, instead of a secure climate where all children feel safe and can learn, we get a climate that encourages…
- Cheating to win or come out on top
- Meanness to build social status
- Callous attitudes toward the success of our peers
- Reliance on extrinsic motivation
- Praise junkies who expect rewards for their efforts – verbal or tangible
And it damages instead of builds the critical personal connections, sense of community, and caring relationships students and teachers need.
What can teachers do to minimize competition?
- Create a classroom climate of respect and empathy where we always treat each other in a caring way.
- Refrain from comparing students or pitting them against one another, and from offering artificial rewards.
For example, teachers sometimes use competitive games, such as a spelling bee or Jeopardy-type activity, to teach or to review material for a test. We view competitive games as something students like, a break from the routine that adds a little excitement. But these games often fail to teach much, and, even worse, they are emotionally and socially counterproductive. While competition does get students’ adrenaline pumping, it also heightens emotions and causes discord that make it hard to calm down after the competition is over. And it is difficult to justify a spelling bee for instructional purposes when there are more effective and considerate ways to teach spelling than to make students spell words out loud in front of their classmates.
It is true that some children might enjoy spelling bees (usually the best spellers), but more find them just one more opportunity to fail…with an audience. And if not necessary, why use a teaching strategy that causes anxiety and taints the atmosphere?
Consider how you felt as a child and how you feel as an adult.
- Did you enjoy spelling bees?
- Would you like to participate in a spelling bee at a faculty meeting?
- How about math flash cards or a game of American history “Around the World” at a staff-development workshop?
What an eye-opener. If we think of it from this perspective, we might feel differently about competitive games that pit one child or a group of students against one another. The brain can’t learn if it is in an anxious, fearful state. And we don’t want to make our students feel uncomfortable.
Keeping these understandings of human nature in mind may motivate us to stop using spelling bees, races to read the most books, and rewards for test scores or good behavior that result in pride for some and feelings of failure and embarrassment for others. Unless, that is, the competitive activity…
- Is optional for self-selected students (no peer or teacher pressure),
- Is a fun activity for the participants,
- Does not waste instructional time,
- Teaches students to play fair and be gracious winners and losers.
Otherwise, let’s make schools a healthy, competition-free zone.
We have to fight to protect children’s rights
Posted by lizmanvell
The unfortunate reality is we need legal protections to stop discrimination of targeted groups.
Bullies target those they see as different, feel superior to, and feel power over, and every child has a right to be safe and to learn and prosper emotionally, psychologically, and socially. But history shows that we need to fight hard for human rights. Recent legislation by almost all states that compels schools to protect students from bullying acknowledges the power of legal remedies to bring about change. This is especially true in the case of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students who are bullied more than any other group and are not yet protected by civil rights legislation.
In my book, Story Power: Breathing Life Into History, I included a timeline of women’s rights to illustrate their journey. Progress was painfully slow until laws were finally enacted that gave women equal rights in all areas of their lives. If you ever doubted the value of legislation that protects targeted groups from discrimination, read through this timeline.
My Timeline of the History of Women’s Rights in America
Put yourself on the timeline and see where you fit in the legal evolution of women’s rights.
(This timeline is not all inclusive. There are many other milestones in women’s history.)
1776 Declaration of Independence claims all men are created equal.
1789 US Constitution ratified and goes into effect.
1848 1st Women’s Rights Convention held in Seneca Falls, New York.
1861 The American Civil War begins – fight for women’s rights put on hold.
1865 Civil War ends; Reconstruction begins.
1866 Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony form the American Equal Rights Association dedicated to the goal of universal suffrage.
1868 14th Amendment to the US Constitution gives all male citizens the right to vote.
1870 15th Amendment to the US Constitution says the right to vote shall not be denied or abridged on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. (Sex not included)
1878 The Woman Suffrage Amendment is first introduced in the US Congress: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.”
1893 New Zealand first country to give women right to vote.
1903 National Women’s Trade Union established for better working conditions.
1917 Russia gives women right to vote.
1919 My father is born.
1920 19th Amendment gives US women right to vote; National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) becomes the League of Women Voters.
1921 My mother is born.
1923 The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) first proposed to Congress.
1940-45 WWII Propaganda campaign to get women to work in typically male jobs.
1951 I’m born.
1956 Number of women in the work force up from 8.5 million in 1947 to almost 13 million.
1959 American Medical Association sanctions birth control for the first time.
1960 FDA approves “the pill.”
1963 President’s “Commission on Status of Women” finds women discriminated against in almost all aspects of US life.
1964 Title VII Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in employment by race or gender.
1970 Congress approves the Equal Rights Amendment, first step toward adoption.
1972 ERA sent to states for ratification.
Title IX becomes law: no one can be discriminated against based on their sex in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance.
1973 Rowe v. Wade – women’s right to choose abortion – upheld by US Supreme Court.
1977 My first child is born.
1976 Nebraska adopts the first law making it illegal for a husband to rape his wife.
1979 My second child is born.
1986 Supreme Court rules sexual harassment on the job is sex discrimination.
1992 American Association of University Women release their report, “How Schools Shortchange Girls.”
1993 Violence Against Women Act passes: acknowledges domestic violence and sexual assault as crimes.
2001 American Association of University Women releases “Beyond the ‘Gender Wars’: A conversation about girls, boys, and education.”
2009 Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act passed.
2012 Affordable Care Act requires insurance plans to include coverage for birth control without a co-pay.
GOP and Democratic platforms differ on contraception and abortion.
ERA not yet ratified by a three-fourths majority of US states.
Ban assault rifles in our society; teach non-violence in our homes and schools.
Posted by lizmanvell
It has been a while since I’ve posted a new blog. Everyday life happens, and sometimes what you think will be a simple, straightforward topic turns into a research project. (Look for a future post on the unhealthy art of sarcasm.)
But nothing gets everyone’s attention like a mass shooting of innocent people going about their everyday lives. The people of Colorado and the rest of the world are trying to wrap their heads around the mental and physical effort that went into a systematically, finely-calculated plan to kill people as they watched a movie.
On the “violence continuum” this is off the chart, an extraordinary, disturbing act by one individual. It shatters our sense of the safe haven– places where we can just be that we count on as being secure. Incidents of mass gun violence re-energize heated arguments about access to guns, a critical constitutional issue over which Americans constantly wrestle, often to little avail. But below is link that gives everyone a chance to come together and take positive action. No matter where we stand on Second Amendment rights, we should all be able to agree there is no place in our society for machines designed for no other purpose than to massacre. And while we work jointly to ban these assault weapons, we can work on fixing our culture of violence.
Fixing our culture of violence-one that is pervasive, not extraordinary – especially as we try to teach our children to choose peaceful ways of living, is lost in the blurring immediacy of a deadly tragedy. We call the incident senseless, but is it any more senseless than a child being taunted for the way she looks, or being excluded from the group because she is poor or has special learning needs, or being harassed and assaulted for being gay? From one end of the violence continuum to the other, it is all senseless, and physically and emotionally scarring. This everyday violence is where we need to focus. We have remarkable control over our homes and schools. We create the climate and culture that define what is right and wrong. We can make sure these are safe havens where adults model and children practice peaceful, respectful, and compassionate ways to treat each other.
Sure, make a commitment to ban assault rifles in our society, but also make a commitment to consistently model, teach, and expect non-violence in our schools and homes.
“President Obama and Governor Romney: Issue a joint call asking Congress to reinstate the expired federal assault weapons ban now.”
and also
“Stop Bullying!”
McInerney murder retrial avoided
Posted by lizmanvell
Calif. teen pleads guilty to 2nd-degree murder in killing of gay classmate, faces 21-year term
Last summer the jury was unable to agree on a conviction of first degree murder or involuntary manslaughter in the case of Brandon McInerney’s killing of classmate Larry King. Both were Oxnard, CA middle school students at the time of the shooting and of contention was the decision to try Brandon as an adult. Brandon was ready to be retried, again as an adult, when today the Ventura County Chief Deputy District Attorney announced Brandon had agreed to a plea bargain that will avoid the ordeal of a second trial. I could hear the collective sigh of relief from the people of Ventura County.
If there is any good to come from this tragedy it is that minds are more open to the realities of school life, that harassment of gay students is all too common, and that school staff and students are better prepared to intervene to stop the emotional violence of teasing, taunting, and name-calling before it escalates into overt physical violence.
For more information on this case, read my 8/28/10, 8/30/10 , 9/2/10, and 10/11/10 posts and search the McInerney murder case.
New release date for The Violence Continuum
Posted by lizmanvell
My new book, The Violence Continuum: Creating a Safe School Climate, is now set for a December (not November) release.
I’ve seen the cover and love the way it illustrates the concept that violence is behavior that hurts others and also an abuse of power, and that it can be subtle or obvious, physical or emotional. What our children face in school is skewed toward the subtle end to the mid-point of the continuum, and the damage is serious whatever form it takes.
True grit: personal and social responsibility
Posted by lizmanvell
What if the Secret to Success Is Failure?” a 9/14/11 New York Times article by Paul Tough
In my recent three-part blog I focused on the “good ideas” this article presented for building moral and performance character and the missteps the two profiled schools made trying to put the good ideas into practice. The lack of understanding of child development and motivation so captured my attention, I never really addressed the meaning of the title.
The secret to success is failure.
How can opposites like success and failure be co-dependent? The author is channeling the message of the Friedrich Nietzsche quote, That which does not kill us makes us stronger, and the still familiar 19th century axiom, If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, again. Human development, including academic learning, is by nature a succession of trial and error. The reality is that success in life depends on our ability to cope with and triumph over adversity. Life is full of adversity and grit is the foundation of resilience.
So why do some children…
- Willingly put forth the effort to learn, while others balk at tough challenges and hard work?
- Believe they can do whatever they are asked to do, while others lack confidence in their chances of success?
- Take risks and rally from setbacks, while others become discouraged and give up?
The answer lies in how much grit they have developed from their life experiences, a combination of moral and performance character strengths that include:
- A sense of personal and social responsibility
- Courage
- Integrity
- Tenacity
- Self-discipline
- Self-reliance
- Efficacy and
- Intrinsic motivation
These character strengths develop in the normal course of daily life as we set goals and overcome obstacles, unless…
- Children are given everything they need, and they are protected from the character-building challenges of life.
- We allow mediocre effort and accept mediocre outcomes.
- Children are so emotionally, socially, or physically impoverished that the obstacles they face are monumental, and the supports that would help them prevail are absent.
In each of these three situations, schools can and should teach grit by:
- Creating a healthy, non-violent school climate that feels safe, where students can take the risks needed to learn without fear of ridicule or shame.
- Committing to a dignity-preserving discipline approach where students know clearly what we expect of them, and are consistently held responsible for their choices, and for fixing any problems they cause.
- Intentionally teaching the qualities of grit through the curriculum, and high expectations and nurturing guidance.
- Considering the context of students’ lives, their assets and stresses, and building from where they are in their moral development.
- Providing experiences that foster students’ sense of efficacy – their belief that through their personal resources, hard work and tenacity, and the support of caring adults, they can prevail.
- Modeling grit and other character strengths in everything we do.
Personal and Social Responsibility
This determination and sense of responsibility helps us reach our life goals, goals that hopefully benefit us personally and foster the common good. Because grit without a moral foundation is dangerous. Our grit needs to be driven by a pro-social belief system that respects the inherent human rights of all people, acknowledges the interdependence of members of a community, and motivates us to make constructive contributions to our school, our family, and society.
Does being gay mean being bullied?
Posted by lizmanvell
Odds are it does. Students are more likely to be bullied if they are seen as different in a negative way. It could be their race or ethnicity, size or weight, lack of social skills or athletic ability, or their special education needs – just about any characteristic that sets a student apart makes them a target for those who bully.
But the group most widely targeted for emotional and physical violence are students who are, or who are perceived as being, lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, or transgender (LGBT). When a federally protected group such as this is bullied it becomes the more serious charge of harassment, hate driven behavior that infringes on the group’s civil rights.
Consider this grim statistic:
90% of the 7,261 middle and high school lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, and transgender students surveyed reported experiencing harassment at school in the past year. (Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network Survey 2009)
Do you know what school life is really like for your LGBT students? How aware are staff and parents of the issues surrounding the harassment of LGBT students? Could this statistic, and the many others that support the prevalence of harassment, apply to the way your students are treated on the buses, in your halls, gyms, cafeterias, bathrooms, locker rooms, and classrooms?
Why not ask the adults and students in your school community? Surveys designed to measure the state of the climate of the school, especially those online, can be completed anonymously. A good place to start looking is at Stopbullying.gov where you can browse 33 assessment scales that measure bullying, victimization, perpetration, and by-stander experiences.
Another way to analyze the factors affecting how a certain group of students is treated in your school is to ask a group of teachers, parents, and students to complete a force field analysis like the one below. This process allows you to take a thoughtful and honest look at the climate and culture of your school to identify what is helping and what is hindering reaching your goal:
“We treat all students with respect and concern regardless of their sexual identity.”
Use a simple T-Chart to brainstorm
Forces PROMOTING Our Success Forces PREVENTING Our Success
With the information you gathered from surveys and from the force field analysis, you have a good idea what school feels like to your LGBT students. And most importantly, you now know what you must do – intentionally and systematically – to make your school a violence-free and positive experience for all of your students.
Posted in Ideas to try, Perspectives
Tags: bullying, civil rights, forces at work, gay-bashing, harassment, hate, LGBT
Some Numbers to Think About
Posted by lizmanvell
This following sampling of safe school climate statistics paints an interesting picture of what violence in our schools really looks like.
What does this information tell you?
How can you apply it to your everyday life as a teacher?
- 628,200 students ages 12-18 were victims of violent crime at school in 2005. (CDC 2008)
- 90% of teachers surveyed felt it was their job to intervene when they witnessed bullying. (NEA 2010)
- 76% of Americans say they have trust and confidence in public school teachers. (PDK/Gallup 2010)
-
55% of students said schools needed to increase teachers’ trustworthiness to improve student-teacher relationships. (NYCSS 2004)
-
39 % of middle schools reported student bullying occurred at school daily or at least once a week compared to 20% for primary and high schools. (U.S. DOE 2011)
- 160,000 students go home early on any given day for fear of being bullied. (CDC 2008)
-
29% of students in 6th-12th grade said they had the social competence to plan and make decisions. (Search 2002)
- 90% of the 7,261 middle and high school lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, and transgender students surveyed reported experiencing harassment at school in the past year. (GLSEN 2009)
- < 2% of homicides and suicides among 5-18 year-olds occurred at school. (NCES 2009)
- 0% difference between the number of public and private school students ages 12-18 who reported being bullied at school. (NCES 2011)
Resources:
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN)
National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES)
National Education Association Nationwide Study of Bullying (NEA)
New York Center for School Safety (NYCSS)
Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Annual Poll (PDK) of the Public’s Attitudes Toward Public Schools (PDK/Gallup)
Search Institute
US Department of Education (USDOE)
Start the year with a promise.
Posted by lizmanvell
Make a promise to yourself and your students.
Start off the year with a commitment to setting a positive school climate. Make it a part of your first day activities and integrate it into everything you do all year. Then consistently model what you expect from your students in all that you say and do.
At any grade level you can show students you care about them as individuals and as a group by sharing who you are as a person and asking them to share with you. Tell them what is important to you and what you appreciate and enjoy about teaching. Find out what is important to them in their personal lives and in school.
Talk about the roles students play in acts of bullying and explain the difference between tattling and reporting a genuine concern they might have about themselves or something they see happening to another student. Let them know they can come to you if someone or something is bothering them, including cyber-bullying.
In the elementary grades invest time in the first week to establish a positive classroom climate: brainstorm what it takes to get along and to be able to learn, and then develop the classroom rules together; write a simple code of conduct and have the students bring it home to share with their parents and guardians; give students the chance to share who they are through a personality box (*see below); create a violence continuum together that highlights the more subtle things children their age do to hurt each other.
In middle school, on the first day of class, take time with each section you teach to stress what you expect from them. Ask them what they expect from you, too. Create a violence continuum and deal with the issues of bullying and harassment right away. Make it clear that you care about each of them, and that you will never tolerate them hurting each other emotionally or physically. Remind them that you are there if they need to talk.
In high school take time to establish your expectations for the year in each class and work to develop a rapport with your students. Have the students complete a violence continuum and define what a positive classroom climate looks like. Emphasize treating each other with care and respect – both you and your students. Tell them that no one should be the target of hurtful behavior, and that they can come to you with any problem or question, and you will take it seriously. Address hazing, provide cyber-bullying prevention tips, and state your policy about the use of social media in your classroom.
School administrators can apply these approaches when they communicate their expectations for positive social behavior and peaceful solutions to conflict to their students, staff, and families. They should model what they expect as they interact with students in general and with those who are having problems, and with parents and staff.
What you do that first day will set the tone for the year and your follow through will establish a positive, safe classroom and school climate, and make school a better place for you and your students.
* A personality box is a collection of items that represent who you are as a unique individual. Students and their teachers fill a paper bag or shoe box (provide them in case students do not have access to one at home) with items that show what they like to do and what is important to them. Then each gets the opportunity to share the collection with an appreciative audience – their teacher and classmates! Before sharing, teach proper audience behavior by asking students how they would like to be treated when it is their turn to present. This activity is especially beneficial to those children who are at the fringe of the classroom or school social structure; it is harder to victimize someone we know about and see as a real person with feelings. Personality boxes and similar activities go a long way in helping you set the emotionally and physically safe classroom climate your children deserve.
Posted in Ideas to try, Perspectives
Tags: building trust, bullying, new school year, violence continuum
SCHOOL CLIMATE 