CRE Admins Blog
OJJDP To Host Restorative Justice Webinar
Posted by CR Ed on Jan 03, 12
On January 26, 2012, at 2 p.m. E.T., the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) will host the Webinar, Bricks and Mortar of Restorative Justice: Build to Withstand the Winds of Change.
The Webinar presenters will help participants understand how communities can use restorative justice practices in place of court processing and punitive disciplinary approaches to address juvenile offending. It will also discuss the roles of the victim, offender, and community in the restorative process; describe how to design and implement restorative practices in a variety of juvenile justice settings; and explain how offenders in restorative justice programs learn to become accountable for their actions.
Registration is available online.
Thank a Teacher Day on Nov 25th - StoryCorps Listens to Teachers
Posted by CR Ed on Nov 16, 11
The StoryCorps project is hosting a “Thank a Teacher” day on November 25th as part of the National Day of Listening. StoryCorps hopes to get citizen-led interviews of teachers in every state in the United States. Seems like a great project for young journalists and researchers and an opportunity for administrators to appreciate some of the great teachers they know.
U.S. Department of Education Invites Comments on School Bullying Law and Policy Plan
Posted by CR Ed on Jun 21, 11
The U.S. Department of Education has published a plan to conduct case studies at 24 school sites across the nation to analyze bullying laws and policies.
The study will identify promising strategies and practices schools use to combat bullying and will examine how state legislative requirements influence policies, including ways that state and district policies facilitate or create challenges for effective implementation.
Comments are due by August 1, 2011, and may be submitted electronically to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or mailed to the U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, LBJ, Washington, DC 20202–4537.
Senate is Briefed on Social-Emotional Learning as a Tool for Academic Success
Posted by CR Ed on Jun 13, 11
On May 12th a Senate briefing was held to inform members of the US Senate (as well as other policy influencers) on the issues of social, emotional and character development. The collaboration included members of The National Association of School Psychologists, The Committee for Children, The National School Climate Center and The Character Education Partnership. The briefing, entitled “Enhancing Conditions for Student Learning and Academic Achievement through Social, Emotional, and Character Development,” was led by Linda McKay, one of the Character Education Partnership’s Board of Director.
A helpful summary of the topics addressed is available on the School Climate Blog hosted by The National School Climate Center.
Pre-order 2011-2012 CRE Teacher Calendars
Posted by CR Ed on May 22, 11
The 3rd Edition of our popular wall calendar for teachers and youth workers is being developed now. Promote conflict resolution skills in your learning communities with the full-color 28-page wall calendar covering the school year (August 2011 through July 2012). Each month includes a full page of activities and educator tips to promote conflict resolution. The calendar’s date grid highlights significant holidays, conflict resolution events and peacemaker birthdays. CREducation.org also provides a pdf smartboard-friendly version with live web-links leading to additional information, videos and learning modules.
CRE CALENDAR PRE-ORDER OPPORTUNITY
This announcement flyer serves as your chance to help support conflict resolution in education, gift others in your organization, and promote your own related initiatives. A business card sized space is provided on the back cover of the calendar so donors can paste or stamp a label promoting your organization. Resale of this non-profit calendar is not permitted. Delivery of the print calendars is scheduled for the last week of July.
The cost for advance orders of the 28-page full-color calendars is as follows if you can commit by June 30, 2011.
$2.00 each (on pre-orders of 25 or fewer calendars);
$1.75 each (on pre-orders of 26-100);
$1.50 each (on pre-orders of 100+)
To get a better feel for the product, you can take a look at last year’s calendar online here.
New Editors Selected for 3rd Edition CRE Activity Calendar
Posted by CR Ed on May 09, 11
We are pleased to announce a new editorial team for the 3rd Edition of our popular Conflict Resolution Education Activity Calendar. Selected via a competitive application process, the 3rd Edition will be co-edited by Marina Piscolish (Hawaii, Mapping Change, LLC) and Kathy Wian (University of Delaware, Conflict Resolution Program) with support from Susan Young (Hawaii), Regina McCarthy (Pittsburgh, PA) and several others. The team will curate the content of the calendar, working with submissions from contributors (see submission form here) and newly developed content as needed. The theme for the 2011-2012 edition will include a focus on the relationship between conflict resolution practices and health and wellness.
Marina Piscolish was originally a secondary teacher of social studies, who later earned a doctorate in Education from University of Pittsburgh focused on critical democracy in school systems and in reform efforts. Upon moving to Delaware in 1993, she created the first CR Center at the University of Delaware, still in operation today. Originally called the Program on Conflict Resolution in Education, it later expanded to serve other sectors and dropped education from its title, while education remained a heavy focus of its work. Currently in private practice in Hawaii, Piscolish teaches Conflict Resolution for Educators at the University of Hawaii.
Kathy Wian is the Director of the Conflict Resolution Program (CRP) at the Institute for Public Administration at the University of Delaware. For the past 16 years, CRP has provided a variety of conflict resolution services to teachers, administrators, school boards, parents, advocates and students. They have conducted workshops focused on shared decision making, strategic change, peer mediation, conflict resolution, and collaborative meetings to name a few. CRP also manages Delaware’s statewide special education mediation program and the statewide IEP meeting facilitation program. More information on the Conflict Resolution Program that Wian directs is available online at http://www.ipa.udel.edu/crp/
Evidence-Based, Nonpunitive Alternatives To Zero Tolerance
Posted by CR Ed on Apr 21, 11
A March 2011 research brief by Child Trends entitled “Multiple Responses, Promising Results: Evidence-Based, Nonpunitive Alternatives To Zero Tolerance,” suggests that zero tolerance school discipline policies have not been proven effective by research and may have negative effects, making students more likely to drop out and less likely to graduate on time. Instead, the brief recommends the use of nonpunitive disciplinary action, such as behavior interventions, social skills classes, and character education.
The brief is free and available online.
The Term Bullying Has Little Resonance with Teens
Posted by CR Ed on Dec 09, 10
Danah Boyd has written a very insightful piece on how teens experience conflict and how the term “bullying” is not working well in terms of connecting with them. A case example is provided of two girls (Janiya and Precious) who have a conflict that is long-standing and unresolved. It is definitely worth reading. As she note in the concluding paragraph:
Combating bullying is not going to be easy, but it’s definitely not going to happen if we don’t dive deep in the mess that underpins it and surrounds it. Lectures by uncool old people like me aren’t going to make teens who are engaged in dramas think twice about what they’re doing. And, for that matter, using the term “bullying” is also not going to help at all either. We need interventions that focus on building empathy, identifying escalation, and techniques for stopping the cycles of abuse. We need to create environments where young people don’t get validated for negative attention and where they don’t see relationship drama as part of normal adult life. The issues here are systemic.
Interviews from CRETE Partners Meeting
Posted by CR Ed on Mar 17, 10
The higher education institutional partners working with the CRETE project met in Austin at St. Edwards University March 4-5, 2010. I interviewed some of the folks in attendance and put together a podcast episode that provides a window into some of the many ways the CRETE program is being implemented. You can listen to the Conflict Learning Audio podcast online here, or subscribe via iTunes.
No Name Calling Week 2010
Posted by CR Ed on Jan 27, 10
The seventh annual No Name-Calling Week (NNCW) is in full swing! Thousands of educators are leading their students through educational and creative activities aimed at ending name-calling, bullying and harassment in schools. If you haven’t already, it’s not too late to conduct NNCW activities in your school. Some simple ways to celebrate are developing an anti-name-calling classroom policy or screening a student-made anti-bullying video. For more tips and ideas, visit the NNCW Resources page.
Another way to participate in NNCW is to engage your students in creating artwork that they can enter into the Creative Expression Contest. This year’s Creative Expression Contest is divided into three categories:
· Primary School (Grades K - 5)
· Middle School (Grades 6 - 8)
· High School (Grades 9 - 12)
The deadline for submissions is Friday, February 26.
Over 5,000 NNCW fans are talking about name-calling and bullying on the NNCW Facebook page. Join the conversation on Facebook and talk with other educators participating in NNCW to share tips and ideas.
Visit http://www.nonamecallingweek.org to register for updates, download free lessons and planning tips, and learn more about this year’s Creative Expression Contest.
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