Field Reports
Lessons from the Field: Balancing Comprehensiveness and Feasibility in Peer Mediation Programs
Posted by CR Ed on Jun 18, 11
This recent qualitative dissertation project by Maura Dillon provides ideas about how to create peer mediation programs that are both realistic and maximally beneficial. The research involved reviewing recommendations made in the professional literature for creating successful programs and soliciting practical perspectives on these recommendations by interviewing five middle school counselors currently coordinating peer mediation programs.
Lessons from the Field: Balancing Comprehensiveness and Feasibility in Peer Mediation Programs
Interactive Timeline of CREducation.org Website Highlights
Posted by CR Ed on May 09, 11
As part of our website summary report for our FIPSE subcontract we developed a quick online timeline of some of the project highlights from the past 3 years.
New Research Publications from Australia’s Values Education Initiatives
Posted by CR Ed on Jul 11, 09
Australia has been a leader in developing system-wide values education initiatives since the release of the National Framework for Values Education in Australian Schools in 2005. Many of these projects have been studied and the research reports are now becoming available. Some recently released items that may be of interest to CRE Researchers are noted below.
The Values Education Good Practice Schools Project – Stage 2 Final Report (Link to PDF)
At the Heart of What We Do: Values Education at the Centre of Schooling – The Final Report of the Values Education Good Practice Schools Project – Stage 2 outlines the learnings and outcomes of twenty-five school clusters from around Australia that were funded by the Australian Government to design, implement and evaluate quality projects in values education which reflected and utilised the National Framework for Values Education in Australian Schools in local contexts.
Bezzina, Associate Professor Michael, Butcher, Professor Jude, ‘Promoting Interfaith and Intercultural Understanding in School Settings: Review of the Pilot Project’ (Link to PDF), produced for the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) by the Flagship for Creative and Authentic Leadership and the Institute for Advancing Community Engagement of the Australian Catholic University, 2008.
This mid-term review of the pilot program: Promoting Interfaith and Intercultural Understanding in School Settings (IIU) was carried out in the second year of the pilot which was conducted by Erebus International for DEEWR. The review concludes that the pilot has been successful in its own right, and in terms of the learning it has generated for the future. It documents significant shifts in people’s understandings and attitudes in the area of IIU and in the capacities of their schools. Recommendations are presented for the continued implementation of IIU.
Lovat, Professor Terence, Toomey, Professor Ron, Dally, Dr Kerry, Clement, Dr Neville, ‘Project to Test and Measure the Impact of Values Education on Student Effects and School Ambience’, (Link to PDF). Final Report for the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) by the University of Newcastle, 2009.
The study aimed to provide quantifiable and defensible data about links between values education practices and quality teaching outcomes. The research built on previous work, the Australian Council of Deans of Education Values Education Partnerships Project, in order to elaborate and strengthen, in an empirical sense, the findings of this study that argued that values education and quality teaching are closely linked. Its sites and case studies were drawn principally from schools that had engaged in the DEEWR-funded project, Values Education Good Practice Schools Project—Stage 2 (DEEWR, 2008). The research reviews and reports on how the explicit teaching of values impacted on a number of areas in school education. The research provides empirical evidence that values education had a positive impact on developing student-teacher relationships and improving school and classroom ambience, which led to more settled and productive classrooms. The report also documents the positive impact that values education can have on student and teacher wellbeing.
‘Values and Other Issues in the Education of Young Australians: A study among parents with children at non-government schools’, (Link to PDF). A paper prepared for the Australian Parents Council and the former Department of Education, Science and Training, 2008.
The objective of this study was to explore attitudes to a range of issues among parents with children in non-government schools across Australia. The main focus of the study was on their perspectives on values education, the values parents wished to see inculcated in their children, and the role they expected school to play in that process. In addition to this, the study explored parents’ attitudes to choice of school, the concept of family–school partnerships, and school funding. The study found parents considered the Nine Values for Australian Schooling list to cover all the important values that young people should learn. It also found that when parents choose a primary school it is often based on religious and cultural affiliations and the school’s capacity to offer the right balance between academic standards and personal development, whereas parents choosing a secondary school are more likely to put the right balance between academic achievement and personal development at the top of the list.
School Program Evaluation Reports from Armenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina
Posted by CR Ed on Apr 12, 09
These reports are cued up for entry into our resources catalog, but I wanted to mention them here for researchers interested in the implementation of school-based conflict resolution and peace education work in divided societies like Bosnia and Herzegovina or Armenia. Thanks go out to Carolyne Ashton for sharing these reports!
Armenian Life Skills Curriculum Integration Evaluation Report (doc format)
Armenian Life Skills Curriculum Integration Evaluation Report (pdf format)
Evaluation Report on OSCE’s Efforts to Unify the Gymnasium Mostar (doc format)
Evaluation Report on OSCE’s Efforts to Unify the Gymnasium Mostar (pdf format)
Who Leaves (Teaching) and Why
Posted by CR Ed on Jan 31, 09
Rethinking Schools magazine has started a new series exploring ideas for retaining teachers (see Teachings Revolving Door for more details on the problem). As part of this series they report on some research exploring Who Leaves and Why. The results might interest our readers.
Conference Session Going Well
Posted by CR Ed on Jan 16, 09
Today we are discussing tools needed for benchmarking CRE work. Seems like a job for researchers, don’t you agree?
Research on Truancy Mediation Program
Posted by CR Ed on Dec 14, 08
Recognizing that truancy is a significant predictor of juvenile delinquent behavior and long-term economic hardship, the Truancy Prevention through Mediation Program (TPMP) intervenes with elementary, middle school, and high school students and their families who display a pattern of absenteeism. The program targets students, who during the school year, experience a minimum of 10 absences. A five year evaluation conducted by an independent evaluator confirms that the majority of TPMP students significantly improve their attendance rates as a result of intervention (OCDRCM, 1999-2004).
Although the Truancy Prevention through Mediation Program (TPMP) has consistently demonstrated positive results in the effort to combat truancy, absent from these evaluations has been an examination of the impact of the program on the academic performance and behavior of the children whose families participate in the program. To fill this void, the Ohio Commission on Dispute Resolution and the Supreme Court of Ohio collaborated to commission an independent evaluation to ascertain answers to these questions. You can read the full report here: Evaluation of the Truancy Prevention through Mediation Program (Ohio) (pdf).
2008 Meta-Analysis of SEL Programs
Posted by CR Ed on Nov 06, 08
Some of the most compelling information supporting Social Emotional Learning (SEL) comes from findings of the largest, most scientifically rigorous review of research ever done on interventions that promote children’s social and emotional development. This review of more than 700 studies published through 2007 included school, family, and community interventions designed to promote social and emotional skills in children and adolescents between the ages of 5 and 18. This large sample of studies was divided into three main areas: studies about (a) school-based interventions, (b) after-school programs, and (c) programs for families. Results of the school-based research, which included 207 studies of programs involving 288,000 students, is of key relevance here.
In this meta-analysis (study of studies), researchers used statistical techniques to summarize the findings across all the studies and found a broad range of benefits for students:
9% decrease in conduct problems, such as classroom misbehavior and aggression
10% decrease in emotional distress, such as anxiety and depression
9% improvement in attitudes about self, others, and school
23% improvement in social and emotional skills
11% improvement in achievement test scores
More information on the research results is available in a CASEL briefing paper and as an archived teleconference.
Workshop Slides from International CRE/PE Research Project
Posted by CR Ed on Apr 27, 08
Researchers may want to keep an eye on the efforts of a team seeking to document the use of conflict resolution education around the globe. This meeting presentation goes over the project details.
Survey of NYC Schools Conflict Resolution Service Providers
Posted by CR Ed on Mar 05, 08
To better evaluate the degree of institutional support for conflict resolution and social/emotional programming in New York City schools, the NYC Office of the Public Advocate and the National Center for Schools and Communities (NCSC) at Fordham University surveyed non-profit providers of conflict resolution education about their contribution to city public schools; the effect of DOE school safety and discipline policies on the services they provide; and their overall experiences working in New York City public schools. The full report is available online as a pdf.
The survey questions assessed the day-to-day experiences and opinions of staff at organizations providing conflict resolution and social/emotional programming in New York City public schools. The survey was emailed to 55 organizations and was available online at the NCSC website. Forty-three responses were returned from 35 different organizations. The 35 different organizations work with a total of approximately 55,000 students annually.
The survey resulted in the following findings:
· 85 percent of providers of conflict resolution and social/emotional programming in middle schools do not agree that DOE school discipline policies adequately address the social/emotional needs of the students;
· 85 percent of providers to middle schools do not agree that DOE school safety policies effectively address the root causes of violence and disruptive behavior.
· 86 percent of providers to high schools do not agree that the current DOE school discipline policies are sustainable in promoting long-term results in dealing with violent and disruptive students.
This report offers the following recommendations, among others, to improve the provision of conflict resolution and social/emotional programming in New York City schools and thereby improve student safety and achievement:
· Create a central Conflict Resolution and Social/Emotional Programs Office
· Establish a Conflict Advisor/Counselor Position in Select Schools
· Establish a School Safety Planning Committee
This report was prompted by the findings of a February 2007 Public Advocate report entitled “Between Policy and Reality: School Administrators Critical of Department of Education School Safety Policy.” The findings of the report, which were based on a survey of school administrators, suggest that the DOE is not doing enough to ensure that conflict resolution training and services are supported in city schools. Read more about it in our CRE Administrator’s Blog.
CRE Research Blog
Recent CRE Blog Posts
Site News & Events
New in the Catalog
CRE Allies Links
Here's a random selection of links to projects doing important work.
United Nations Cyberschoolbus Peace Education Resources
