1. Depending on the words used, and the context, we would usually
start just by the teacher having a conversation with the word-user,
explaining why this might be hurtful, and how that is so not who we
are as a school. Being an all-girls school, we will often emphasize
connections, either the damaging of a connection or the missed
opportunity to build one. With repetition, or depending on the
seriousness of the offense, we might involve the advisor, Dean of
Students, parents, and eventually (with appropriate warning) perhaps
hold a formal disciplinary hearing with possible outcomes of probation
and/or suspension, some sort of mandatory counseling (to work through
personal issues and to work on dealing positively with people), and -
I suppose it could come to this - expulsion.
2. First, the kids do learn what's okay and what isn't, and they do
pass stuff on. I think I've only heard "That's so gay" once or twice
in the past three years. They know I will react to it and don't allow
it. Second, one of our core programs involves the school counselor
coming in to my Humanities 7 class once every two weeks to work
directly with the kids on friendships, relationships, handling
conflict, and other social skills. This helps us get them working
together in those early days when they still feel that "who will be my
friend?!" panic and before bullying cliques might start to form.
Through team meetings, all of us teachers know what they are working
on in terms of group social skills, and collaborate on strategies to
support them. If we need to institute special programs (e.g. we did
some LGBT work last year when we became aware some kids were adopting
a "All girls are into boys" attitude.), we know when to do so. Third,
our history is now working for us. Four years ago, we had a 7th grade
class which was dominated by bullies. By February, though, they all
had gotten so sick of it that they were ready to move on, and we found
ways to help them do so. The next year, when they were our 8th grade
leaders, we lucked into having a 7th grade class that came together
virtually instantly in a way that respected and even valued their
diversity. This has become the dominant culture of our school. It
takes awareness, work, honesty, and a general attitude of support and
helping kids work through their issues in a genuine way.
Take care,
Bill Ivey
Stoneleigh-Burnham School
On Sat, Apr 25, 2009 at 5:36 AM, Dean <only1djf@yahoo.com> wrote:
> 1) How have you approached the use of hurtful words IN SCHOOL from a disciplinary perspective? Please be as specific as possible.
> 2) What successes have you had in working with students around creating and sustaining a truly safe school environment?
[ For info on ISED-L see http://www.gds.org/ISED-L ]
Submissions to ISED-L are released under a creative commons, attribution, non-commercial, share-alike license.
RSS Feed, http://listserv.syr.edu/scripts/wa.exe?RSS&L=ISED-L
