Kentucky TeacherKentucky Teacher

What do marbles, bluegrass mu-sic and transparent pie have in com-mon? All are Kentucky community tra-ditions to be featured at the secondannual Festival of Kentucky Folklife,scheduled for Sept. 17-20 in Frankfort.

The festival will again offer twodays of special activities free of chargeto students and teachers. OnT h u r s d a y ,Sept. 17, andFriday, Sept.18, studentscan celebratethe state’s di-verse occupa-tional, ethnicand family tra-ditions. Teach-ers can connecttheir students’experiences to Kentucky’s core contentand academic expectations such as2.16, 2.17, 2.20 and others.

At this year’s festival, sponsored bythe Kentucky Historical Society and theKentucky Arts Council, students willhave opportunities to experience awide range of activities:

• Listen to the sounds of Kentuckythroughout the day at two music stageshighlighting 16 traditional musicalstyles such as bluegrass, blues, coun-try and gospel.

• Learn from conversations withartists at the Narrative Stage. Hear thestories of riverboat captains and com-mercial fishermen, or ask a blues mu-sician who inspired him to play.

• Taste Kentucky barbecue, chickendinners, fish and transparent pie soldby the food vendors. Sample otherdelights at the Foodways Stage, wherecooks talk about their family recipesand show how to prepare them.

• Stroll through the Art in Every-day Life Area and discover the manytechniques for creating commonlyused objects.

• Learn about the arts of peoplewho arrived in Kentucky during thestate’s more recent history; see whattraditions they brought along to make

Kentucky seemmore like home tothem.

• In the RiverArea, watch river-boat captains throwlines, boat build-ers build tradi-tional fishing

Festival Invites School Groupsto Explore Kentucky Traditions

boats, and other occupational groupsdemonstrate their work.

• Share games, songs and storieswith your class as you participate inthe hands-on activities in the FamilyTent.

To request a festival registrationform, call the Kentucky FolklifeProgram at (502) 564-0472 or e-mailyour name and address toloisjoy.ward@mail.state.ky.us. Com-plete the form and return it promptlyby mail. School groups will be regis-tered on a first-come, first-served ba-sis. To be fair to all schools, festivalcoordinators cannot accept registra-tion by telephone or e-mail.

Department Web Site

Links to Free Software Reviews

Finding effective, high-qual-ity electronic resources can betime consuming and challenging,especially when you cannot pre-view the material before buying.The Department of Education’sWebsite makes the selection pro-cess easier by linking toEvaluTech, a materials review ser-vice.

EvaluTech features a search-able database of software, booksand videotapes recommended forprimary through 12th grade.Trained educators have reviewedthe materials using consistentevaluation criteria similar to thoseon Kentucky’s electronic instruc-tional materials evaluation form.

Many resource review sitescharge access fees, some of whichare high. The Kentucky Depart-ment of Education and its coun-terparts in 13 other states providefunding to the Southern RegionalEducation Board (SREB) to sup-port free access to EvaluTech.SREB members are eligible fortraining in the use of the onlinedatabase.

To find EvaluTech plusKentucky’s materials evaluationform, go to the Department ofEducation site (www.kde.state.ky.us); click on Technology, thenInstruction, then Electronic In-structional Materials. To get toEvaluTech directly, go towww.evalutech.sreb.org.

For more information, contactJackie White, information re-sources consultant in the Officeof Education Technology, atjwhite@kde.state.ky.us or (502)564-7168.

Students watch as Suhas Bhapkar demonstrates rangoli (the art of creatingdesigns out of sand, flowers and seeds) during the 1997 Festival ofKentucky Folklife. Above, Glasgow resident Billy Brown engages studentsin a game of Tennessee Square Marbles. The festival’s sponsors are theKentucky Historical Society and the Kentucky Arts Council.

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2 April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

Commissioner’s CommentsBy Wilmer S. Cody, Commissioner of Education

The news reports are alarming:A student shoots into a prayer

group at school, killing three and in-juring five.

A student holds classmates at gunpoint and kills a teacher and the schoolcustodian.

Three middle school students takelife-threatening prescription drugsbrought by one student; EMTs trans-port them to a hospital.

A student dies of injuries sufferedin an off-campus fight, leaving threefellow students facing murder chargesand the entire school and communitycoping with a culture that encouragesphysical violence as a way to settle ar-guments.

These violent acts and high-risk be-haviors happened in Kentucky. Aresuch scenarios inevitable? Must stu-dents, teachers, administrators, staff,parents and communities acceptphysical and verbal attacks, disrespect,vandalism, drug abuse and other dis-ruptive, dangerous behavior as an in-escapable part of the school environ-ment?

While no amount of planning orawareness can ensure

that violence willnever occur, re-

search assuresus that high-risk behav-iors are pre-ventable be-haviors. Thechallenge is“how.” Schoolsseeking pro-grams aimedat preventingviolence and

aggression can turn updozens of titles. Howcan educators and com-munities know whichprograms get results?

The U.S. Department of Educationrecommends that violence preventionactivities be based on fact, not emo-tion; research, not assumption. Guide-lines in the federal Safe and Drug-FreeSchools and Communities Act holdthat a prevention program is mostlikely to be effective if it meets fourprinciples of effectiveness:

1. It is based on a thorough assess-ment of objective data about the drugand violence problems in the com-munities served.

Students, parents, educators, fam-ily resource/youth services centerstaff, representatives of social servicesand law enforcement agencies, andother citizens can work together to de-velop a needs assessment — a profileof local risk and protection factors, be-haviors and attitudes.

2. It can meet measurable goals andobjectives.

Once local needs are determined,the next step is to develop or choose aprevention or solution program withgoals and objectives that match localgoals and objectives.

3. It is based on research and evalu-ation.

General Barry McCaffrey, director ofthe Office of National Drug ControlPolicy, recently said that one of thenation’s critical challenges is to “tryto replace ideology and polemics withscience and well-thought-out medicaland social-based conclusions” whenthinking about drug abuse and vio-lence prevention.

4. It is evaluated periodically.Educators know the importance of

evaluating any strategy’s effectivenessand using the results to shore up weak-nesses. D.J. Ida of the Asian PacificCenter for Human Development rec-ommends including an evaluationteam early in the program selectionor development process, perhaps dur-ing the needs assessment, so every-one is focused on the same issues andasking the same questions.

If these four points seem familiar,it’s because they mirror Kentucky’sschool and district consolidated plan-ning process. When school safety is aplanning priority, safety and risk re-duction decisions become part of all

decisions. Safety committees at the dis-trict and school levels can coordinateresearch and make research-based rec-ommendations to consolidated plan-ning teams and school councils. Theycan help keep everyone’s focus on allaspects of the school environment andthe significant impact it has on teach-ing and academic and social success.After all, learning at high levels canoccur only when teachers and studentsthink of school as a safe environment.The reality for some students is thatschool may be a safer place than homeor neighborhood.

Perhaps the most important step to-ward safety in schools is the rejectionof the inevitability of disruptive behav-iors. On any day, in any school, peaceis the rule, not the exception. Manyprevention strategies can and are work-ing in Kentucky schools. Now is thetime to seek out those strategies thatwork best and apply them as neededto ensure that every school is a safe,supportive, productive place.

Editor’s Notes: For more about Gen-eral Barry McCaffrey’s comments andthe Safe and Drug-Free SchoolsProgram’s look at research-based pre-vention programs, see Volume 7, Num-ber 3 of “The Challenge,” a quarterlynewsletter published by the AmericanCouncil for Drug Education(www.acde.org) under a grant from theU.S. Department of Education(www.ed.gov).

For more about safety in Kentuckyschools, see Pages 3-12 in this issue ofKentucky Teacher.

Violence in Schools: Inevitable or Preventable?

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“The most devastating plague of the 20thcentury is not AIDS, not Ebola virus, not drugabuse, and not violence. It is the plague offatalism: the paralytic frame of mind which saysthat we cannot change the way things are, sowhy even try.”

William Foege, Senior Public Health StatesmanQuoted in JAMA (Journal of the American

Medical Association), May 28, 1997

On Facing Page: Rebecca Russell (left)and Brandy Bartlett, students atJefferson County’s BreckinridgeElementary

3April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

By Fran SalyersKentucky Department of Education

Susan was a veteran at being the“new kid” in school. Because of herfather’s profession, the family relocatedoften. So when she enrolled mid-year atyet another high school, she preparedherself to make new friends and get in-volved in activities quickly.

By Susan’s third day at the school,two girls in her homeroom were includ-ing her in lunchtime conversations andconfidences. They advised her on sev-eral aspects of the school’s culture:

Don’t walk down Hall C by yourself.People start fights there.

Don’t go in this restroom. The smok-ers don’t want nonsmokers in there.

Don’t talk to that group. They willcall you names and cause you troublein the lunchroom.

By the end of her first week at theschool, Susan knew and abided by allof the “rules.” She, like other students,spent much of her time mentally play-ing defense, protecting herself from haz-ards real and imagined. Her academicperformance and attitude about schoolreflected her feelings of insecurity.

Was Susan’s school a safe school?Like most schools on most days, theschool had experienced no major vio-lence — no tragedies that ended livesand made headlines. Still, the environ-ment at Susan’s school made studentsuneasy in a variety of ways. Feelings ofintimidation, disrespect, unacceptanceand ridicule, compounded by incidentsof verbal taunting and the occasionalphysical fight, created an undercurrentof tension that adversely affected virtu-ally everyone at the school.

Such undercurrents can build into in-cidents and behaviors that, at the least,are academically and personally unpro-ductive and, at the extreme, violent.That’s why Renelle Grubbs, executive di-rector of the Kentucky Community Cri-sis Response Board (see Page 12), urgesschools and communities to think of“safe” in a broad perspective. Safety in-cludes “hard” issues such as the arrange-ment, condition and security of theschool building; being prepared to re-spond to emergencies — everything fromtornadoes, fires and floods to the hold-ing of hostages; and minimizing thepresence of alcohol and illegal drugs.

Safety in schools also includes “soft”issues: the school “climate” or levels ofmutual respect among teachers, staff,students and parents; and the extent towhich all students feel accepted (even

when their behaviors aren’t), respectedand free to express ideas and feelings insocially acceptable ways. When it comesto feeling safe, Grubbs said, perceptionis as important as reality.

The following pages present some ofthe many ways Kentucky teachers, ad-ministrators, school staff, students, par-ents and communities are addressing the“soft” safety issues. While no amountof planning or dollars can guarantee vio-lence will not happen in schools — oranywhere else — attention to “soft” is-sues can go a long way toward reducingall levels of socially unacceptable behav-iors. The examples in this issue can bea starting point for school councils andcommittees, consolidated planningteams, students, parents and communi-ties who want to make safety a priorityin the school improvement process.

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4 April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

By Faun S. FishbackKentucky Department of Education

A school district can have all thenecessary school safety plans and pro-grams in place, but teachers, when theclassroom door closes, you’re in chargeof keeping the peace. It’s up to you tomake sure students know how to be-have in your classroom. It’s up to youto enforce school behavior policiesconsistently.

“The key is that teachers have ex-pectations for student behavior, ex-press those expectations to their stu-dents and then model that behaviorfor the students,” said NancySatterfield, director of support pro-grams for Henderson County Schools.

Most students who are treated withrespect and cordiality will return thebehavior, Satterfield said. When theydon’t, she added, teachers in theHenderson County schools are pre-pared to handle thesituation. For the pastfew years, allHenderson CountySchool employees whohave any interactionwith students havebeen trained to de-es-calate behavior prob-lems.

Teachers, aides, ad-ministrators, officestaff, bus drivers, cus-todians and cafeteriaworkers are taughthow to use specificwords to calm disrup-tive students and, ifnecessary, to intervenein a fight. They alsolearn about legal is-sues — search and sei-zure, weapons identi-fication and studentconfidentiality — and

each school employee’s role in theevent of a school or districtwide emer-gency.

In dealing with disruptive students,it’s not only what you say but howyou say it that keeps you in control ofthe situation, Satterfield said. Adultsneed to be positive and choose theirwords carefully. Body language andvoice tone and volume can either endor escalate a confrontation. Backing astudent into a corner only ends upbeing a power struggle — a no-winsituation for everyone, she explained.

Adults must deal with each situa-tion in a way that models acceptablebehavior: no yelling, name calling orphysical aggression. Show studentsthat resolution can occur with nonvio-lent behavior by treating them withthe respect you want them to returnto you, she said.

Even when a fight begins, there istime for intervention, Satterfield said.

Teachers are Role Models for Acceptable Behavior— Even Under Pressure “There’s not just one thing

that is the answer to safeschools,” said Nancy Satterfield,director of support services forHenderson County Schools. Inaddition to professional devel-opment, Henderson County alsohas a crisis plan and an emer-gency procedure guide to helpstaff react effectively to situa-tions that threaten school safety.Staff members are trained todeal with everything from natu-ral disasters to a hostage situa-tion and everything in between,she said, adding that continuingtraining and updates are an im-portant consideration for dis-tricts.

A few of the district’s rulesand practices:

• Visitors must sign in ateach school office and receive abadge or visitor’s pass.

• Handbooks provide schoolrules to every student in theschool system.

• Support programs are avail-able to all students.

• Curriculum and behaviorintervention strategies are underevaluation by district staff toassist schools in developing acommon language when talkingabout behavior and developingschool expectations.

• Coalitions of student lead-ers from all segments of theschool are facilitated by coun-selors and teachers. Thesegroups talk about their concernsand issues to better understandeach other, adults and schoolpolicies. Students also deal withbehavior issues through peermediation at Henderson CountyNorth Junior High School.

For more information aboutHenderson County’s safe schoolprogram, contact Satterfield at(502) 831-5010 or nsatterf@henderson.k12.ky.us.

Safe SchoolProgram

Offers ManyPreventative

Measures

Verbal intervention can occur rightbefore a fight breaks out and at stra-tegic points during the fight. Adultsare trained to identify themselves tothe fighters; if possible, call the stu-dents by name; then use short, clear,firm commands to intervene.

She advises staff members to avoidusing physical force. However, thoseHenderson County staff members whowork at the alternative schools anddeal daily with emotional-behaviordisordered students receive tips onphysical intervention.

Can these actions by teachers re-ally make a difference with studentswho do not receive positive behaviorreinforcement at home or fromfriends? Satterfield says yes.

“Teachers need to realize they arethe best role models some of their stu-dents have,” she explained. “Havingteachers greet them with a smile andsay something positive about their

work or their actionswill make a difference.”

Already, Hendersonson County North Jun-ior High counselorJoyce Lutz notices adecline in the “he said— she said” behaviorproblems at theschool. “Teachers aremodeling for the stu-dents how to properlyresolve problems, andstudents are pickingup on it,” she said.“More and more of ourstudents know how toresolve everyday prob-lems. We’re also see-ing fewer referrals fordisrespect. Whenteachers have firm,consistent dealingswith students, fewerproblems occur.”

One District’s Approach

Teacher Kim Pritchett talks with 7th-grader Adam Russelburg about his“Eulogy for the Roman Empire” writing project during a World Studiesclass at North Henderson Junior High. Pritchett and other teachers in theHenderson County district are trained in dealing with students in waysthat support mutual respect and reduce behavior problems.

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5April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

You can’t have a caring, safeschool if you first don’t have a caring,safe community. That premise hasbeen leading Ohio County school dis-trict officials during the past year toinvolve the entire community in in-stilling positive values and social com-petency in local young people.

Though still in its infancy, “OhioCounty Together We Care” seeks to in-clude every segment of the commu-nity from school staffs to law enforce-ment officials to extension agents tochurches to the chamber of commerceto parents. The program makes every-one responsible for teaching youngpeople values and structures that helpthem solve problems rather than beproblems, said Joe Van Roberts, whoheads the program for the school dis-trict.

County residents pledge their sup-port and make many of the decisionsabout what they will do to make stu-dents more productive citizens. Com-mittees, which include students, areworking in four areas: mentoring pro-grams, youth as community resources,community mobilization and caringschool climate. They are guided by aSearch Institute program purchasedand adapted by the school district tohelp build the assets young peopleneed if they are to grow into respon-sible, caring adults.

had fewer assets. Those students witha higher number of assets participatedin school and community activities,were not behavior problems and hadhealthy relationships with adults in thecommunity, Roberts added.

So far, response from the commu-nity has been positive, Roberts reports.“Two retired teachers recently told methey realize now their days of work-ing with children aren’t over,” he said.“They plan to show more interest inthe young people at their church. Asenior citizen said he’d about givenup on young people but has now de-cided to provide transportation to ateenager who needs a ride to help asa volunteer to do service learning.”

This spring, school staffs will beencouraged to make asset building apart of their daily activities. Teacherswill receive a copy of “150 Ways toShow Kids You Care,” with ideas onhow they can help build assets in stu-dents. (The list is available on theWorld Wide Web at www.searchinstitute.org/archives/150.htm .) Thoseideas include smiling a lot, sayingthank you, learning students’ namesand chaperoning dances. “These arethings people do every day,” Roberts

First,There isa Caring, SafeCommunity

“Kids are kids. The things we’re doing to showour students we care about them could bereplicated anywhere else, urban or rural.” Joe Van Roberts Ohio County Public Schools

The program’s 40 developmentalassets emphasize positive student be-haviors and positive student choicesfor grades 6-12. The program estab-lishes four types of personal assets:

• personal commitment to educa-tion

• personal values such as honesty,responsibility and equity

• social skills• positive self identity.One exciting part of “Ohio County

Together We Care” is that data col-lected last year as part of DARE,PRIDE, Kids Count and other commu-nity activities indicate the communityis on target to meet student needs. BillScott from the Kentucky School BoardsAssociation helped collect the data andhelped district administrators presentthe findings to community leaders.One finding shows that students sur-veyed want more recognition for whatthey are doing right and want studentsto show care and concern for teachersand other students, Roberts said.

Additionally, a survey of the OhioCounty High School Class of 1997showed that most of the seniors aver-aged slightly less than half of the 40developmental assets. Students whoexhibited more risk-taking behavior

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said. “They don’t take any time at all,but they can reap big benefits.”

Can other communities benefitfrom asset building? “Kids are kids,”Roberts said. “The things we’re doingto show our students we care aboutthem could be replicated anywhereelse, urban or rural.”

For more information about “OhioCounty Together We Care,” contactRoberts at (502) 298-3249.

Students, teachers, a youth services center coordinator and local health care professionalsjoin forces on an “Ohio County Together We Care” subcommittee looking at youth asresources. The subcommittee will help establish opportunities for young people tovolunteer in community programs.

By Faun S. FishbackKentucky Department of Education

6 April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

“In that meetingpeople started to listento how I felt about beingcalled names, and sincethen I haven’t had muchname calling’’

— Alex

Alex was an overweight 4th-grade boy who was frequently teasedby his peers. Alex asked his teacher tohave an open meeting to address thisname-calling problem. After listeningto his explanation of the problem, histeacher agreed to hold the meeting.

Many teachers are concerned aboutput-downs. One way to deal with thisissue or other school climate problemsis by having an open classroom meet-ing, sometimes called the GlasserCircle (Charles 1992).

What Is anOpen Meeting?

Open meetings are regularly sched-uled times when all class membersand the teacher sit together in a closedcircle to discuss important topics(Glasser 1992). The purpose is to en-courage the students to seek solutionsto problems, never to find fault or as-sign blame.

An Open Meetingon Name Calling

As the following meeting on namecalling illustrates, the meeting is struc-tured — moving from a review of theground rules, to a warm-up question

For the past two years we have con-ducted action research on open meet-ings in elementary classrooms andhave found three types of meetings:

• Open-ended meeting — The topicis anything of interest or relevance tothe group, such as pets, hobbies, spe-cial occasions.

• Problem-solving meeting — Thetopic is a problematic situation or be-havior of concern to the class, such asname calling, graffiti, blurting out.

• Educational-diagnostic meeting— The purpose is to discover the ex-tent to which students understand andhave personalized curricular topics(for example, in discussing literature)or to assess background knowledge(Glasser 1969).

Ground rules are necessary to en-sure that everyone has the right tospeak (but doesn’t have to), that nonames will be used, that matters dis-cussed will remain within the groupand that there will be no put-downs.

or open-ended statement, to encour-aging a variety of perspectives, to per-sonalizing the topic and, finally, tochallenging students in some way.

• The warm-up question gives ev-eryone a chance to briefly speak up.This should be a safe question that ev-ery student can answer, such as “I feelbig when ... .”

• Defining questions produce astarting point where all agree on thetopic and the limits of the topic, suchas “What is name calling?”

• Personalized questions create in-volvement, relevance and eagerness toshare information, ideas and experi-ences, such as “When have you beencalled a name or had someone call youa name? I’ll give you some time tothink about this. Remember our ruleon confidentiality, so don’t tell who.”Other questions ask students abouttheir feelings, what they did whensomeone called them names andwhether name calling is a problem attheir school.

• Challenge questions help stu-dents think about alternatives and ap-ply what they learned in the meeting.A sample question: “Try to make namecalling go away for everyone in thisroom. Think about what you can doto get your feelings out without usingname calling.”

In Alex’s name-calling meeting, hehad a chance to openly state the prob-lem:

Alex: Name calling is a problemhere at our school. I’ve been teasedsince kindergarten or 1st grade.

Teacher: How are you doing withthat?

Alex: Starting to cool off, startingto take it easy, been called so manynames. ... [He gives examples ofnames he’s been called.] I guess it’sgetting easier.

Teacher: Why do we name call?(Other students chime in and contrib-ute their perspectives and feelings.)

Fredrico: To get people’s attention.Teacher: Whose? Friends? Enemies?Diane: They want to be better than

someone else, so they think that byteasing they can be better than some-one else.

Teacher: If you are called a name,what do you do? What’s a good wayto handle it? Let’s go around the circle . . .

Ron: Walk away.Stacy: Laugh with them.Tony: I’ve done that before.Teacher: Did it work? What hap-

pens? It’s not so much fun for them ifyou laugh, too.

Down with Put-Downs

Open classroom meetingsencourage children to solve problemsof name calling, teasing and otherconflicts that arise in everyday life.

This article is copyrighted and reprintedhere with permission from the publishers of“Educational Leadership.” The article ap-peared in the October 1997 issue (Volume55, Number 2; Pages 36 and 37). The au-thors are Mary A. Lundeberg, Judy Emmett,Patricia A. Osland and Nancy Lindquist.

7April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

Here are other students’ responsesabout the extent to which name call-ing was a problem at their school. Notethat they felt safe to agree or disagree.

Angie: Sometimes it is, sometimesit’s not.

Tyler: When people call names,they don’t win. This is different fromthe school motto, “Everybody wins at[name of his school].’’

Teacher: Who wins? Is the personwho calls names a winner?

Tyler: Sometimes the person whois called a name says, “Why do yousay that?” and they can be a winner.

Heather: The person calling namesis a loser. They’re breaking the schoolrules — the person getting the nameis a winner.

Tyler and Josh: I agree.Tyler: The person calling you

names is making you feel bad so he’swinning.

Russ: If you’re name calling, you’renot a winner because you are break-ing the rules.

Teacher: Think about ways to getyour feelings out without name call-ing.

In an interview six months afterAlex’s meeting, he said: Before thatmeeting on name calling, people didn’tlisten much to how I felt. Others gotcalled a lot of names, too. In that meet-ing people started to listen to how Ifelt about being called names, andsince then I haven’t had much namecalling.

Open classroom meetings, becauseof their structure, are one way of meet-ing teachers’ and students’ needs forbelonging, power, freedom and fun(Glasser 1969). Open meetings aremeant to be safe. Because what isshared in open meetings are experi-ences, ideas, beliefs and feelings, allhave something to contribute; there-fore, all have some power. Our studyshowed that students sometimes re-quest open meetings to deal with is-sues of immediate concern, seeing theprocess as one that gives them powerto deal with school situations. Openmeetings may deal with serious top-ics, but they often contain humorousmoments and are occasions of muchfun.

Open meetings enhance learningcommunities by building trust andcare, group cohesiveness and produc-tivity, respectful interactions and rel-evance of school to everyday life. Theypromote a positive classroom climateby building children’s self-esteem andproviding opportunities to experiencesuccess. In the process, children alsoimprove listening skills and verbal flu-ency (Russo et al. 1996).

Open classroom meetings allowstudents to solve class problems as agroup, view a situation from other stu-dents’ perspectives and respectfullyagree and disagree with one another.This exchange increases critical-think-ing skills and allows students to sharefeelings related to their thinking. Hear-

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How Open MeetingsBuild Community

Why EncourageChildrento Discuss Problems?

Mary A. Lundeberg is Profes-sor in Teacher Education, JudyEmmett is Associate Professor inCounseling, and Patricia A.Osland is an undergraduatepreservice teacher at the Univer-sity of Wisconsin-River Falls.Nancy Lindquist is a 4th-gradeteacher at Westside ElementarySchool, River Falls, WI 54022.Address correspondence toMary A. Lundeberg, University ofWisconsin, 12 Ames, River Falls,WI 54022; e-mail Mary.ALundeberg@uwrf.edu.

Association for Supervisionand Curriculum Development,publisher of “Educational Lead-ership,”1250 N. Pitt St., Alexan-dria, VA 22314-1453; (703) 549-9110

About the Authors

Charles, C.M. (1992). Build-ing Classroom Discipline. WhitePlains, N.Y.: Longman.

Emmett, J., F. Monsour, M.Lundeberg, T. Russo, K. Secrist,N. Lindquist, S. Moriarity, P.Uhren. (1996). “Open ClassroomMeetings: Promoting PeacefulSchools.” Elementary SchoolGuidance & Counseling 31, 1: 3-10.

Glasser, W. (1969). SchoolsWithout Failure. New York:Harper & Row.

Glasser, W. (1992). The Qual-ity School, 2nd ed. New York:HarperCollins.

Lundeberg, M.A., J. Emmett,T. Russo, F. Monsour, N.Lindquist, S. Moriarity, P. Uhren,K. Secrist. (1997). “Listening toEach Other’s Voices: Collabora-tive Research About Open Meet-ings in Classrooms.” Teachingand Teacher Education 13, 3: 311-324.

Russo, T., M.A. Lundeberg, J.Emmett, F. Monsour, K. Secrist,N. Lindquist, S. Moriarity, P.Uhren. (1996). “Open Class Meet-ings in the Elementary School.”Journal of Reality Therapy 15, 2:82-89.

ing about how feelings are related tosituations can influence students posi-tively (Lundeberg et al. 1997).

Last year, in a nearby urban schooldistrict, one teenager shot anotherteenager after school because he’dbeen called a name. Would this vio-lence have been prevented if theseteens had learned skills to discussname calling?

We do not know. However, theopen classroom meeting has the po-tential to decrease school violencethrough teaching children the skills toexpress their own thoughts and feel-ings, to listen to others and to thinkabout their behavior. Thinking criti-cally about their own past actions, aswell as the actions of their peers,seems to enable children to constructpositive scenarios for solving prob-lems.

Open meetings increase children’sunderstanding of and empathy for oneanother. This leads to increased re-spect and appreciation for the differ-ences and contributions of all classmembers. Members of the school com-munity begin to care for each other(Emmett et al. 1996). In such a cli-mate, students feel competent to takeresponsibility for solving classroomproblems.

Open classroom meetings areone way to meeting teachers’and students’ needs forbelonging, power, freedom andfun.

ReferencesAngela: I walk away or yell at the

person.Teacher: Which works better?Brian: I punch on a punching bag.Teacher: Does that work?

8 April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

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Rising to the NeedBreckinridge Elementary’s down-

town Louisville neighborhood has oneof the highest crime rates in JeffersonCounty. Principal Ann Long and JayeSparber, director of the Family Re-source and Youth Services Center, useintervention to offset exposure to vio-lence.

They use two methods of univer-sal intervention, which is targeted toall students:

• Second Step from the nationalCommittee for Children teaches chil-dren how to deal with anger and frus-tration before they become abusers.“We all send the same messages tostudents, and we have similar expec-tations. As messages are reinforced,students react positively,” Long ex-plained. The program is focused oncontrolling impulses, managing angerand developing empathy. During arecent mid-year evaluation, oneteacher observed that for the first timein a long time she had “a classroomof students who care about eachother.” Plans call for parents to par-ticipate next year.

By Sharon Crouch FarmerKentucky Department of Education Children attach a lot of

credibility to the attitudes, opin-ions and actions of their peers.So it follows that developing asafe school environment de-pends on student involvement.That involvement can takemany forms. Programs such asSecond Step build a founda-tion. Crime Stoppers and simi-lar programs reassure studentsthat they have the power tochange their own inappropriatebehavior and that of others.Peer mediation programs usestudents to settle disputes be-tween students.

These two pages profilesome of the ways students,working through these andother programs, are part of theschool safety solution in Ken-tucky schools.

Students Are Part of the Soluti

TOUCHING BASE — Consultant George Addison talks with student Michael

Pugh at Breckinridge Elementary School, where adults strive to help all

students set positive goals (see Page 9).

WORKING TOGETHER — Kathy Kalias (center), a Fayette County Safe andDrug-Free Schools consultant, guides Leestown Middle School studentsthrough a group problem-solving exercise during mediation training.

9April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

MIDDLE SCHOOL MEDIATION — Leestown Middle School students (left to right) ReginaMosley, Adam Conners and Mandy Bryant practice peer mediation in a two-day training.The three Fayette County students were selected by their peers to serve as mediators.The training curriculum is Mediation: Getting to WinWin! by Fran Schmidt for the PeaceEducation Foundation. For details, phone Principal Melinda Cobb at (606) 254-9223.

• Kentucky Child Assault Preven-tion Project (CAPP) for Kids joins withvolunteers from the Jefferson CountyAttorney’s office to meet with staff,faculty and parents to discuss violenceissues. They go into each classroomto talk with students in groups or in-dividually. Rebecca Owen of KentuckyCAPP for Kids (part of the NationalChild Assault Prevention Project) saysthat the program can be tailored tomeet the special needs of any schoolor district. For information, contactOwen at (502) 574-5598.

To target specific students,Breckinridge Elementary uses one pro-gram to integrate behavior, self imageand academics.

• PITISE (Positive Images That In-voke Self Esteem) targets at-risk stu-

dents aged 7-18,focuses on vio-lence and gangawareness and in-cludes follow up.George Addisonused his ownchildhood experi-ences to developPITISE seven yearsago with the helpof the BellarmineSmall Business De-velopment Center.“PITISE creates op-portunities forthese children tosee options, seeanother side of lifeand be able tofunction there, toput lies and hurton the table andbegin forming newperceptions andgoals,” Addisonsays. Informationis available fromJaye Sparber atBreckinridge El-ementary at (502)485-8020.

A PLACE OF PEACE — In Cathy Rosing’s class at Kennedy Montessori Elementary(Jefferson County), the Peace Table (part of the Peace Education curriculum) is apermanent part of the classroom. Daryette Griffin (with Rosing at the Peace Table)says he used to go to the Peace Table “a lot, and then I learned that fightingdoesn’t solve anything.” To learn more about the curriculum, phone Rosing at(502) 485-8280 or contact the Peace Education Foundation (see Page 12).

Keeping it SafeStudents who serve on the Student

Crime Stoppers Board help set up asystem for anonymous “tips,” helpdevelop a scale for rewards and pro-mote the program within the school.They do not “tattle” on classmates. AtHenry Moss Middle School (WarrenCounty), the 16-student board repre-sents the entire student body. In thehallway they have a drop box for tips,and they offer cash rewards of $5, $10and $20. “We’ve had stolen items re-covered, reports of damaged propertyand uncovered some substanceabuse,” says student assistant special-ist Ida Jo Bowling. “We don’t get a lotof prank messages because the stu-dents want to be (in a) safe (environ-ment).” Information about CrimeStoppers in the schools is availablefrom Bowling at (502) 781-5150; BarryPruitt, Bowling Green Crime Stopperscoordinator at (502) 843-5596; JoeJacob, Warren County’s DARE officerat (502) 796-5704; or visit Crime Stop-pers International homepage on theInternet at http://c-s-i.org/scs.htm.

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A Panel of PeersIn the court-based Teen Court pro-

gram sponsored by Kentucky’s Admin-istrative Office of the Courts, teenag-ers are responsible for sentencing theirpeers for first offenses such as truancyor harassment. The sentences are le-gally binding. Students are recruitedfor the positions that would normallybe involved in this phase of a trial:bailiff, clerk, attorneys, jurors. Theymust meet only one requirement: Theymust attend training once a week forsix weeks. Attorneys and local offic-ers of the court volunteer to train theirjunior colleagues. The AdministrativeOffice of the Courts obtains grants tofund law-related education programsin schools from Pikeville to Paducah.For information, contact Jeanie Lylesor Rachel Bingham at AOC in Frank-fort at (502) 573-2350.

10 April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

We call it inappropriate behav-ior— aggressiveness — violence.Whatever we call it, it means there issomething missing in a student’s ex-perience, causing the child to make theclassroom climate unstable and jeop-ardize learning.

It means, according to FayetteCounty Safe and Drug-Free SchoolsCoordinator Lynn McCoy-Simandle,that the child lacks the tools to copewith everyday situations. “The onlytool they have is a hammer, and oncethey use it and it works, they under-stand its power and it is hard to getthem not to use it,” McCoy-Simandlesaid.

Most children begin learning socialbehaviors at the age of two, observ-ing adults as they process information,verbalize options and make choices.Children with behavior problems havenot grasped this process, according toMcCoy-Simandle. “In our culture, life

moves at such a rapid pace, evenadults have little time for processing,”she explained. “Computer games en-courage impulse action without prob-lem solving. Children are pushed tomature earlier.”

There is little time for them to de-

velop social skills. Then, withoutknowing why, children strike out,scream or use other aggressive or vio-lent behaviors; or they internalizeemotions and shrink from contact.When confronted, these children ab-solve themselves of responsibility.

“It is never their fault,” says KathyKalias, Fayette County Safe and Drug-Free Schools consultant. “They’ll tellyou they don’t know why they dowhat they do. Well, they’re beingtruthful. They believe it’s not theirfault. They don’t know why they didit. They don’t have the tools to under-stand,” she explained.

Classroom teachers, McCoy-Simandle says, are not alwaysequipped to deal with these children.“Both teachers and students needmore tools,” she says.

Adding to the ToolboxFour important tools for children

are empathy, impulse control, angermanagement and problem solvingskills.

• Empathy — understanding howsomeone else feels, how our actionsmight affect others. It is the first toolused as we process and react to infor-mation.

• Impulse control — the ability torestrain or check spontaneous action.

Children who behave inappropriatelyin the classroom have not been taught,through observation or experience,how to think through things beforeacting.

• Problem solving — makingchoices from available options andmaking decisions based on thosechoices. “Many children don’t knowthey have a choice or what thosechoices might mean,” said DeniseLawless, also a Safe and Drug-FreeSchools consultant in Fayette County.

• Anger management — identify-ing and coping with ire, rage, hostil-ity. “Many children don’t know thatanger feels different from other emo-tions, such as embarrassment,” saysMcCoy-Simandle. “They interpretmost of their feelings as anger.”

“Assessing blame for behaviorproblems accomplishes nothing,” ad-vises McCoy-Simandle. “Teachersmust not assume that students havethese skills but don’t use them. Thatis less and less the case.”

Students may have either a perfor-mance or skill deficit. With a perfor-mance deficit, the child has the skillbut doesn’t know how to use it. A skill

deficit, more prevalent in the class-room, means the child doesn’t havethe skills.

What Can HelpIn addition to special programs

available to teachers and counselorsthrough sources such as the nationalCommittee for Children and the PeaceEducation Foundation (see Pages 11and 12), there are things teachers cando to help these children develop thetools they need to achieve in both so-ciety and the classroom.

• Use the first days of a school ses-sion to teach your class the behaviorsyou want in your classroom. “Don’tjust tell them and assume they get it,”says Lawless. “Practice it over andover. When these behaviors arelearned, teaching academics is mucheasier.”

• Model appropriate behaviorwhen reacting to inappropriate behav-ior. Go through behavior options ver-bally with students to show them howto approach problems, evaluate con-sequences and reap benefits.

• Accept the fact that children livein situations that you can’t change,and do what you can.

• Help children understand that be-havioral expectations may be differ-ent depending on where they are.

• Be cautious when using sarcasmto battle behavior problems; it canbackfire. Use humor, but center it onyourself, not on them.

Behavior Change Requires Variety of Tools and Knowledge to Use Them

SAFE SCHOOLS

SUCCESSFUL SCHOOLS

If the only tool youhave is a hammer,every problem lookslike a nail. Abraham Maslow

By Sharon Crouch FarmerKentucky Department of Education

Libby Iversen (left) of Maxwell Elementary and Lois Babb of Rosa Parks Elemen-tary learn conflict management strategies during a “Peer Mediation Training forTeachers” session in Fayette County.

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SPUBLICATIONS

“Prevention of Family Violence”— a curriculum developed by the De-partment of Education’s Family andConsumer Sciences and Special Voca-tional Programs Branch and theJefferson County Board of Education.To request a free copy, phone (502)564-3775 or e-mail jellis@kde.state.ky.us.

“Educational Leadership” — May1997: “Social and Emotional Learn-ing”; October 1997: “Schools as SafeHavens.” Publisher: Association forSupervision and Curriculum Develop-ment, 1250 N. Pitt St., Alexandria, VA22314-1453; (703) 549-9110.

Transformations: Kentucky’s Cur-riculum Framework — includessample teaching strategies for LearnerGoals 3 and 4 (self-discipline, conflictresolution, cultural understanding,honesty, ethics and a host of self-suf-ficiency and responsible group mem-bership issues; ideas for incorporatingcommunity resources. The Depart-ment of Education provided one copyfree of charge to each school and dis-trict office. Additional copies availablefor $40 ($60 out-of-state). ContactWindy Newton at (502) 564-3421; 500Mero St., Frankfort, KY 40601;wnewton@kde.state.ky.us.

EVENTS AND PROGRAMS

School Safety Conference — Sept.28 and 29, Hyatt/Heritage Hall com-plex, Lexington. Sessions on alterna-tive education and alternative schools,school resource officers and other part-nerships between schools and commu-nity organizations, assessing schooland district safety needs, schoolwidediscipline strategies, truancy preven-tion and other issues. Sponsors: Ken-tucky School Boards Association andKentucky Department of Education.Contact: Bill Scott, bscott@mail.state.ky.us; (502) 695-4630 or (800) 372-2962; www.ksba.org.

Third Annual Youth Symposium— Nov. 16, Marriott Hotel, Lexington.Legislative update on school safety;sessions on juvenile justice and relatedtopics, school safety assessments andplans, school/highway safety show-case; Effective Safe School Model Pro-grams. Sponsors: Department of Edu-cation and Kentucky State Police. Con-tact: Beverly Persley, (502) 564-3678;bpersley@kde.state.ky.us.

Learning Equals Earning — ajoint initiative by The Partnership forKentucky Schools and the KentuckyChamber of Commerce to connectKentucky businesses with the aca-demic achievements of high schoolstudents. In this voluntary program,developed by the Partnership at therequest of Gov. Paul Patton in collabo-ration with the Department of Educa-tion, Kentucky employers agree to re-quest academic records of entry-levelapplicants. The goal is to send a mes-sage to students and parents thatschool work is important to a student’semployment prospects. For more de-tails, contact Carolyn Witt Jones at thePartnership, (606) 233-9849 or (800)928-2111; admin@pksr.org.

ON THE WEB

Mail addresses and phone numbersare included in this listing for thosewithout Web access. When using oneof the italicized Web addresses, do notinclude the final period.

Behavior Home Page —www.state.ky.us/agencies/behave/homepage.html. A Department of Edu-cation-University of Kentucky Websitefeaturing information, resources anddiscussions about behavior problemsand challenges displayed by children(especially those with special needs)in school and community settings.

Creative Partnerships for Preven-tion — www.CPPrev.org. Focus: Usingthe arts and humanities to build resil-iency in youth. Developed under agrant from the Safe and Drug-FreeSchools Program by Learning SystemsGroup, 1150 Connecticut Ave., NW,Suite 1100, Washington, DC 20036;(202) 628-8080.

Committee for Children —www.cfchildren.org. National not-for-profit agency for violence and abuseprevention education and social lit-eracy programs. 2203 Airport Way S.,Suite 500, Seattle, WA 98134-2027;(800) 634-4449 (8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Pa-cific time).

National School Safety Center —www.nssc1.org. 4165 Thousand OaksBlvd., Suite 290, Westlake Village, CA91362; (805) 373-9977.

North Carolina Center for the Pre-vention of School Violence —w w w 2 . n c s u . e d u / n c s u / c e p /PreViolence/CtrPreSchVio.html. 20Enterprise St., Suite 2, Raleigh, NC27607-7375; (800) 299-6054.

National Youth Gang Center —www.iir.com/nygc. Funded by UnitedStates Department of Justice. (904)385-0600, extension 249, 259 or 285.

Office of Juvenile Justice and De-linquency Prevention —www.ncjrs.org/ojjdp. 810 Seventh St.,NW, Washington, DC 20531; (202) 307-5911.

Partnership Against ViolenceNetwork — www.pavnet.org. Asearchable library of information anddata from seven federal agencies. (301)504-5462.

Safe and Drug-Free Schools Pro-gram — www.ed.gov/offices/OESE/SDFS/. 600 Independence Ave., SW,#604 Portals, Washington, DC 20202-6123. Phone: (202) 260-3954.

For More About School Safety . . .Consult some of these resources. This list is just a beginning. Most of these resources can lead to dozens more, includingcontacts at Kentucky school districts and schools where safety and violence prevention programs are especially successful.

12 April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

School and District ProfessionalDevelopment Coordinators — forhelp in obtaining faculty and stafftraining in violence prevention, con-flict resolution and student supportstrategies.

Safe and Drug-Free Schools Co-ordinators — Each school district staffhas someone with responsibilities inthese areas. For state-level assistance,contact Steve Kimberling at (502) 564-3791 or skimberl@kde.state.ky.us.

Kentucky Department of Educa-tion — This list includes Departmentof Education contacts who can pro-vide information, assistance or linksto others who can help.

• Alternative education programs— Joan Howard, (502) 564-3678;jhoward@kde.state.ky.us

• Dropout prevention programsand grants — Peggy Washington, (502)564-3789; pwashing@kde.state.ky.us

• Emotional behavior disorders —Laura McCullough (lmccullo@kde.state.ky.us) and Mike Waford(mwaford@kde.state.ky.us); (502)564-4970

• Safe and Drug-Free Schools Pro-gram — Steve Kimberling, (502) 564-3791; skimberl@kde.state.ky.us

• School counseling services, cri-sis intervention, school psychologicaland psychometric services, school so-cial work services — Angela Wilkins,(502) 564-3678; awilkins@kde.state.ky.us

Kentucky School Boards Associa-tion — training, technical assistanceand legal consultation in all areas re-lated to student discipline and schoolsafety:

• risk management services• legal services (including consul-

tation on student discipline law)• student support services (identi-

fying and reducing barriers to learn-ing, including violent and disruptivestudent behavior)

• policy service (continuing sup-port in researching, drafting and up-dating safety-related policies)

• special education services (infor-mation and assistance in meeting re-quirements of federal special educa-

tion laws and regulations includingdiscipline of special education stu-dents)

• communications (a variety ofpublications that feature exemplaryschool/district programs, includingthose related to school safety and vio-lence prevention; workshops on com-municating in times of disaster oremergency).

For more information about theseservices, phone KSBA at (502) 695-4630 or (800) 372-2962. Also visit theKSBA Website at www.ksba.org.

Office of the Attorney General —free training to schools and districtson the dynamics and effect of domes-tic violence. Training covers safety is-sues for school personnel and victims,mandatory reporting, and servicesavailable to victims of family violence.Presentations tailored to local con-cerns. Contact Tamra Gormley, Direc-tor, Victims Advocacy Division, 10224Capital Center Drive, Frankfort, KY40601; (800) 372-2551 or (502) 696-5312.

Kentucky Cabinet for Familiesand Children — consultation on manyschool safety issues, including de-es-calation techniques, working with at-risk children and youth, and behaviormanagement. Contact Vicki Reed,Youth Services Specialist, Departmentfor Social Services, 275 E. Main St.,Frankfort, KY 40621; (502) 564-2810;fax (502) 564-9220.

Kentucky Community Crisis Re-sponse Board — directs a statewideteam of more than 150 volunteers toassist communities, schools and otheragencies in times of natural disasters,violence and other crises. Also avail-able: a newsletter and presentationsto education and community groups.Renelle Grubbs, executive director;Penny Gaffney, assistant executive di-rector; 612-B Shelby St., Frankfort, Ky.40601; (502) 564-0131 and (888) 522-7228.

Kentucky Peace Education — 318West Kentucky Ave., Louisville, KY40203; (502) 589-6583. JudySchroeder, executive director.

Kentucky SAFE KIDS Coalition —a Kentucky Department for Public

Health program; part of the NationalSAFE KIDS Campaign, dedicated solelyto the prevention of unintentionalchildhood injury. Contact KathyAdams at the Injury Prevention andResearch Center, (606) 323-6194.

National Peace Education Foun-dation — 1900 Biscayne Blvd., Miami,FL 33132; (800) 749-8838.

New Mexico Center for DisputeResolution — prevention and early in-tervention programs for children,youth and families; past presenter atworkshops and conferences in Ken-tucky; 620 Roma NW, Suite B, Albu-querque, NM 87102; (800) 249-6884.

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WORKSHOP

When: July 21-23Where: Christian County HighSchoolWhat: Two concurrent work-shops covering these topics:

1. Legal issues, school cli-mate, key data, planning pro-cess, student/staff interactions,policy and procedures

2. Discipline strategies fortargeted staff (teachers, instruc-tional assistants, bus drivers,transportation directors, admin-istrators).

Keynote Speaker: Ronald D.Stephens, executive director ofthe National School Safety Cen-ter

Sponsors: The Badgett Re-gional Cooperative for Educa-tional Enhancement, with assis-tance from Henderson CountySchools staff

Invited: The workshopshave been arranged for schoolsin the 12 Western Kentucky dis-tricts served by the Badgett Re-gional Cooperative, but teach-ers and administrators fromother districts also may attend.

To Request a RegistrationPacket: Contact Jane Martin,(502) 821-4909 or jmartin@brcee.coop.k12.ky.us.

CONSULTATION AND ASSISTANCE

13April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

Dropout Prevention

Conference to Feature State-of-the-Art StrategiesState and national authorities will present effective strategies for “Build-

ing Bridges to Keep Students in School” during the Kentucky Conferenceon Dropout Prevention, scheduled for July 28-30 at Louisville’s ExecutiveWest Hotel.

Additional information is available from Pat Ellis or Linda Johnson.Other conference information is available from Charles Whaley or JacqueHukill. All may be reached by phoning (502) 564-3678.

Department Hires ConsultantThe Kentucky Department of Education’s commitment to reducing the

school dropout rate has resulted in the hiring of a full-time consultant,Peggy Washington.

Washington, based in Frankfort in the Division of Student and FamilySupport Services, helps school districts identify effective, research-basedstrategies and programs to meet local needs. Contact her at (502) 564-3678; fax (502) 564-6952; pwashing@kde.state.ky.us.

Almost $1.5 million in grants is available for 1998-99 to fund new or continu-ing innovative programs that can be replicated to make extended school servicesmore effective.

Every year, as mandated by law, each district receives a state allocation tohelp at-risk learners through what is sometimes called the “regular” extendedschool services (ESS) program. The Kentucky Department of Education’s ESScompetitive grant program provides additional money — up to $25,000 per grant— to fund innovative ideas that can spur at-risk students to achieve.

Applying for 1998-99 GrantsWho: Individual teachers, groups of teachers, school ESS coordinators, school

councils or district ESS coordinators can compete for the innovative grants bysubmitting proposals to their district superintendents. Each superintendent maysubmit as many as two proposals to the Department of Education.

What: Grants for 1998-99 will be available in these priority areas:• a systematic approach to dropout prevention (emphasis on at-risk and spe-

cial education students) with a goal of identifying factors that may increase drop-out rates and the implementation of strategies to resolve the problems.

• the whole-school approach to improving performance, building on a na-tional model for creating learning opportunities with high expectations, high aca-demic content and a goal of success for all students.

• transitional programs that prepare students for successful transition intomiddle school, high school or the workforce.

• programs developed for one specific core curriculum area — mathematics,language arts, science or social studies — to enhance learning.

Grants Available for Innovative ESS ProgramsHow: The Department of Education mailed grant application information for

1998-99 to all ESS district coordinators on Feb. 21. The packages include detailsabout the four priority areas and the application process.

When: Applications for 1998-99 must reach the Department of Education byMay 29, 1998. Grant recipients will be notified in July.

Reporting Requirement: At the end of the 1998-99 school year, each grantrecipient must submit an evaluation of the innovative program and a self-study ofthe school’s regular ESS program.

For More Information: Contact your school or district ESS coordinator orKaren Whitehouse at the Kentucky Department of Education at (502) 564-3678 orkwhiteho@kde.state.ky.us.

Kentucky Education News

The “Building Support for Public Schools” workshop is scheduled for fourdates and locations in June. Session topics include building school-communityand school-family relationships, planning for a crisis, and building support withinthe school and district staffs.

The workshop will be offered on June 8 at Natural Bridge State Park, June 10at Lake Cumberland State Park, June 25 at Murray State University and June 30 atNorthern Kentucky University. Each event is approved for six hours of profes-sional development and leadership credit.

The Kentucky School Public Relations Association and the Kentucky Depart-ment of Education are the workshop sponsors.

For more information, see the back page of the March issue of Kentucky Teacher,visit www.kde.state.ky.us/coe/ocpg/dpi/webdoc/main on the Internet, or contactFran Salyers at (502) 564-3421 or fsalyers@kde.state.ky.us.

‘Building Support’ Workshops Scheduled for June

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‘FOX’ AND ‘CHICKENS’ — Students learn through drama in their production of“The Little Red Hen” during an extended school session at Liberty Elementary inCasey County.

14 April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

Study Applied Academics This SummerA series of applied academics institutes will be offered to Kentucky educators

during June and July. Applications must be postmarked by May 22 for participa-tion in these institutes:

• American Studies — June 18 and 19, Lexington• Applied Biology/Chemistry — June 15 and 16, Madison County• Applied Communication — June 15-17, Ashland• Applied Economics — June 15 and 16, Louisville• Science and Family and Consumer Science — July 8, Montgomery County• Applied Mathematics I/II — June 15-17, Ashland• Applied Mathematics — July 7-9, Hopkins County• Applied Geometry — June 18 and 19 — Lexington• Principles of Technology I/II — June 22-24, Grant County• Applied Civics — June 29 and 30, Daviess CountyFor application forms and additional information, contact Wallace Webb, Ken-

tucky Department of Education, (502) 564-3775 or wwebb@kde.state.ky.us; orCharlotte Tulloch, University of Kentucky, (606) 257-4272, fax (606) 257-1325, orcrtull00@pop.uky.edu. Information is also available at www.kde.state.ky.us/blss/osis/dsve/STW.HTM.

Students in grades 4 and 5 can compete for $5,000 trust funds in a com-petition sponsored by the Kentucky Coal Marketing and Export Council.One student in each of Kentucky’s eight education regions will win fundsthat will be invested and presented upon high school graduation to pay forpostsecondary education expenses. The minimum future value of each awardwill be $6,579.50.

In addition, the winners’ schools will be eligible to win computers.To enter, students must answer questions and write about their experi-

ences using the Coal Education Multimedia Library Kit, which explores thehistory, impact and uses of coal in Kentucky. The council mailed one kit toeach public library and each public elementary and middle school library inthe state in February.

Each Kentucky public school can select and submit only one 4th- or 5th-grade student entry, which must be postmarked by May 30. For details, visitwww.coaleducation.org on the World Wide Web or contact the KentuckyCoal Marketing and Export Council, PO Box 11578, Lexington, KY 40576-1578; phone (606) 246-2500; fax (606) 246-2497; e-mail kcmec@mis.net.

4th- and 5th-Graders Can Compete for $5,000 Education Trust Accounts

Commonwealth Institute Seeks Parents for Leadership Training

The Commonwealth Institute for Parent Leadership is looking for 200parents to take part in its training program aimed at increasing parent in-volvement in public schools.

The institute will hold sessions in eight Kentucky locations beginning inlate July. Participants will attend three two-day sessions at no charge tolearn about Kentucky’s standards-based education system and strategiesfor encouraging other parents to become involved. Applications are avail-able by phoning the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence at (800)928-2111 or sending e-mail to cipl@prichardcommittee.org.

The Commonwealth Institute for Parent Leadership co-sponsored by theKentucky Congress of Parents and Teachers (PTA) and the Association ofOlder Kentuckians.

Contest Rewards Good Nutrition With CashWin a cash prize for your outstanding nutrition project.Projects implemented by schools, nonprofit organizations, agencies or groups

will be evaluated in a contest sponsored by the Kentucky Nutrition Council. Lo-cal projects initiated after April 20, 1997, and completed before May 1, 1998, areeligible.

Entries will be judged on accuracy, innovative planning, creativity, scope,adaptability and effectiveness in attaining goals. Entries must be postmarked onor before May 15; winners will be notified in June.

Entry forms and information are available from Phyllis Martin, Director ofSchool Food Services, Covington Independent Schools, 25 East Seventh Street,Covington, KY 41011; call (606) 292-5800, ext. 113.

Educators Eligible for Aidto Become School Counselors

Some Kentucky schools and communities are experiencing a shortage of coun-selors, and the shortage is projected to increase. To help meet the need, theKentucky Counseling Association and participating colleges are offering financialhelp to educators interested in preparing themselves to be school counselors.

Educators with undergraduate degrees are eligible for the scholarships. Theassociation provides up to $100 for textbooks. Lindsey Wilson College, Univer-sity of Louisville, Morehead State University, Western Kentucky University andXavier University will provide tuition waivers. Preference will be given to begin-ning master’s degree students.

Documentation of acceptance by the participating university, a letter of rec-ommendation and a completed application are due by the end of April. Call theKentucky Counseling Association toll free at (800) 350-4522 for information andapplications.

Kentucky Education News

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Ken Hart, a case manager at the North Henderson Junior High youth services center,is one of too few school counselors in Kentucky. A shortage has prompted incentivesfor teachers willing to return to school for counselor training. See story at left.

15April 1998 Kentucky Teacher

Bulletin BoardBy Lisa York GrossKentucky Department of Education

The fourth annual Middle Level Curriculum and As-sessment Institute, co-sponsored by the Kentucky Depart-ment of Education and the Kentucky Middle School As-sociation, is scheduled for July 13-16 at Jessie Clark MiddleSchool in Fayette County.

The focus of the institute will be developing a stan-dards-based unit of study that ties together curriculum,assessment and instruction. Participants will develop aunit with the assistance of mentors. Learning sessionswill support the unit planning process.

This year’s institute also includes sessions geared tothe needs of middle level administrators. Work times withadministrative mentors are scheduled. Administrators mayattend the institute as part of school teams or individu-als.

CONTACT: Fran W. Salyers, Division of Curriculumand Assessment Development, 18th Floor, 500Mero St., Frankfort, KY 40601; (502) 564-2106;fwsalyer@kde.state.ky.us

The Kentucky Higher Edu-cation Assistance Authority(KHEAA) has developed aWebsite for students, guidancecounselors, parents and lend-ers. The site features the latestdata on KHEAA financial aid, astaff directory, a guide to the fi-nancial aid process, publica-tions, national test dates andmore. The Web address iswww.kheaa.com.

Sixteen new programs de-signed to improve teaching andlearning are featured on the U.S.Department of Education’sWebsite. The programs, devel-oped by the department-sup-ported regional education labs,can be adapted to a variety ofschool and community settings.Topics include early childhoodeducation, instructional contentand practice, professional devel-opment and school improve-ment strategies.

More information is availablefrom the USDOE’s Website atwww.ed.gov/pubs/triedandtrue/index.html. Information on theregional education labs is avail-able at www.nwrel.org/national.

Middle School Institute Planned

Tried and True Ideasfor Teaching

and Learning

Financial Aid Information

Available on the Web

Four professional drivers represent-ing the Kentucky Motor Transport As-sociation (KMTA) are available tospeak to high school driver’s educa-tion students about the truckingindustry’s impact on the national andstate economy and efforts to improvehighway safety. The four drivers, se-lected for Kentucky’s Road Team fortheir superior driving skills andrecords, also emphasize the impor-tance of highway courtesy and safety.To schedule a Road Teammember’s visit to your school, phonethe KMTA office at (502) 695-4055.

Professional Drivers Available to Speak on Impact of Trucking Industry

The Center for Education and Train-

ing Technology at Mississippi State Uni-

versity, in cooperation with the Natural

Partners Program at the Smithsonian

Institution’s National Museum of Natural

History, has developed the O. Orkin In-

sect Zoo Curriculum Module on the World

Wide Web. The site includes a virtual tour

of the Insect Zoo at the Natural History

Museum in Washington, D.C., curriculum

materials for grades 4 through 8 and links

to related sites.

Teachers are invited to preview and

evaluate the site, which is designed to

provide resources on insects and spiders.

Teachers interested in evaluating the site

may subscribe to the site listserv by

sending an e-mail message to

majordomo@msstate.edu. Type only sub-

scribe insect-zoo your e-mail address in

the message.

More information is available at

www.naturalpartners.org/InsectZoo.

Teachers Wanted

to Evaluate Website

The department’s Division of Curriculum and As-sessment Development will provide regional workshopson the revised Program of Studies P-12 and its accom-panying implementation manual.The Program of Studies outlines the minimum con-tent for the required high school courses and for pri-mary, intermediate and middle level programs leadingto the requirements. The manual contains course andcourse sequence models, instructional strategies and ad-ditional resources.One-day sessions are scheduled for the following re-gions:

Region 1 July 30 and 31Region 2 July 28 and 29Region 3 TBARegion 4 July 15 and 16Region 5 July 27 and August 3Region 6 July 7 and 8Region 7 June 29 and 30Region 8 July 9 and 10CONTACT: Department of Education regional servicecenters or Renee Murray or Bambi Todd, 18th Floor, 500Mero St., Frankfort, KY 40601; (502) 564-2106;rmurray@kde.state.ky.us or btodd@kde.state.ky.us

THE

Program of Studies Workshops Scheduled

Kentucky TeacherNon-Profit OrganizationU.S. Postage

PAIDWinchester, Kentucky

Permit No. 7

APRIL 1998

News for the Nation’s Most Innovative Educators

Kentucky TeacherWorkshops to Present Updates on School Council Legislation

Information on legislative action during the 1998 General Assembly will be avail-able during regional workshops scheduled by the Kentucky Department of Education’sDivision of School-Based Decision Making (SBDM).

These discussions of changes to the state law governing school councils are de-signed to benefit district SBDM coordinators and trainers, district and school adminis-trators and staff, council members and local school board members. Three hours ofinstructional leadership credit will be given to district and school administrators.

Participants are invited to attend one of two sessions scheduled for 8:30-11:30a.m. and 1-4 p.m. local time (unless otherwise noted) at each regional location:Region 1 — April 21; Bank of Livingston County, Lake CityRegion 2 — April 20; Downing University Center, Western Kentucky University, Bowling GreenRegion 3 — May 4 or 5; 5-8 p.m.; JCPS Gheens Academy, LouisvilleRegion 4 — May 14; Region 4 Service Center, Northern Kentucky University, CovingtonRegion 5 — May 13; University of Kentucky (site to be announced)Region 6 — May 15; Center for Rural Development, SomersetRegion 7 — May 18; 9 a.m.- Noon or 1:30-4:30 p.m.; Morehead State University Student CenterRegion 8 — May 19; Jenny Wiley State Park, Prestonsburg

Pre-registration is highly recommended and is due one week prior to the sessiondate. For details, contact Rina Gratz at (502) 564-4201 or rgratz@kde.state.ky.us.

Kentucky Department of Education Wilmer S. Cody, Commissioner

Kentucky Teacher is published by the Kentucky Department of Education for teachers, school administra-tors, counselors, support staff, parents, students, legislators, community leaders and others with a stake inpublic education. Please address correspondence to Kentucky Teacher, 1919 Capital Plaza Tower, 500 MeroSt., Frankfort, KY 40601; e-mail kyteach@kde.state.ky.us.

The Kentucky Department of Education does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin,sex, religion, age or disability in employment or the provision of services. Alternate formats of this publica-tion are available upon request. Printed with state funds.

Commissioner of Education

Associate Commissionerfor Communications and Planning

DirectorDivision of Public Information

Editor

Copy Writers

Photographer

Graphics and Design

Wilmer S. Cody

John M. Shotwell

Armando Arrastia

Fran Salyers

Sharon Crouch FarmerFaun S. Fishback

Lisa York Gross

Rick McComb

Susie Morrow, ManagerBarbara Burch

Bill DavisMichael Gray

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Coming in May: Summary of Education LegislationWatch the May issue of Kentucky Teacher for a summary of education-related legislation passed during the 1998 session of the Kentucky General Assembly.

POSITIVE IMAGES — Breckinridge Elementary consultantGeorge Addison and student Kelecia Lee talk about everydayexperiences and constructive ways to solve problems. Formore about this Jefferson County school’s program to promotestudent self-esteem and school safety, see Pages 8 and 9.

Pho

to b

y R

ick

McC

omb

INSIDE . . .Safe Schools, Successful Schools Pages 2-12A look at the links between school environment and student performance;strategies for making school a place where everyone feels safe, accepted,and ready to teach and learn

Festival of Kentucky Folklife Page 1

New Resources and Opportunities Pages 13, 14

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SAFE SCHOOLS

SUCCESSFUL SCHOOLS