By Dana Truby
Life is about relationships. Building a positive environment in
individual classrooms and throughout your whole school is too. It takes
commitment and consistency from the whole team—administrators, teachers
and support staff. But you can make it happen, even in the most
challenging school environments.
Here are eight guidelines for improving your school culture based on the
Boys Town Education Model, which has helped hundreds of troubled schools turn their school culture around.
1. Build Strong Relationships
Your
success at creating a well-managed school depends more than anything
else on the quality of the relationships that teachers forge with
students. Staff-student relationships influence everything—from the
social climate to the individual performances of your students. The
research on this is clear. When students feel liked and respected by
their teachers, they find more success in school, academically and
behaviorally (Lewis, Schaps & Watson, 1996). Conversely, when
interpersonal relationships are weak and trust is lacking, fear and
failure will likely start to define school culture.
Building
strong relationships needs to be a whole school priority. How do you do
it? Teachers need to have time to talk to their students in and out of
the classroom. The goal should be for every adult in the building to
maintain a high rate of positive interactions with students and to show
genuine interest in their lives, their activities, their goals and their
struggles.
2. Teach Essential Social Skills
How to
share, how to listen to others, how to disagree respectfully—these are
the kind of essential social skills we expect our students to have. But
the truth is they may not have learned them. Whether it’s first grade or
11th grade, we need to be prepared to teach appropriate social and
emotional behaviors.
“You can’t hold kids accountable for
something you’ve never told them,” says Erin Green, Director of National
Services Operations at Boys Town. “Behavior should be treated like
academics, and students should be taught the skills they need to execute
desired behaviors.” These behaviors and values include honesty,
sensitivity, concern and respect for others, a sense of humor,
reliability, and so on. Together as a staff, you should identify the
social skills you want your students to have and the step-by-step
routines to teach them.
3. Get on the Same Page
Every
classroom environment contributes to your school culture. Sometimes, for
real change to occur with students, it’s the adults who have to change
first. Together as a staff, you need to create a shared vision of your
school. That means developing consistent school rules and ways of
defining and meeting student behavior. When students believe that the
rules are fair and consistently enforced, it goes a long way toward
building trust. Inappropriate behavior shouldn’t be laughed off in one
classroom and punished in another.
4. Be Role Models
At
school, students learn by watching just as they learn by doing.
Observing the actions of others influences how they respond to their
environment and cope with unfamiliar situations. Think about what
messages your staff’s behavior communicates. For example, research has
shown that when a student is rejected by peers, the rejection is more
likely to stop if the teacher models warm and friendly behavior to the
isolated student. The opposite is also true. As educators, you set the
tone.
5. Clarify Classroom and School Rules
Classroom
rules communicate your expectations to your students. They tell students
“this is the positive environment you deserve. This is the standard of
behavior we know you can achieve.”
Positive rules help create a
predictable, stable environment that is more conducive to healthy
interactions. Ideally, classroom rules are simple and declarative (e.g.,
“Be respectful and kind”). And they don’t need to address every
possible problem. You don’t need a rule about gum chewing or water
bottle use, for instance—your policies on these issues should be clear
from your overarching expectations for good behavior. Most important,
rules need to be consistent across the building. The same expectations
need to apply in the classroom, the gym and the cafeteria.
6. Teach All Students Problem Solving
Problems
will always come up inside and outside of school. Students are much
more likely to recognize and resolve them appropriately when we teach
them how to do so. Problem solving can also be used retrospectively
(with the luxury of hindsight) to help students make better decisions in
the future. The Boys Town Education Model uses the
SODAS method to teach students the general skill of problem solving.
SODAS is an acronym for the following steps:
S – Define the SITUATION.
O – Examine OPTIONS available to deal with the problem.
D – Determine the DISADVANTAGES of each option.
A – Determine the ADVANTAGES of each option.
S – Decide on a SOLUTION and practice.
7. Set Appropriate Consequences
Establishing
classroom and school-wide rules and procedures is an important step in
any effort to bring more structure to your school. But of course,
students will push the limits and you’ll still need consequences.
Effective consequences show young people the connection between what
they do and what happens as a result of their choices or actions.
Consequences need to be appropriate, immediate and consistent. Equally
important, they need to be delivered with empathy, not in anger.
You
might think about the current consequences for inappropriate behaviors
and how their connections to the offenses can be strengthened where
necessary. For example, having a student serve detention for misbehaving
on the bus isn’t necessarily the best consequence. Instead, the student
might write a letter of apology to the bus driver and serve as “bus
monitor” for one week.
8. Praise Students for Good Choices
Kids
don’t care what you know until they know that you care. Many of our
students, especially those who struggle, don’t receive nearly enough
positive feedback in the classroom or in their personal lives.
“When
kids are taught with a proactive, praise-heavy approach, they tend to
do better,” says Erin Green of Boys Town. But be specific. Generic,
overly generalized comments such as “Good job!” don’t really help.
Complimenting a specific behavior (“Thanks for showing respect to our
visiting guest”), on the other hand, reinforces that particular
behavior. Challenge your whole team to give 15 compliments a day, or 25
or even 40. You might just be amazed at the difference it makes.
*****
by Jennifer L.W. Fink
...
Putting the Pieces Together
A
positive school culture requires a positive approach, and Fenger
administrators decided to go all in. Spicer’s title was changed from
Chief Dean to Culture and Climate Coordinator. “The decision was made to
shift my role and move me from working in the very negative world of
zero tolerance to building relationships instead,” Spicer says.
But
shifting to a new approach can be tough. Sometimes adults simply assume
that kids who are behaving disrespectfully or aren’t doing what they’re
told are “bad kids.”
“I had to shift my thinking,” Spicer says. “Because that’s how I thought.”
Fenger’s
staff learned how to positively interact with students, how to explain
their expectations and how to praise them when they were meeting those
expectations. Teachers also learned how to correct students when they
were not meeting expectations, which ultimately teaches students life
skills that will help them, not only in school, but outside of school as
well.
Because all Fenger staff members
underwent training, consistency skyrocketed. All teachers and
administrators had the same expectations, and they all used the same
techniques, methods and language to teach and talk to their students.
Over time, that consistency decreased the number of behavioral issues.
It’s
also changed how students felt about school. Students who have learned
new social skills are proud of their achievements. They feel empowered.
“When we brought this system in, we had to put into our young people a
whole new vocabulary,” Spicer says. “Now there’s power, because they
have words for how they feel. They can actually name and claim what’s
going on. They can say, ‘I feel this way and this is what I need to help
me deal with this situation.’”
Ernest
Fruge, Child Search Coordinator at Positive Connections, an academic and
mental health treatment center in Calcasiseu Parish, Louisiana, saw
similar effects when his center underwent a culture change. “We took a
lot of the negative talk out of our school. Kids hear more positive
talk,” Fruge says. “That’s what our students need, especially because
many of them had been labeled ‘problem children.’”
As
students and teachers developed skills—and confidence in their newfound
skills —school culture evolved. Classrooms became more peaceful and
disciplinary referrals decreased drastically. And students began using
their skills in the hallway, on the playground and at home as well.
“We’ve
definitely seen our youth take the skills out of the classroom and into
the general area,” Spicer says. In fact, at his school in Louisiana,
Ernest Fruge has seen kids as young as 5 and 6 use their newfound skills
to show empathy and encourage positive behavior.
School
culture has changed drastically at Fenger since 2009. “It’s night and
day,” Spicer says. “We went from a school of fear to a school of faith
in each other and faith in what we believe as educators. We’ve become
one of the safest schools in the city of Chicago, and it’s not because
we’ve added more police, more cameras or more security officers. It’s
because we created structures and processes that help teachers and staff
build relationships with these young people. We’ve built a sense of
belonging and a sense of family.”
6 Steps to Success
- Set clear expectations.
Uneven or unclear expectations set the stage for conflict whereas
crystal clear expectations remove the potential for conflict because
both the desired behavior and the management of unacceptable behavior
are clearly understood. Agree on a basic set of behavioral expectations
for your entire school, and communicate those expectations to all
students and staff.
- Teach processes.
The Boys Town Education Model includes 182 social skills, each broken
down into simple, easy-to-understand steps. Borrow their approach: when
you want students to do something, teach them the steps it will take to
get there, and repeat that instruction, over and over, until students
have internalized the process.
- Praise students for good choices.
“When kids are taught with a proactive, praise-heavy approach, they
tend to do better,” says Erin Green of Boys Town. But be specific.
Generic, overly-generalized comments such as “good job!” can confuse
kids. Complimenting a specific behavior, on the other hand, reinforces
that particular behavior.
- Build relationships.
“Kids don’t care what you know until they know that you care,” says
Ernest Fruge, Child Search Coordinator at Positive Connections, an
academic and mental health treatment center in Calcasiseu Parish,
Louisiana. “Building relationships with kids is one of the best ways to
get them to come to your side.”
- Keep things small.
“Kids are going to make mistakes. They’re going to say stuff. They’re
going to do stuff,” says Robert Spicer, Culture and Climate Coordinator
at Christian Fenger High School in Chicago. Avoid escalating small
mistakes into big confrontations. Take a few minutes away from the
situation, if necessary, so you can respond calmly, instead of in the
heat of the moment.
- Be patient.
It takes time for students (and teachers!) to master new skills. “Think
about it in terms of sports,” Green says. “Some people have natural
ability. Others learn how to hit the ball, but their form isn’t perfect.
You’re not going to get mad at a kid because the first time you pitch
to him, he strikes out. You’re going to pitch to him over and over and
over again, and work with him on his form.”
*****
Dana Truby
We’ve been talking with the experts at
Boys Town Training® about how administrators and teachers can transform
school culture. One of the key places to begin is with the explicit
teaching of social skills to all students. When academic and positive
social skills are the norm, students and staff feel safer and happier,
office referrals go down, and, best of all, there is more time for
teaching and learning.
Here
are eight key social skills that all students need to be
successful. Consider working on one or two skills with your class each
week. Start by gathering students together and talking about the skill.
For example, ask: Why is listening attentively important? What does it
look like when a person is listening? How do we know? Work together to
list the steps for each skill or behavior on chart paper or a
whiteboard.
Social Skill: How to Listen Attentively
Skill Steps:
1. Look at the person who is talking and remain quiet.
2. Wait until the person is finished talking before you speak.
3. Show that you heard the speaker by nodding your head, and using positive phrases, such as “Okay” or “That’s interesting.”
Classroom Activity: Invite
students to tell each other jokes to practice active listening. Gather
joke books from your school library or send students online to
Aha Jokes
to find their favorite funnies to share with their friends. Have
students work in small groups taking turns in the roles of speaker and
active listeners. Older students can practice sharing opinions on class
reading or plans for college or career.
Social Skill: How to Greet Others
Skill Steps:
1. Look at the person.
2. Use a pleasant voice.
3. Say, “Hi” or “Hello.”
Classroom Activity: Challenge your students to come up with 25 or more possible
greetings they
can use with each other, with you or with a classroom guest. Include
greetings in different languages. Each morning, go around the room and
have each student offer a greeting to the class.
Social Skill: Following Instructions
Skill Steps:
1. Look at the person.
2. Say okay.
3. Do what you’ve been asked to do right away
4. Check back in with the person.
Classroom Activity: Play
classroom games that help students to increase their ability to follow
instructions with traditional games like Simon Says and Red Light, Green
Light. Or challenge your students to a scavenger hunt around the
classroom or school. Explain that theirs is no way to succeed without
following directions precisely. As with all the skills, have your
students go through the steps every time you issue a request until they
become second nature.
Social Skill: Asking for Help
Skill Steps:
1. Look at the person.
2. Ask the person if he or she has time to help you.
3. Clearly explain the kind of help you need.
4. Thank the person for helping.
Classroom Activity: Asking
for help can be difficult for many students and even adults. In a class
meeting, have student practice this skill by taking a fun and playful
approach. On separate notecards, write down situations in which a person
is asking for help, e.g., “a man asking a stranger for help moving a
piano,” “a teacher asking a colleague for help grading a huge pile of
papers,” “an astronaut asking for help getting out of his suit.”
Invite pairs of students to pick a notecard to act out the scene
including all the steps!
Social Skill: How to Get the Teacher’s Attention
Skill Steps:
1. Look at the teacher.
2. Raise your hand and stay calm.
3. Wait until the teacher says your name or nods at you.
4. Ask your question.
Classroom Activity: Start
by asking your students: “What is the WRONG way to get your teacher’s
attention?” Encourage them to demonstrate all the wrong ways—waving
their hands in the air wildly, jumping up and down, calling out, etc.
They will enjoy this! Then, have volunteers model the correct way to get
your attention.
Social Skill: How to Disagree Appropriately
Skill Steps:
1. Look at the person.
2. Use a pleasant voice.
3. Say, “I understand how you feel.”
4. Tell why you feel differently.
5. Give a reason.
6. Listen to the other person
Classroom Activity: Disagreeing
without arguing is a skill that many adults as well as kids and teens
find difficult. Like all social skills, it takes resources and practice.
That’s why going over the steps of each skill is so important. Give
students the chance to practice debating and disagreeing when the stakes
are low. For example, write a controversial statement on the board such
as, “Rum raisin is the very best flavor of ice cream,” or “Rap is not
music,” and invite your students to disagree politely!
Social Skill: How to Make an Apology
Skill Steps:
1. Look at the person.
2. Use your best serious, sincere voice.
3. Begin with “I’m sorry for…”, or “I want to apologize for…”
4. Do your best not to make excuses.
5. Explain how you plan to do better in the future.
6. Say, “Thanks for listening.”
Classroom Activity: Let’s
face it: apologizing is hard, but it does get easier with practice.
Consider tying your discussion of apologies to a book you are reading as
a class. From David Shannon’s picture book No, David! to Louise Fitzhugh’s classic Harriet the Spy, many stories lend themselves to discussions of social skills, mistakes, and apologies.
Social Skill: How to Accept “No” for an Answer
Skill Steps:
1. Look at the person.
2. Say okay.
3. Stay calm.
4. If you disagree, return to the subject later in a respectful manner.
Classroom Activity: Accepting
“no” can be difficult when we feel strongly about a situation. This is a
skill that needs to be modeled repeatedly as its draws on other
important skills. In order to accept “no”
gracefully, a child needs to be able to respect authority, see
another’s point of view, and have self control. Write 5-6 situations on
notecards and give them to groups of students. Examples: The class
wants to ask the teacher to hold class outside. Asking your parents if
you can watch an R rated movie. Challenge students to model how they
will ask, and how they will handle the answer. Talk about how they
could return to the subject with a respectful argument at another time.
Link
