It's Kindness Week, and there's no greater kindness – for and from people of all ages – than what's being demonstrated in Morgan County, W.V., where great need is being met with great cooperation. County residents have created a web of youth-focused programs supporting kids in and out of school. I've been hearing about the growth of this amazing web of care since I met Gary McDaniel, a clinical … [Read more...] about True school safety: A ‘compassion network’ in & around schools in Morgan County, W.V.
school safety
Social problem data & youth: Cause for celebration
"We should be celebrating young people’s good judgment and self-control — and extolling their parents and teachers," writes David Finkelhor, director of University of New Hampshire's Crimes Against Children Research Center, in a Washington Post article just before Thanksgiving. "They have brought delinquency, truancy, promiscuity, alcohol abuse and suicide down to levels unseen in many cases since … [Read more...] about Social problem data & youth: Cause for celebration
Less bullying & fear at school: Fresh federal data
Do people ever consider the possibility that, if they're exposed to increased reports about a social problem, it's the reporting that has increased rather than the problem? It's increasingly clear that this is the case with school bullying: Only news reports about it have increased, not the behavior itself. In fact, both bullying and fear of it are down among US middle school students (the grade … [Read more...] about Less bullying & fear at school: Fresh federal data
Invaluable social literacy lessons from an anti-bullying conference
This is genuine progress. My thanks to Lisa Jones at the University of New Hampshire for pointing me to the recent Beyond Bullying Summit's "top three takeaways." Notably, they're all about social literacy: "SEL [social-emotional learning] is not adding to your plate. It is the plate," said Ed Dunkelblau, founder and director of the Institute for Emotionally Intelligent Learning. "Effective … [Read more...] about Invaluable social literacy lessons from an anti-bullying conference