Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

School Psychologists’ Knowledge And Perceived Competence Regarding Concussion Management In Schools, Braelyn Tracy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury that can have a serious effect on a young, developing brain. Following a concussion, it is common for children and adolescents to experience difficulties in the school setting. Schools may be the ideal setting to address some of the problems children experience as schools employ some personnel with expertise and experience in assessment and intervention. If return to learn is put to the side, students experiencing concussion signs and symptoms could potentially have long-term cognitive problems. School psychologists play a key role in the prevention and assessment of, and intervention for …

Promoting Equity In Education: Fostering Positive School Climates Where All Students Learn, Rebecca Bakkedahl, Jessica Bernier, Karen Hernandez, Samantha Koktan

Master of Social Work Student Policy Advocacy Briefs

Students of color and students with disabilities are disproportionately impacted by exclusionary discipline in our schools. Suspensions, removals, and expulsions do not work. There is strong evidence to suggest that such punitive practices do not deter misbehavior. They are a pathway to students dropping out of school and a gateway to involvement with the criminal justice system. Minnesota must end exclusionary disciplinary practices and replace these punitive approaches with practices that create opportunity and foster a positive, supportive, affirming school climate where all students can learn, grow, and thrive.

A Longitudinal Examination Of Peer Victimization On Depressive Symptoms Among Asian American School‑Aged Youth, Prerna G. Arora, Lorey A. Wheeler, Sycarah Fisher, Marymilt Restituyo, Jessica Barnes‑Najor

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The current study sought to examine the prospective relationship of peer victimization on changes in Asian American youth’s depressive symptoms during early adolescence, a crucial period for the development of depression and engagement in peer victimization among youth. Further, as guided by cultural–ecological frameworks, the current study also sought to examine the role of school-based peer support and gender as moderators on the relationship between peer victimization and depressive symptoms among this understudied population. Participants included Asian American youth (N = 232; M age = 12.96, SD = 1.40; 51% girls) who completed questionnaires in the school context. Data …

Teachers’ Perceptions Of The Home-School Collaboration: Enhancing Learning For Children With Autism, Chana S. Josilowski

The Qualitative Report

This study aimed to explore the relationship between teachers and students’ families and address the deficiencies in the body of research regarding the performance gap between children with autism and their age-equivalent peers. The research question was: How do teachers of children with autism perceive the home-school collaboration and its impact on learning? Ten state-certified special educators with at least 3 years’ experience teaching children with autism, and experience collaborating with their students’ families participated in face-to-face interviews, answering 8 open-ended questions in this generic qualitative study. Inductive thematic analysis yielded 6 themes: (a) collaboration improves learning, (b) communication is …

Expanding Full-Service Community Schools Into Rural Minnesota, Rachel Cox Raverty, Lindsey Gilbert, Jessica Goettl, Claire Otto, Korissa Smith

Master of Social Work Student Policy Advocacy Briefs

Communities throughout rural Minnesota would greatly benefit from full-service community schools to support academic achievement and contribute to thriving communities. Lack of health and human services, mental health disparities, and cultural divides are among the greatest concerns for students in rural areas. One in 5 children birth to eighteen has a diagnosable mental health condition and 1 out of every 10 children experience a mental health problem that is severe enough to impair how they function at home, in school, and in their communities. When youth come to school hungry or experiencing in-home trauma, academic success is hard to achieve. …

High School Students' Perceptions Of Safety Concerns Predicts School Avoidance, Ann Marie Howard

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

School violence is a growing concern and an impending danger for American youth. Students' perceptions of violent school incidents may lead to fear and this fear may lead to school avoidance. Although researchers have found that teenage pregnancy and working to support family are two of the main reasons that students stay home from school, there has been no research conducted on whether students' perceptions of safety concerns, solely focusing on the presence of guns, gangs, student bullying, and fear of victimization, predict their decision to stay home from school. Therefore, based on social disorganization and resilience theories, the purpose …

Mindfulness Training For Pre-Service Teachers Using Ecological Momentary Assessment, Emily A. Hattouni

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

There is a high-rate of burnout among teachers around the US often linked with the increasing stressors and demands (e.g., Iancu, Rusu, Măroiu, Păcurar, & Maricuțoiu, 2018). Additionally, Jennings and Greenberg (2009) demonstrated the importance of teachers’ social and emotional competence for promoting well-being and academic success in classrooms. Stress that is overwhelming or unaddressed can lead to teacher burnout, but there may be effective ways of promoting self-care among teachers, such as mindfulness-based practices. The current project included psychoeducation on the applications of mindfulness for teachers and repeated collections of self-report questionnaires to investigate the utility of mindfulness-training for …

School Connectedness And Academic Success, Keyondra Michelle Wilson

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Using data collected from the Portsmouth Needs Assessment (2017) in Portsmouth, Virginia, this study focused on examining the relationship between school connectedness and academic success. The purpose of the study was to examine how aspects of school connectedness affects academic success. School connectedness was measured by examining self-report data regarding students’ sense of belonging, sense of culture and ethnic acceptance, classroom participation, and extracurricular activities. Academic success was measured by students’ self-reported grades and how often did they think that they would use the materials that they learned in the future. The results indicated that a student’s sense of belonging …

An Examination Of School Shootings And Mental Health: A Comparative Case Study, Emily Kaufman

Honors Theses

School shootings have become more relevant in our society over the past few decades, yet the debate over the cause of these shootings never seems to reach a conclusion. The current study looks at the connection between mental illness and school shootings, as well as the roles that media, gun control, violence, and masculinity play in the common phenomena. Prior literature has debated over the main causes of school shootings, but many researchers state differing opinions regarding the motivations for perpetrators. This study found that severe mental illness is the main cause of school shootings, and while mental illness may …

The Predictive Nature Of Vicarious Trauma In School Counselors, Connie J. Honsinger

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the past decade, the counseling profession has begun to recognize the impact of vicarious trauma on counselors who provide services to individuals who have experienced trauma. The constructivist self-development theory asserts that interpersonal frameworks can determine healthy versus unhealthy coping styles and impact a counselor's susceptibility to vicarious trauma. Researchers have explored vicarious trauma in a number of professions such as mental health counseling and social work however they have not examined potential risk factors specific to school counseling. The purpose of this correlational study was to investigate variables associated with vicarious trauma in school counselors. The research focused …

The Construction Of “Discomfort Psychological”: An Exploration Of Italians Teachers' Reports, Antonio Iudici, Matteo Fabbri

The Qualitative Report

Although there are several studies on youth problems in school, there are few studies on how teachers report psychological discomfort of the students and on what criteria does their procedure. Considering that schools increasingly make such reports to social or neuropsychiatry services, we wanted to find out whether it is flawless (bias, etc.) and how it can affect a student's career. This research presents an investigation on how the practice of signaling "psychological discomfort" at school is set up. Objects of the survey are the procedures used by the teachers to submit the psychological problems. The research subjects were Secondary …

The Missouri Student Transfer Program, Howard E. Fields Iii

Dissertations

In 1993, the state of Missouri passed the Outstanding Schools Act. This law was created as a means to ensure that “all children will have quality educational opportunities, regardless of where in Missouri they live.” Section 167.131 of this law states that an unaccredited district must pay the tuition and transportation cost for students who attend an accredited school in the same or adjoining district. This portion of the law became known as the Student Transfer Program.

The Riverview Gardens School District (RGSD) was one of three unaccredited school districts in the state of Missouri in 2013. With close to …

Stop Truancy Before It Starts: Getting Every Kid To School, Everyday, Brittany Roulette, Hannah Twedt, Paula Skala

Master of Social Work Student Policy Advocacy Briefs

Attending school consistently builds a foundation for academic achievement and social success in the future. Students missing an excessive number of school days throughout childhood for any reason experience increasingly negative outcomes as they grow older. When truancy leads to dropping out of school, this costs individuals money in lost wages associated with reduced education levels. Truancy also costs society as a whole in reduced tax collection, increased crime, and increased need for public services. Research demonstrates that minority students and youth with other risk-factors are more likely to experience school disengagement leading to truancy. Punitive school policies such as …

Predicting And Reducing Aggression And Violence Toward Teachers: Extent Of The Problem And Why It Matters, Susan D. Mcmahon, Andrew Martinez, Linda A. Reddy, Dorothy L. Espelage, Eric M. Anderman

School of Social Work Faculty Publications

Although violence prevention has largely focused on students, national and state-level studies suggest that teacher-directed violence warrants attention by researchers, policy makers, and school stakeholders. In this chapter, we provide an overview of the empirical literature on teacher-directed violence, including the extent of the problem, types of violence teachers experience, measurement issues, and how this problem varies across perpetrators and social contexts. We specify recommendations for assessment, including developing and using reliable and valid measures to better understand teachers' experiences with violence. Violence prevention approaches are described, and we advocate for assessment and intervention that incorporate teacher experiences. Using a …

Gambling Education Programs For Adolescents: A Systematic Review, Brittany Keen, Alex Blaszczynski, Fadi Anjoul

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

Around two thirds of Australian adolescents aged 10-14 years old have gambled in the last year, and rates of problem gambling are up to four times higher among adolescents than in the adult population. Schools provide a unique opportunity to intervene in cognitive and behavioural development, and while several gambling education programs exist in schools across Australia and internationally, few have been empirically evaluated. The purpose of this review was to provide a systematic appraisal of the published research on gambling education programs for adolescents. The review aimed to identify the number and quality of studies that have evaluated gambling …

The Evaluation Of Family-School Collaboration With Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Families, Samantha Silver

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

Research has demonstrated that when parents are involved in their children’s academic and school life, children experience improved language achievement, overall behavior, grades, test scores, have improved attendance, and a lower chance of dropping out of school (Friend and Cook, 2007). Despite the growing diversity of U.S. schools, there is a still a systemic lack of effort to include parents of culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. This research study sought to examine barriers to establishing a successful collaborative relationship with these families from the perspective of elementary, middle, and high school teachers using an online survey. A total of 39 …

"I Cannot Teach Because I Am Not Smart": Working Class Mothers’ Support For Their Children's Education In Japan, Yoko Yamamoto

2013 New England Association for Asian Studies Conference

Social class is a powerful element which predicts mothers’ support for their children’s academic development in Japan. Middle class mothers tend to hold higher educational expectations, invest in their children’s educational opportunities, and interact with the teachers more frequently than working class mothers (Stevenson & Stigler, 1992; Yamamoto, 2006). While ample evidence shows social class differences in parents’ academic support, few have examined why working class mothers are not as involved in their children’s education as middle class mothers. In order to understand the mechanisms of social class reproduction and mobility, it is critical to investigate the experiences and elements …

Trauma And Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Therapeutic Day School Students: Prevalence In This Population And Effective Treatment Programs, Monica Roberts

Dissertations

This survey-based, comparative study investigated the percentage of students at a suburban Chicago therapeutic day school who meet criteria for clinically significant levels of PTSD as compared to students in a general education setting. The directional hypothesis was that students placed at therapeutic day schools have a higher prevalence of PTSD than a general population of students. The method used was a survey assessment called the Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS) given to 16 students at a suburban Chicago therapeutic day school. These CPSS scores were analyzed and statistically compared to CPSS scores of an already published study with students …

Natural Hazards Education In Australian Schools: How Can We Make It More Effective?, Neil Dufty

Neil Dufty

No abstract provided.

Use Of The Pals Test To Differentiate Between High Achieving And Low Achieving Fifth Gradestudents: A Validity Study, Mickey H. Parson

All Master's Theses

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if the PALS Tests (Williams, 1958, 1961, 1964) would significantly differentiate between low achieving and hie;h achieving 5th-grade students. The basic design was the same basic design as used by Williams (1961), except that high achieving and low achieving students were used instead of acting-out and normal children. It was intended that this research supplement existing data concerning validity of the PALS Tests. The test author (Williams 1958, 1961, 1964) seems to be the only person who has conducted research regarding the PALS.