Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Critical Need For Mental Health Education To Be Mandated In New Mexico's Public Schools, Bonnie L. Murphy

Shared Knowledge Conference

Based on a review of research and best practices in mental health awareness and skills, this inquiry project argues for state legislative policies that would require mental health awareness and skills in the K-12 curriculum. Mental health affects individual accomplishments in every stage of people’s lives beginning in early childhood and throughout the life cycle. Prevention and treatment of mental illness plays a key role in the ability of an individual to cope with loss and develop resiliency and perseverance in challenging times and to make better decisions that improve the individual’s life and the lives of those around them. …

Heteronormativity In Kindergarten Classrooms, Megan Martsolf

Undergraduate Research Conference

Heteronormativity is the belief that people fall into distinct and complementary genders with natural roles in life. The idea is that the culture within elementary schools influences the children’s academic, behavioral, and psychological well-being. During this period of a child’s life, heteronormativity develops. The purpose of this research is to gain a greater understanding of the prevalence of heteronormativity in elementary school classrooms, specifically kindergarten. To understand this process, I will systematically observe classrooms within kindergarten. The methodological approach of this research will include both qualitative and quantitative analysis, specifically interviews with teachers and content analysis of the classroom environment. …

Leading From The In-Between: Disability, Leadership, And Identity, Xochitl Mendez

Lesley University Community of Scholars Day

The daily lives of individuals challenged with physical disabilities shed light on the intersections, as well as the friction, between the identities we forge as individuals, and the social identities of the public space. In this interdisciplinary presentation, I will explore the fault lines between the social concepts of disability and the personal realities and specifics of biology and adaptation.

Exploring my own experiences with disability, pedagogy, and art, I will further delve on how the social realm (Arendt, 1958) evaluates and judges identity from expected modes of interaction that are often not available to the disabled person. Further, using …

Bringing Dis/Ability Identity Into The Curriculum & Pedagogical Practices For Social Change, Janet Sauer, Simone Dupont, Molly Wolber, Lizzy Bellin, Cassidy Donahue

Lesley University Community of Scholars Day

This panel is comprised of a faculty member, students, and alumni from CLAS whose work focuses on bringing about equity that includes dis/ability identity markers. Each of the students were or currently are enrolled in an interdisciplinary Disability Studies course involving a social action project. For their project, two Special Education majors responded to the need for ual education curriculum for youth with disabilities. A counseling major produced a photo essay “to get able bodied people to see things from a different perspective, specifically the perspective of people with disabilities” by creating “normal body” access signage around the Lesley community. …

Empathy In Inclusive Classrooms: Exploring Prosocial Behaviour Through Children’S Academic Writing Skills, Erica J. Partridge

Western Research Forum

Background. Empathy is a crucial means through which diversity is appreciated. Students who are more empathic may be more willing to help other students, subsequently creating a successful inclusive classroom. Applying inclusivity at a young age and throughout the curriculum is optimal for social and emotional development in children. Often, increased development is found by using interactive methods. Narrative writing can improve affective dimension in their writing skills, but it is still unclear if writing skills translates into prosocial behaviour. Method. This study looked at 19 students in Grade 5 whose teacher implemented a language arts curriculum program. The Shakespeare …

Using The Cluster Support Team And Multi-Tiered Systems Of Support To Provide Wraparound Services In A Large Urban School District, Sarah E. Coffey, Lorraine Stallworth, Tony Majors, Kay Higgs, Letrecia Gloster, Yvette Carter, Keith Ekhator

National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference

In this presentation, participants will learn how a large, urban school district utilizes the Cluster Support Team model and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support to provide wraparound services to include school counselors, social workers, behavior analysts, restorative practitioners, and mental health specialists. Participants will receive an overview of support services, and review data from the district.

Trust Building Tools For Talking With Youth During Times Of Conflict, Bonnie C. Springer, Andrea Crist

National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference

This presentation will provide tools and strategies for turning crisis into opportunity. The skills of Life Space Crisis Intervention provide helping adults faced with the extreme behavior of youth during times of crisis strategies which build trust and connections in meaningful and healing ways; turning crisis into opportunity for at risk youth to develop social responsibility and grow emotionally

The Effects Of Transition Programs On The Return To The Community From Residential Juvenile Justice Placement, Lacey C. Ray

National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference

This presentation is literature review of 25 studies evaluating the transitional process from correctional placement into the community by youth ages 10-22. The review emphasizes the connections between engagement, service dosage, academic and vocational training and recidivism, and barriers to reentry with a focus on implications for practitioners.