Driving School Improvement Planning with Community and Youth Collaborative Institute School Experience Surveys (CAYCI-SES)

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-17
Author(s):  
Dawn Anderson-Butcher ◽  
Anthony Amorose ◽  
Samantha M Bates ◽  
Aidyn L Iachini ◽  
Annahita Ball ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
School Improvement ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Psychometric Testing ◽  
Community Context ◽  
School Experience ◽  
School Social Workers ◽  
School Improvement Planning ◽  
Stakeholder Groups ◽  
Conditions For Learning

Abstract The aim of this article is to describe the Community and Youth Collaborative Institute School Experience Surveys (CAYCI-SES). The CAYCI-SES measures are free and available to use with permission. The tools include valid and reliable surveys, assessments, and scales to help school stakeholders to identify and assess school climate and other conditions for learning. The CAYCI-SES gather data about the school environment across stakeholder groups and the broader school–family–community context known to influence student learning and youth development. For example, the measures include four survey versions: elementary school student, middle/high school student, parent/caregiver, and teacher/school staff. The CAYCI-SES also are valuable evaluation tools used to inform school planning and improvement efforts. This article describes each of the CAYCI-SES surveys and provides an overview of the process used for psychometric testing and instructions for implementation. Authors also discuss examples of schools and districts that have used the measures and implications for how school social workers may use the survey findings to address or identify needs, improve outcomes, and guide school improvement efforts.

scholarly journals The sensory school: working with teachers, parents and pupils to create good sensory conditions

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Martin ◽  
Damian Elgin Maclean Milton ◽  
Joanna Krupa ◽  
Sally Brett ◽  
Kim Bulman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
School Improvement ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Research Team ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Team Members ◽  
School Improvement Planning ◽  
Collaborative Community ◽  
Autistic People

Purpose An alliance of schools and researchers formed a collaborative community of practice in order to understand and improve the sensory school environment for pupils on the autistic spectrum, and incorporate the findings into school improvement planning. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach Representatives of special and mainstream schools in South London and a team of researchers formed the project team, including an autistic researcher. The researchers and a named staff member from each of the schools met regularly over the course of 18 months in order to work on an iterative process to improve the sensory experience pupils had of the school environment. Each school completed sensory audits and observations, and was visited by members of the research team. Parents were involved via meetings with the research team and two conferences were organised to share findings. Findings Useful outcomes included: developing and sharing of good practice between schools; opportunities for parents of autistic pupils to discuss their concerns, particularly with someone with insider perspective; and exploration of creative ways to achieve pupil involvement and the idea that good autism practice has the potential to benefit all pupils. A resource pack was produced for the schools to access. Plans are in place to revisit the initiative in 12 months’ time in order to ascertain whether there have been long-term benefits. Originality/value Projects building communities of practice involving autistic people as core team members are rare, yet feedback from those involved in the project showed this to be a key aspect of shared learning.

Calling Social Work to the Movement for Educational Justice

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annahita Ball
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Valuable Insight ◽  
Educational Justice ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Conditions For Learning ◽  
History Of

Abstract The persistent and systemic inequities within the U.S. public education system have grave implications for children’s and youth’s outcomes, yet these inequities go far beyond academics. Marginalized and vulnerable students experience injustices across the educational system, including disproportionality in school discipline, unequal access to advanced courses, and poor conditions for learning. Social work has a solid history of addressing issues that intersect across families, schools, and communities, but the profession has had little engagement in the recent educational justice movement. As educational scholars advance a movement to address educational inequities, it will be increasingly important for social work researchers to provide valuable insight into the multiple components that make up youth development and support positive well-being for all individuals within a democratic society. This article encourages social work researchers to extend lines of inquiry that investigate educational justice issues by situating social work practice and research within educational justice and suggesting an agenda for future social work research that will advance equity for all students.

scholarly journals Evaluation of a Positive Youth Development Program for Adolescents with Greater Psychosocial Needs: Integrated Views of Program Implementers

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 1890-1900 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel T. L. Shek ◽  
Cecilia M. S. Ma ◽  
Rachel C. F. Sun
Keyword(s):  
Youth Development ◽  
Program Effectiveness ◽  
Development Program ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Program Improvement ◽  
Outcome Evaluation ◽  
School Social Workers ◽  
Tier 2 ◽  
Psychosocial Needs ◽  
Youth Development Program

To help adolescents with greater psychosocial needs, the Tier 2 Program of the Project P.A.T.H.S. (Positive Adolescent Training through Holistic Social Programmes) was designed and implemented by school social workers and teachers. Based on subjective outcome evaluation data collected from the program participants (n = 2,542) in 49 schools, program implementers were invited to write down five conclusions based on an integration of the evaluation findings. With reference to 245 conclusions included in the 49 evaluation reports, secondary data analyses showed that most of the conclusions concerning perceptions of the Tier 2 Program, instructors, and program effectiveness were positive. In addition, difficulties encountered and recommendations for program improvement were highlighted. In conjunction with previous evaluation findings, the present study suggests that the Tier 2 Program was well received and was perceived to be beneficial to the development of adolescents with greater psychosocial needs.

scholarly journals Leadership Styles of Principals and Teachers of Nigerian Unity Schools: Using School Environment as a Tool For School Achievement

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 98
Author(s):  
Khalil Yusuf Uthman ◽  
Yahya Bn Don ◽  
Abd Latif Kasim
Keyword(s):  
Transformational Leadership ◽  
School Improvement ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
School Environment ◽  
School Achievement ◽  
School Level ◽  
Learning Collaborative ◽  
The North ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Teachers And Students

Collaborative, non-traditional leadership practices have attracted little attention in research about sustainable school achievement in Nigerian unity schools.  The involvement of teachers in the administration of schools is well justified and arise from the need to boost school environment for the sake of attaining school achievement. The absence of teachers in the administration of unity schools impedes the proper attainment of school achievement. The purpose of this research is to reports on the outcomes of transformational leadership efforts in Nigerian unity schools aimed at enhancing the use of teachers in the administrative set-up.  This study was carried out in seven selected unity schools all located in the north-eastern part of Nigeria. The study used  Multifactor questionnaire 5x, School level environment questionnaire (SLEQ) and School Improvement questionnaire (SIQ) with 5 Likert-scale that involved the use of 800 questionnaires which were sent in which 790 were returned and 760 found valid for data analysis. Participants were drawn from a wide range of disciplines across the sampled schools. The establishment and operation of these school relied on a transformational leadership methodology by principals that facilitates acts of initiative, innovation, vision and courage through group interaction rather than through designated hierarchical roles. This research used the quantitative approach.  The study found out that transformational leadership approach is effective in overcoming problems associated with lack of involvement of teachers in the building of a fruitful environment capable of bringing a good school achievement through cultivating the habit of a transformational leader, the principals of unity schools enabled teachers and other stake holders to engage in peer-led professional learning, collaborative curriculum and pedagogical development, and to facilitate wider institutional change (school achievement). This paper demonstrates that the transformational leadership model for a high school achievement reported here is effective in building capacity for both teachers and students via involvement of teachers in building the environment. The model is flexible enough for a variety of institutional settings, and hence, recommends the use of teachers in secondary school’s administration.

School climate perceptions of ethnically diverse students: Does school diversity matter?

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (6) ◽  
pp. 625-645 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leandra Parris ◽  
Jesslynn Rocha Neves ◽  
Tamika La Salle
Keyword(s):  
School Climate ◽  
School Improvement ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
School Connectedness ◽  
Risky Behaviors ◽  
Future Research ◽  
School Diversity ◽  
Perceptions Of School

Student perceptions of school climate have been linked to a number of outcome variables; specifically, more positive perceptions of school climate are associated with academic achievement, social and emotional wellness, and reduced risky behaviors. Considering student perceptions of school climate can help to guide the selection and implementation of culturally-responsive, targeted school improvement efforts. Further, the ways that students experience and perceive the school environment have been shown to vary based on student reported racial/ethnic identity. In the present study, moderation analyses established a significant impact of school diversity (i.e., high diversity or low diversity) on the relationship between student race/ethnicity, perceptions of school climate, and associated subscales including school connectedness, peer and adult support, and cultural awareness. Contrary to prior research, as school diversity increased, perceptions of school climate decreased, with Asian participants least affected. Implications of the findings and directions for future research are discussed.

scholarly journals External resources of resilience in association with the alcohol use among early adolescents

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
L Abrinkova ◽  
O Orosová ◽  
M Bacikova-Sleskova ◽  
M Štefaňáková ◽  
B Gajdošová
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
Home Environment ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Early Adolescents ◽  
International Study ◽  
Repeated Measure ◽  
Outcome Variable ◽  
External Resources

Abstract Background This study aimed to explore the role of external resources of resilience in explaining the alcohol use in past 30 days among early adolescents. Methods A representative sample of 653 (52.9% girls) early adolescents (mean age =11.72 at T1; mean age = 13.09 at T5) was collected within a five wave repeated measure design with a baseline(T1), 3-month follow up(T2), 6-month (T3), 12-month(T4) and 18-month follow-up(T5). Alcohol use (AU) in the past 30 days was measured by a questionnaire of the international study ESPAD. School support (SS), school activities participation (SAP), home support (HS) and home activities participation (HAP) were measured by the Resilience Youth Development Module and represented external resources of resilience. Respondent's AU (dichotomized: 0-not used, 1-used) served as the outcome variable and external resources of resilience served as the independent variables. Binary logistic regressions were used to analyze the data. Results At T1, SS (95% CI = 0.77-0.96; p<0.01) was associated with lower AU while SAP (95% CI = 1.00-1.36; p<0.05) was associated with higher AU. At T2, SS (95% CI = 0.73-0.94; pα<0.01) and HS (95% CI = 0.70-0.98; pα<0.05) were associated with lower AU. AT T3, no significant association was found with AU and finally at T4 and T5 only HS (95% CI = 0.81-1.00; T4=pα<0.05), (95% CI = 0.78-0.96; T5=pα<0.01) remained significantly associated with lower AU at T4 and T5 while controlling for alcohol use at T1. AU increased significantly across the five waves (pα<0.01). Gender differences in AU were found only at T1 (p<0.01) with boys scoring higher. Conclusions The 5 measurement revealed a trend of the external resources of resilience in AU shifting from the school environment to the home environment. Moreover, it seems that SAP is associated with a higher probability of AU through more opportunities for group activities which are often associated with AU. Key messages School environment plays an important role in explaining AU in younger early adolescents. Home environment plays an important role in explaining AU in older early adolescents. The results point to an increasing trend in alcohol use among early adolescents.

scholarly journals Positive Youth Development Programs Targeting Students with Greater Psychosocial Needs: A Replication

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 261-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tak Yan Lee ◽  
Daniel T.L. Shek
Keyword(s):  
Youth Development ◽  
Outcome Evaluation ◽  
School Social Workers ◽  
Tier 2 ◽  
Development Programs ◽  
Psychosocial Needs ◽  
Volunteer Training ◽  
Implementation Phase ◽  
Training Activities ◽  
Adventure Based Counseling

The Tier 2 Program of the Project P.A.T.H.S. (Positive Adolescent Training through Holistic Social Programmes) targets adolescents with greater psychosocial needs, and the related programs were designed and implemented by school social workers. After completion of the Tier 2 Program (Secondary 1 Level), 9,931 participants in 212 schools responded to the Subjective Outcome Evaluation Form (Form C) in order to assess their views of the program, workers, and perceived effectiveness of the program. Based on the consolidated reports submitted by the agencies to the funding body, the research team aggregated the consolidated data to form a “reconstructed” overall profile on the perceptions of the program participants. Four major types of program were identified, including programs based on the adventure-based counseling approach (n = 58), programs concentrating on volunteer training and services (n = 31), programs offering both adventure-based counseling and volunteer training activities (n = 91), and other programs with different foci (n = 32). Results showed that high proportions of the respondents had positive perceptions of the programs and the workers, and over four-fifths of the respondents regarded the program as helpful to them. The present study provides support for the effectiveness of the Tier 2 Program of the Project P.A.T.H.S. in Hong Kong for the Full Implementation Phase.

Dimensions of School Climate: Teachers' or Principals' Power Styles and Subjects' Propensities to Be Climate Vigilant as Related to Students' Perceptions of Satisfaction and of Peers' Abusive Behavior

2002 ◽  
Vol 91 (1) ◽  
pp. 257-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Verhoek-Miller ◽  
Duane I. Miller ◽  
Miyoko Shirachi ◽  
Nicholas Hoda
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
School Climate ◽  
Physical Abuse ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Psychological Abuse ◽  
School Teacher ◽  
School Experience ◽  
Abusive Behavior ◽  
Expert Power ◽  
Positive Correlations

Two studies investigated teachers' and principals' power styles as related to college students' retrospective ratings of satisfaction and peers' abusive behavior. One study also investigated retrospective self-perception as related to students' sensitivity to the occurrence of physical and psychological abuse in the school environment. Among the findings were positive correlations between subjects' perceptions that their typical elementary school teacher used referent, legitimate, or expert power styles and subjects' reported satisfaction with their elementary school experience. Small but statistically significant correlations were found suggesting that principals' power style was weakly associated with ratings of psychological abuse in elementary school and physical abuse in middle school. Also, students who rated themselves as intelligent, sensitive, attractive, and depressive had higher ratings of perceived psychological and physical abuse at school. It was concluded that parameters of leaders' power styles and subjects' vigilance might be useful for understanding school climates. Experimentally designed studies are required.

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