How to stop bullying in your child's school part 1

My son attends a school with a diverse population.  Some of the students do not have the resources to meet their basic needs.  One day Boy came home and was complaining that a girl next to him kept insisting on borrowing his pencil and would use the eraser up.  This had been happening for a while and he told me he was not sure how to deal with it.

So we drove over to the Dollar Store and picked up a nice pack of pencils with a paper back to the packaging.  I wrote a note on the back addressed to the student.  I told her these pencils were a gift and that she is loved.  I also said if she ran out in a couple of weeks to let me know. After Tom gave her the pencils the girl stopped yelling at him and stopped asking to borrow his pencils.  She began to treat him more like a friend.

I can't imagine how lonely and stressful it must feel for a student who does not have pencils for class. Who hasn't had nightmares of being unprepared for class? This is many student's lived reality.  It was not expensive to help her and it made my son's educational environment more pleasant.

We may not be able to change the world but if there is one kid your child is complaining about ask about supplies and other needs. By reaching out we can change the timbre of our schools.

I do need to add the caveat that if your child is being threatened by a student you need to report that immediately and insist steps are taking to protect your student.  But for low level aggravations we have found sometimes the best way to be rid of a bully is to turn them into a friend or at least a friendly acquaintance.

Amazon is a nice place to stock up on school supplies.  I like these pencils because they use thicker lead that seems to be less prone to break.
https://www.amazon.com/Paper-Mate-SharpWriter-Mechanical-Pencils/dp/B00006IEE4/ref=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til?tag=teachersandco-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=228c78b9d412702a1091deaf68411a8b&creativeASIN=B00006IEE4

MNPS is Finally Implementing Full Service Community Schools!

This morning I attended a meeting on full service community schools organized by a group in MNPS called Community Achieves.  I have heard of them prior to the meeting but I was not familiar with the function of this group.  So many new programs have come and gone since I began keeping up with MNPS, researching this was not on my agenda.

I almost missed learning about Community Achieves at this meeting and that would have been a shame! This program is everything I have been asking for since I began researching poverty affects on scores and wrote this article http://teachersandcompany.blogspot.com/2015/01/map-comparison-level-of-poverty-to.html.  It is still my most popular post with almost 11.000 hits and visitors from around the world.  If you haven't read it yet go ahead and pop over and give it a look.  Don't worry, we'll wait.

The Community Achieves program is based on the research and work of Dr. Bob Kronick.  He developed full service community schools program at the University of Tennessee.. He began his work at the Brushy Mountain State Prison. It was a maximum security institution. His greatest take away from his work there was he knew he did not want children to end up in this prison.  So he began his life work on breaking the prison pipeline.

Kronick states, "There is a systematic destruction when you lose black men to the prison system." This loss destroys families and communities.  This loss is a direct result of the effects of generational poverty.  The main focus of his program is to keep people out of prison.

Dr Bob Kronick then said, "American loves victim blaming." But victim blaming is not addressing the issues.  We need to switch to systems thinking.  Poverty does not happen in a vacuum. There is an entire system that creates the issues around poverty and it's effects.  We will have to treat the whole system.  

He told us system thinking is difficult.  It requires collaboration and listening to the people in the community. Boiler plate does not work in these situations.  Every community is different and each program is tailored to the needs of the community.

In order to gain funding for any program you have to show the program is effective.  This program is the single most effective program I have ever seen for improving scores and outcomes for children in poverty. I was most impressed by his data on behavior referrals.  Behavior referrals are zero! That is unheard of in this population.  This behavioral change creates teachable moments in the school day which helps to fuel the students success.  Truancy rates are down. Math scores are up. Spanish boys are top in math but reading scores were down.

Why were reading scores low? "Because the test is on computers and none of our students had computers."  That changed. The students were given computers and then the scores began to go up.

He recognizes Human Services are fractured and difficult to figure out. It(Human Services) is a system and you have to figure out how to enter the system.

 They help families get into the system so they can get the help they need.  They also bring laundry facilities, counseling, GED programs, what ever is needed is provided in after school programs at Pond Gap School.

Why should these services be provided in schools? "You want to deliver services at schools because that is where the families are."

The program in Knox County has become so effective Pond Gap has become a destination school with families moving into the district.  These families are getting out of poverty at Pond Gap but are choosing to stay in this community.

If you would like to read more about his work, I found his book on Amazon:. Just click this blue link and it should open in another window for you : http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0398072949?creativeASIN=0398072949&linkCode=w00&linkId=FUIPU54CAROIUJKD&ref_=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til&tag=teachersandco-20

Because of Dr Kronick's heroic work these families and this community are forever changed.  I am so excited we are bringing a program like this to MNPS. Over the next few weeks I will tell you more about Community Achieves run by Dr Tony Majors and we will talk about Jill Speering's trip to visit Pond Gap.

I want to say a special thanks to Jill Speering, Shelley Baldwin, Amy Frogge and  Dr Tony Majors who have all fought valiantly for our schools to address poverty . Special thanks also to Bill Freeman.  Bill Freeman is running for Mayor and plans to expand full service schools programs to see that all children in poverty in MNPS have ways to get out.  Bill I hope you win your race.

Tune in next week for the next blog in the series on addressing the poverty gap.  So proud of all of our change bringers!

Some of our change bringers pictured from left to right: Amy Frogge, Dr Tony Majors, Bill Freeman, Dr Bob Kronick, and Jill Speering.

We're Number One

       It's not very often that I get to say that about my state.  I could say it last year because we were the top state in the nation for corruption.  That title will likely be taken from us this year.  The people of Tennessee would like to congratulate New York, a strong contender and likely to win the crown this year.  In earlier years we were close to spending the least on our students but Mississippi drew the spotlight on that one.  That being said there is one area in which Tennessee out does all of her sister states.

       Tennessee has the highest percentage of people earning minimum wage in the United states.  In our state that's $7.25 per hour which makes for an annual salary of $15,080.  So if you are a single parent with two kids that breaks down to around $5000 per person, per year.  You can qualify for food stamps but there are many things food stamps do not cover.  Food stamps only provide for the cost of food.  This program does not cover soap, toilet paper, paper towels, cleaning supplies or so many other things.  The extreme lack of resources leads to stress for everyone in the family.

       The students do not leave the stress at home.  They carry it to school with them.  They also may bring other issues such as effects from poor nutrition and insomnia.  Even though the families are provided with food stamps, urban areas often have food deserts.  In these areas it's difficult to find fresh food and eat a nutritionally sound diet. Families trying to survive on minimum wage cannot afford heaters or air conditioning.  Sometimes they live in sections of town where it is not safe to sleep outside or open a window during the summer.  During August the temperature in the homes can reach up into the 90s.  High temperatures outside or cold can make it challenging to get solid sleep.   These stressed out, sleep deprived, under nourished students attend our public schools.

       In an ideal world struggling students would come into a classroom environment which is low key, peaceful and can help buffer some of the extreme want. Before the "reform" movement schools attended to the whole child. In today's school climate, test scores are stressed and so is every human in poverty schools. Schools which were once a vital underpinning of the community are threatened based on test scores.  Career oriented teachers have been forced to flee poverty schools or have been fired.  The new teachers, who are filling these slots, are dealing with stresses of their own. The average student loan payment for a student graduating and entering the teaching force is $420 per month.

        Some of our starting teachers are also in poverty.  The people who have enough compassion to enter this profession and want to help students do not have the resources due to low salary and crippling student loan debt. The teachers who would have the financial strength to help have been forced to flee these environments.

 For the students in these schools this translates into:

•  no winter coats
• no snacks if you are hungry
• weaker ties to community dentists to help you if you have a cavity 
• weaker ties to health workers if you were bit by a rat last night
•  no baby wipes or deodorant to clean up with
• and added pressure to perform well on tests

These students notice the change and still desperately need the help that was there.

        Public schools were available in the past to buffer against the effects of extreme poverty.  It was a manageable system because our country and state were not grappling with epidemic levels poverty and a minimum wage which bought so little.  There are many more students in poverty and/or homeless than there were 15 years ago. The wage has not kept up with the economy or inflation.

        If we want to improve our public schools, we will first improve outcome for our families by raising the wage.  Secondly, we will forgive the student loans for anyone willing to teach/administer in poverty environments for any 10 year span. Yes, it should be retroactive.

        We should honor the teachers who have served our communities in these unique capacities.  We should pay teachers like professionals and believe them.  Instead the current philosophy blames the teachers for the affects of poor nutrition, poor sleep, and extreme stress with which the students are grappling.  This way of thinking is only benefiting the people profiting by destroying public education. As reformers weaken and kill schools they are robbing these children of a life line they need. We must change our approach!