Recipient Organization
UNH Cooperative Extension
RM 212 Nesmith Hall, 131 Main St
DURHAM,NH 03824
Performing Department
Cooperative Extension
Non Technical Summary
Although much national attention and a growing body of evidence has emerged describing what some have posited is an ?epidemic? of bullying behaviors and peer victimization among school children in the United States, only a few studies and solutions have been targeted specifically at rural communities (Kulig, Hall and Kalischuk, 2007; Stockdale, et al, 2002). The evidence appears to be clear that peer victimizing behaviors related to poor school climate and culture are growing just as fast or faster in rural communities than in urban and suburban ones and that those behaviors have lasting and often devastating consequences to the victims and the perpetrators as well as those who witness the behaviors. (Crosby, Oehler & Capaccioli, 2010; Dulmus, Theriot & Sowers, 2004). This project will implement and study a new Cooperative Extension curriculum titled The Courage to Care (CTC) that is designed to engage rural middle school students in reducing the health risks of bullying. The CTC program was based on Social and Emotional Learning design (Ragazinno and O?Brien, 2009) and on the seminal works of Peterson and Seligman (2004) to address the known causes of bullying in rural peer culture and climate as outlined in Espelage and Swearer (2011). Programmatic objectives include increased awareness, skills and practice that will serve to prevent or ameliorate the impact of bullying and related peer victimization behavior during middle school years while also promoting healthy changes in the climate and culture of rural schools and communities. A ten (10) session program, (nine (9) with youth, one (1) with parent/guardians) will be implemented with two classes of 7th grade students in each of three (3) rural N.H. middle schools. Youth sessions will include lessons to learn in response to original video clips developed for this project, experiential activities and ongoing practice assignments. Parent/guardians will participate in an Understanding Bullying education program with guidance on communication and working with their child, school and other community programs. Two faculty at each regional middle school will be trained supported and receive curriculum materials. A quasi-experimental design, using a random control, will be developed and implemented. This program?s uniqueness lies in its approach to the problem. While most anti-bullying programs are aimed myopically at addressing intervention (Yoon & Barton, 2008), this program takes a positivist approach by building on the capacities of individual students to resist participating in bullying behaviors and to demonstrate courage and caring in the middle school environment in an effort to reduce the antecedent behaviors related to bullying and meanness. It will also test the effectiveness of such a program in reducing bullying and mean behaviors among seventh graders.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
Goal: To advance rural health by reducing the health and safety risks uniquely associated with bullying and related peer victimization among youth in rural communities through the design, implementation and evaluation of an education program designed to engage and impact middle school students, their families, local schools and communities. Objective 1: To increase rural middle school students' knowledge, skills, and practice of courage and caring in peer interactions as measured by pre-post education program data and in comparison to a control group sample. Indicators will include: student awareness of the nature of bullying and peer victimization, development of skills to prevent bullying and support actual or potential victims, and demonstrated practice of courage and caring for others. Objective 2: To increase the capacity of students in rural middle schools to make healthy changes in the climate and culture of their schools and communities as indicated by post program data from youth, their families and school faculty Indicators will include increased student interest and motivation to make a positive difference in their schools and communities. Objective 3: To increase rural parents' abilities to effectively engage and support their children to demonstrate courage and caring in peer interactions. Indicators will include increased parent-child communication, development of a prevention plan,and expressed support for their child to exhibit courage and caring with others. Objective 4: To motivate parents to become more actively involved in promoting healthy changes in the climate and culture of their schools and communities. Indicators will include increased parent awareness of school bullying policy and behavior expectations and increased interest and motivation to impact positive changes in their school and community.
Project Methods
This team developed a curriculum that addresses nine (9) areas identified in the research as factors contributing to bullying behavior, by standing, and peer victimization in school and community climate and culture. 1.Understanding power over others in school climate and culture and how it can be used for positive or negative results; 2.Caring for others: Developing respect, kindness, compassion, empathy and generosity; 3Being mindful and reducing reactive behavior towards others. 4Social learning and citizenship 5.Having insight into the needs, feelings, and moods of others and being able to read the nonverbal cues that indicate those needs and moods. 6.Understanding how to deal with group pressure, cliques, stereotypes and developing individual moral identity within groups. 7.Showing courage: developing strength and practicing action; 8.How to display courage in the Cyber-Village: being a good net citizen 9.Closing ceremony and validation of school values contract; Each CTC lesson is designed to be one 50 minute class section in length and contains three separate learning elements to accommodate the variety of learning styles of middle school participants. Objective 1 requires the assessment of students' knowledge, skills and practice of courage and caring in peer interactions through pre-post test using validated tools or appropriately designing/adapting questions to assess learning, motivation and behavior. Objective 2 requires the assessment of student capacity to make healthy changes in the climate and culture of their school. Objective 3 requires the assessment of parents to engage and support their children to demonstrate courage and caring in peer interactions.. Objective 4 requires the assessment of parents' motivation and actions to become more involved in promoting healthy changes in the climate and culture of their school and community. A quantitative statistical analysis will be undertaken to insure any reported increase in pre-post learning with respect to student knowledge, skills and behavior objectives (1 &2) as compared to the students in control classes is significant and not a chance finding. This most important analysis will provide a ground for demonstrate the effectiveness of the CTC activities as an evidence-based program worthy of further implementation and replication in other rural schools and communities. Data from parents and teacher questionnaires will also be analyzed to provide evaluative insight into their perception of class and individual student improvements with respect to objectives 1 & 2. Parent survey data will additionally be analyzed to assess any self reported increase in communication, support and school/community involvements. Finally, feedback will be solicited via a survey from all involved teachers, principals and program staff regarding their impressions of the project with respect to the quality of materials, training, support and collaboration, as well as potential future activity to further implement and advance the CTC project.