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School Social Work NOW!
Supporting Innovative Practice,
Effective Leadership, and Applied Research
Vol 6, Issue 29
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Regardless of whether you, yourself, have anxiety these twelve skills and strategies can assist in working with children and youth who exhibit anxiety.
... one of the most powerful things you can do is to construct a toolbox of skills and strategies to implement when those thoughts of worry and stress--and their accompanying physiological responses--take hold. Here are 12 things you may want to include in your toolbox. More.
Imagine a child watches domestic violence going on between her parents. It's not a stretch to think of how scary that must be for her - the people who are supposed to love and protect her are showing just the opposite. One would hope that external forces would come to play that would help change that. But a new piece of research about to be published in the journalPsychology of Violence tells us that the chances of intervention are far less than most of us would hope for.
Researcher Sherry Hamby from The University of the South comes out with some powerful statistics. In more than a third of the cases that her team researched, physical injury occurred yet only one in four cases resulted in a police report. Children were hurt in about one in 75 cases. As Dr. Hamby notes, there is a link between witnessing domestic violence and childhood mental health disorders such as anxiety, depression, becoming a victim in teenage dating and diminished success at school. There is also a link between domestic violence and bullying.
Resources from the Coalition to Support Grieving Students (CSGS) #10
Use and share this and previous papers to help children through loss. They are designed for practitioners, for in-service training, as references, as guidance for parents, and many other avenues. Share these articles freely and tell us what you think.
The Center for School Mental Health at the University of MD has a list of free, downloadable assessment tools that cover several areas of concern or mental health challenges that people encounter: depression, eating disorders, disruptive disorders, anxiety, academic status, and more. This document is available to mental health providers. It is recommended that anyone who wishes to employ these assessments be informed about or trained in their use. Document. |
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Have you ever felt your eyes close halfway through a presentation or, try as you might, been unable to finish reading a team member's report? Maybe you've been the person presenting, wishing the ground would swallow you up as your carefully prepared speech "goes down like a lead balloon."
It can be difficult to hold an audience's attention for the duration of a speech, a report, or even just a conversation, especially in a busy workplace. This is where a tool like the Ladder of Abstraction can help, by allowing you to balance your words so that they engage your audience.
In this article, we examine the Ladder of Abstraction, and show how you can use it to strengthen your writing, speaking and even your thinking skills. Learn more.
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Abstract: Research on school dropout extends from early 20th-century pioneers until now, marking trends of causes and prevention. However, specific dropout causes reported by students from several nationally representative studies have never been examined together, which, if done, could lead to a better understanding of the dropout problem. Push, pull, and falling out factors provide a framework for understanding dropouts. Push factors include school-consequence on attendance or discipline. Pull factors include out-of-school enticements like jobs and family. Finally, falling out factors refer to disengagement in students not caused by school or outside pulling factors. Since 1966, most nationally representative studies depicted pull factors as ranking the highest. Also, administrators in one study corroborated pull out factors for younger dropouts, not older ones, while most recent research cites push factors as highest overall. One rationale for this change is a response to rising standards from No Child Left Behind (NCLB), which can be ultimately tested only by future dropout research. Complete article.
Abstract: Traditionally believed to be the result of maladaptive development, bullying perpetration is increasingly being viewed as a potentially adaptive behavior. We were interested in determining whether adolescents who bully others enjoy a key evolutionary benefit: increased dating and mating (sexual) opportunities. This hypothesis was tested in two independent samples consisting of 334 adolescents and 144 university students. The data partly supported our prediction that bullying, but not victimization, would predict dating behavior. The data for sexual behavior more clearly supported our hypothesis that bullying behavior predicts an increase in sexual opportunities even when accounting for age, sex, and self-reports of attractiveness, likeability, and peer victimization. These results are generally congruent with the hypothesis that bullying perpetration is, at least in part, an evolutionary adaptive behavior. Download PDF.
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Recommended Read for April
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by Peter A. Levine
In this culmination of his life's work, Peter A. Levine draws on his broad experience as a clinician, a student of comparative brain research, a stress scientist and a keen observer of the naturalistic animal world to explain the nature and transformation of trauma in the body, brain and psyche. In an Unspoken Voice is based on the idea that trauma is neither a disease nor a disorder, but rather an injury caused by fright, helplessness and loss that can be healed by engaging our innate capacity to self-regulate high states of arousal and intense emotions. Enriched with a coherent theoretical framework and compelling case examples, the book elegantly blends the latest findings in biology, neuroscience and body-oriented psychotherapy to show that when we bring together animal instinct and reason, we can become more whole human beings.
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| Professional Development Opportunities |
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11th Annual Loyola University Chicago School of Social Work
July 14-16, 2016
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...The push for students to use phones while at school, and even during class, comes from this generation of preteens and teens who - as illustrated by the recent documentary Screenagers - struggle to stop playing with their phones. Adding fuel to the fire are tech pundits who claim that smartphones provide learning opportunities for children. Parents, too, may want to communicate by phone with their kids throughout the school day.
But new research is questioning the wisdom of allowing phones in school, as studies reveal this practice is putting students' learning and safety at risk. Continue.
The room was full - it was the first in a series of parenting classes I was running for one of the schools I work with and the attendance was excellent. Emily's mum stood up first. She choked back tears, composed herself, and then told us that she no longer liked her child.
There's a stigma to a statement like that. There was an intake of breath in the room. Yet I was not surprised. I knew the backstory here, as I had been working with Emily through the school. And although you might not think it, this feeling is incredibly common. Emily was 6. Her behaviour was incredibly challenging in school, which is where I came in as a school social worker. Read article. |
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School Social Work Positions
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New This Week
Madison, WI - Coord of Mental Health Supports
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Webinar To Discuss Preventing Bullying and Discrimination of Muslim Youth
Educators and Counselors Prevent Bullying of Muslim Youth
May 23, 2016 - 2 - 3:30 ET
Presenters will discuss civil rights bullying and harassment, cultural competence 101, behavioral health implications of bullying, and resources for protecting America's Muslim youth. Register.
The Impact of Terrorism on Children: What Harms, What Helps
The University-Based Child and Family Policy Consortium, in collaboration with the Society for Research in Child Development, hosted "The Impact of Terrorism on Children: What Harms, What Helps" webinar on February 16, 2016. Based on an SRCD Social Policy Report written by James Garbarino and colleagues, and the Social Policy Report Commentary by Ann Masten, this webinar will discuss the research on the effects of children's exposure to terrorism. Access webinar. Approx. 1 hr.
Webisode: Behavioral Health Concerns in Classrooms
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) latest webisode recording with Knowledge Network for Systems of Care TV (KSOC-TV) addresses the topic of identifying and managing behavioral health concerns in elementary school classrooms. The panelists, including Center for School Mental Health affiliate faculty, Dr. Kimberly Becker, provide specific strategies on how students, parents, teachers, and administrators can work together to support positive mental health among elementary school students. Watch by clicking here. Approx. 1 hr.
Webisode: Expulsion and Suspension Policies in Early Childhood Settings
The Child and Family Policy Consortium webinar features presentations on expulsion and suspension policies in early childhood settings. Speakers include Dr. Walter Gillian (Yale University) and Dr. Oscar Barbarin (University of Maryland - College Park). Click here to watch. Approx. l hr.
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2ne Quarter Deadline: June 30, 2016
Grants of up to $500 are available for "innovative programs, events, or projects" from the Meemic Foundation for Michigan, Wisconsin or Illinois. Apply online using their easy application that takes less than 30 minutes to complete. These grants are open to any employee of a K-12 public or private school. Universities and colleges may also apply. Fill-in-the-blank application.
Grants are accepted year round, but the second quarter cycle ends June 30th. Grants are up to $500. Recipients will be notified by August 15th.
The foundation says it supports "basically anything that supports teachers and enhances the student's educational experience" - from field trips to books to behavior modification programs; science, music, or art equipment to professional development.
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