MY Access Prompt: Conflict Resolution Programs in Schools
9th Grade Fall Benchmark
School violence has become one of the main concerns for parents and administrators
throughout America. In order to curb parental fears and concerns, Conflict Resolution programs
have been introduced into many school districts. Conflict Resolution programs mainly start at
the beginning of the school year, and consist of simulated situations and discussions that best
aid students in how best to handle their anger and many difficult situations they face at school.
Peer interaction, problem solving skills and strategies and role playing are other key factors that
are stressed within these classes.
Some believe that schools should use their money to make these programs consistent
throughout the year in order to better aid students, while critics of Conflict Resolution programs
view them as a waste of precious funds and classroom time. They believe that most schools
already have counselors and established programs to aid students in dealing with difficult
encounters. They also argue that in reality, school violence is a larger societal problem of
violence and that simply putting money into several school programs will do little to defeat a
larger social issue.
Do you believe that Conflict Resolution programs are a feasible means to help prevent school
violence or do you agree with the program's critics and see it as a waste of important school
dollars? In a detailed essay, articulate your position on this issue. Be sure to include specific
details and examples to support your argument.
As you write, remember your essay will be scored based on how well you:
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develop a multi-paragraph response to the assigned topic that clearly communicates
your thesis to the audience.
support your thesis with meaningful reasons and sufficient details.
address the readers' concerns, opposing viewpoint, or counterarguments.
organize your essay in a clear and logical manner, including an introduction, body, and
conclusion.
use well-structured sentences and language that are appropriate for your audience.
edit your work to conform to the conventions of standard American English.
Special Instructions:
With school violence seemingly on the rise, school districts and communities are searching for
solutions to this important problem. Some schools have adopted “conflict resolution” programs
in hopes of decreasing, and eventually eliminating, acts of violence that range from classroom
management concerns to school-ground fights to all forms of bullying.
Read the following documents to help you decide whether or not conflict resolution programs
bring about the desired results and are worth the time away from academics and money
invested in training school personnel, students, and communities.
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The first document, “Facts for Teens”, shares statistics about teen violence and outlines
the conflict resolution process.
The second document, “Conflict Resolution Programs”, discusses needs for such
programs and outcomes.
The third document, “Bullying Facts”, shares statistics about bullying.
The fourth document introduces ways to prevent bullying.
Document #1: Facts for Teens: Conflict Resolution from the National Youth Violence
Resource Center
Introduction
All too often, small incidents and minor disagreements can lead to serious violence
among teenagers:
 One teenage boy teases or insults another.
 A teenage girl accuses another of spreading untrue gossip.
 One teen pushes, bumps, or shoves another.
 A teen takes or destroys another's possessions.
 Words are exchanged, tempers flare, conflicts escalate, and all too often, violence
results.
Unfortunately, many teens believe that when a conflict or disagreement arises, they have
no choice but to fight.
Some see fighting as the only acceptable way to resolve disagreements. They do not know of
any way to avoid a fight without losing face. Others do not know how to control themselves in
the face of a perceived insult. In one survey of junior and senior high school students:
 33 percent said that when they were really angry there was no way they could control
themselves.
 41 percent said that if they were challenged, they would fight.
 21 percent said that avoiding fights was a sign of weakness.
In a 1999 national survey, more than one in three high school students said they had been in a
physical fight in the past year.
While conflicts and disagreements are an inevitable part of life, they do not have to lead
to violence.
Around the country, many schools and community groups offer conflict resolution programs for
teens. Through these programs, teens are learning about new ways to work through and
resolve disputes, reducing the possibility of violence.
Most programs teach teens a series of steps to follow in resolving conflicts (although the exact
steps may vary somewhat among programs).
Steps to Conflict Resolution
1. Set the stage. Agree to try to work together to find a solution peacefully, and
establish ground rules (e.g., no name-calling, blaming, yelling, or interrupting).
2. Gather perspectives. Each person describes the dispute from his or her
perspective, without interruption. Listeners pay close attention and then ask clarifying
questions in a nonthreatening manner. They consider not only what the other
participants say they want, but why they want it. For example, if someone insists that
you pay for something they believe you broke, they may be doing so not because
they really care about the object or the money, but because they feel that you don't
respect them. Addressing the other person's need to feel respected may be key to
resolving the conflict.
3. Find common interests. Establish which facts and issues all participants agree on
and determine why different issues are important to each person. Identify common
interests, which can be as simple as a mutual desire to resolve the problem without
resorting to violence or a shared need to save face.
4. Create options. Take time for each teen to brainstorm about possible solutions to
the problem. Come up with a list of options without immediately judging them or
feeling committed to them. Try to think of solutions where both people gain
something-think win-win!
Too often we assume that for one person to win, the other person has to lose. In
reality, it is often possible to think creatively and come up with a solution that both
people feel good about, where both walk away feeling that their needs have been
met.
5. Evaluate options. After a number of options are suggested, each teen discusses his
or her feelings about each of the proposed solutions. Participants will negotiate and
often will need to compromise in order to reach a conclusion that is acceptable to
both. They may need to agree to disagree about some issues to reach an
understanding.
6. Create an agreement. The teens involved explicitly state their agreement and may
even want to write it down. If necessary, they set up a time to check back to see how
the agreement is working.
When teens use such an approach to resolve conflicts and disagreements, they often find that
conflicts don't have to be avoided, nor do they necessarily lead to violence. Conflict can actually
be a positive force in their lives; it can provide teens with an opportunity to take a close look at
themselves and their attitudes and beliefs. If resolved positively, conflicts can actually help
strengthen relationships and build greater understanding.
Schools and communities have developed a number of different types of conflict
resolution programs:
Conflict resolution training programs
Conflict resolution training programs involve a separate course offered in the school or
community that explicitly teaches the principles of conflict resolution and necessary skills
and abilities.
Peer mediation programs
Peer mediation programs go beyond conflict resolution training and teach youth to act as
mediators.
Then, when other children and teens are not able to resolve conflicts on their own, the
peer mediators can intervene and guide them through the conflict resolution process,
trying to help them resolve disputes without resorting to violence.
Peaceable classrooms and schools
Some schools are now trying to incorporate conflict resolution education into all aspects
of the classroom or the school environment. With such approaches, conflict resolution
education is interwoven with all classroom teaching, and teachers and staff are
encouraged to promote effective conflict resolution principles and practices through their
own behavior and through discipline and management practices.
Community mediation centers
Community mediation centers can be found in many communities. Typically based in
nonprofit community-based agencies, these centers use trained community volunteers to
provide mediation services to youth and adults. The centers mediate many types of
disputes involving youth, including those involving gangs, graffiti, loitering, school
suspensions, truancy, and parent/child relationships.
Many of these centers also provide training for youth in the community to become
mediators
Do conflict resolution programs actually reduce violence?
At this time, the effectiveness of most conflict resolution programs in reducing physical
violence has not been adequately assessed. When studies have been conducted, some
programs have shown no impact on aggressive behavior, while a few have been shown
to reduce aggressiveness, violence, dropout rates, and student suspensions. A number
of programs have been shown to be effective in improving academic performance and
increasing cooperation, communication skills, assertiveness, self-esteem, and selfcontrol.
Document #2: Conflict Resolution Programs - Reduce Aggression & Enhance Learning, An
excerpt from A Powerful Peace: The Integrative Thinking Classroom
The effect of aggressive behavior on the classroom environment is significant. For three
decades studies continue to show that the majority of surveyed teachers feel that aggressive
students undermine learning for others and most feel that academic achievement would
improve dramatically if the problem were remedied.
Three quarters of the public surveyed agrees. The research shows that a set of social skills
commonly lacking in people prone to violent and aggressive behavior [include poor] impulse
control, problem solving, and anger management (Committee for Children, 1997, p.1). Victims
and bystanders of aggressive and angry students often lack assertive communications skills, as
well (Marano, 1995).
Conflict resolution program evaluations show that programs which address these issues not
only reduce aggression and violence in communities and their schools, but also provide "lifelong decision making skills" (U.S. Dept. of Justice, 1997, p. 55), and enhance the self-esteem of
students.
Fortunately, conflict resolution programs provide hope in reclaiming the sanctuary provided by
our schools. The Center for Law Related Education (Bodine, 1996) found that most conflict
resolution programs reduce the time that teachers spent on conflicts, improve school climate,
and improve problem-solving skills and self-control among students. There have been increases
in peaceful problem-solving and a significant reduction in violence within the most violent gangs
after conflict resolution training (Sherman et al., 1997). More significant reductions in destructive
behavior are generally the case in school settings (Johnson & Johnson, 1996).
Now, with thousands of conflict resolution programs in place, we know that such mediation
promotes responsible, pro-social behavior, "improved communication, problem-solving, and
critical thinking" (Van Steenbergen, 1994), p. 22). Improved academic performance is a
particularly significant gain when conflict resolution skills are integrated into a content area,
improving both conflict resolution skills (integrative thinking) and content comprehension
(Johnson & Johnson, 1994). Conflict resolution programs improve students’ social and
emotional skill development (National Institute of Dispute Resolution, 1997). Johnson and
Johnson's (1995b, 1996) decades of research show that integrative thinking skills are almost
non-existent prior to conflict resolution training, yet are often used spontaneously
afterward.
Studies of conflict resolution programs often include measures of positive changes in the
classroom or school climate (Koch, 1988; Lam, 1989). There are several studies which show
that after implementation of effective conflict resolution programs students’ ability to problem
solve and cooperate improves dramatically and the “cooperative spirit goes beyond the
classroom” (Steinberg, 1991, p. 5).
The gains in cooperative skills are significant for two reasons. First, in America our "children are
often so highly and inappropriately competitive that they lose the opportunity to win prizes that
require even minimal cooperation" (Phinney & Rotheram, 1987, p. 208)…And, second, students
in cooperative conflict resolution environments "hold fewer negative stereotypes" (Lantieri &
Patti, p. 26).
Document #3: Bullying statistics 2010 - from Bullying Statistics - Stop Bullying, Harassment,
and Violence
New bullying statistics for 2010 revealed about one in seven students in grades kindergarten
through 12th grade is either a bully or has been a victim of bullying. Sometimes a teen or child
who has been bullied eventually becomes the bully as a way to retaliate. In fact, revenge for
bullying is one of the strongest motivations for school shootings, according to recent bullying
statistics. A reported 61 percent of students said they believe students shoot others at school
because they have been victims of physical violence at home or at school. This is a true
indicator that bullying can occur in all forms by other students, children, teens as well as adults.
According to various bullying studies, many teens and children act out violently on their peers
through acts of bullying because they are abused at home.
Other bullying statistics:
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Over half, about 56 percent, of all students have witnesses a bullying crime take place
while at school.
A reported 15 percent of all students who don't show up for school report it to being out
of fear of being bullied while at school.
There are about 71 percent of students that report bullying as an on-going problem.
Along that same vein, about one out of every 10 students drops out or changes schools
because of repeated bullying.
One out of every 20 students has seen a student with a gun at school.
Some of the top years for bullying include 4th through 8th graders in which 90 percent
were reported as victims of some kind of bullying.
Other recent bullying statistics reveal that 54 percent of students reported that
witnessing physical abuse at home can lead to violence in school.
Among students of all ages, homicide perpetrators were found to be twice as likely as
homicide victims to have been bullied previously by their peers.
There are about 282,000 students that are reportedly attacked in high schools
throughout the nation each month.
Document #4: Prevent Bullying - from Bullying Statistics - Stop Bullying, Harassment, and
Violence:
One way to stop bullying is to take steps to prevent bullying from starting. Some ways to prevent
bullying is through providing a bully policy, consequences for bullies, and educating potential
victims of bullying. Keep reading for more tips on preventing bullying.
Steps to prevent bullying before it starts can address the problem from several directions.
Prevention can be aimed at creating a situation in which bullying is not tolerated, in giving
potential bullies outlets and behavior suggestions so that thoughts and feelings that could end
up in bullying are channeled in different ways, and in helping potential victims avoid becoming
the victim of bullying behavior. This article explores some of the current thoughts about how
bullying can be prevented.
Prevent Bullying With Policies
A clear definition of bullying and a policy that disallows it and lays out the consequences is one
means to arm a school or school district against this problem. For one thing, when bullying is
clearly defined, then it can be more easily recognized and separated from constructive criticism,
discipline, and motivation, all of which are bordering areas. It is important that the policy be clear
and research-based in order to not be so broad that students and teachers are fearful of being
perceived as bullies at every turn when what they say is not praise. And it is different, though
still potentially painful, if a child is picked last for games because he or she has an objectively
poor skill set as opposed to being picked last due to an explicit campaign to ostracize him or
her.
Policies to prevent bullying may explicitly mention major types of bullying, including verbal,
social, physical, pack and cyber bullying, and racist, religious, homophobic bullying, along with
bullying of people with disabilities. But it is important that policies should be worded so as not to
exclude the bullying of mainstream victims, nor victims who are teachers, staff, administrators,
or school board members, rather than students.
As of September, 2009, most states have bullying laws. Bullying laws do not exist, however, in
Alabama, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana,
North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
Prevent Bullying With Consequences
With a carefully written and precise bullying definition in place, there is a need to follow up with
appropriate and fair consequences when bullying occurs, whomever the perpetrator and victims
are. Victims must know that they will get a fair hearing in order to be persuaded to come
forward. Bullies must not be perceived as immune on account of longevity or position.
Consequences need to be applied consistently in order for a policy to prevent bullying to be
effective.
In states in which there are bullying laws and the bullying involves physical altercations or
damage to or theft of property, the consequences of bullying may include criminal prosecution,
as well as school sanctions. In addition, bullies, both students and teachers, not to mention
schools, school districts, and parents of bullies have been sued for damages.
Prevent Bullying with Family Education
Perception of bullying has changed over time, and while a bullying policy can touch
organizations such as schools, it is harder to reach families. People who come from families in
which bullying was the norm have been exposed to behavior models that are not considered
acceptable today. These people, whether teachers or students, may need explicit models of
how to act on thoughts and feelings that could lead to bullying and/or they may need greater
assistance to learn new behavior patterns and break old models, such as counseling, rather
than simply punishment.
Community education is difficult and takes time: many people feel that what happens behind
their closed front door is their business and is private and resent and reject suggestions for
change. But if dad bullies mom, or vice versa, and the children take this behavior as a model,
what’s behind closed doors can flow out into the community.
Within the home, parents can prevent bullying both by modeling alternative behaviors as well as
explicitly pointing out behaviors that fall into the category of bullying and differentiating ways of
acting and sharing behaviors that are acceptable within a family - in which people often know
more about each other’s characteristics, faults and failings, for example, because of how space
is shared rather than because someone has bullied someone else - from what is acceptable in
school and other public settings.
Other Means to Help Prevent Bullying
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Supervision and appropriate intervention can help stop bullying that is in progress.
Teach appropriate assertiveness to those who are, or may be, targets of bullying.
If the bullying is linked to something that can be changed - such as an article of clothing
or a lack of skill or training in some area - discuss various responses with the person,
including changing the behavior, by making a different choice or by working to improve
in the area that is lacking if this is an appropriate response, or learning to assert his or
her right to be different, if this is appropriate. For example, if a student is ridiculed
because his or her desk or locker is a mess with things falling out of it, some assistance
in creating and maintaining order could both be beneficial and remove the reason for the
bullying. If, however, the student wants to continue to wear a Yankee baseball cap in
Red Sox territory, a different approach will be needed to prevent bullying.
Staff training can help make sure that the school (and state, if applicable) bullying
policies are widely understood.
Some bullying occurs at the rate of almost every day, according to the National Center
for Education Statistics (NCES) 2007 data. Head off repeat offense by encouraging
reports of bullying and making sure reports are dealt with expeditiously. A victim who
has accepted another student’s derision as jokes - up to a point, should be able to report
the derision without feeling complicit or guilty for the bullying being ongoing.