Maine Perspective Front Page
Study Provides Perspectives on Challenging Student Behavior in Maine Schools
Maine schools are encountering a variety of challenging behaviors by students and are using a number of strategies to address the problems, according to a study tapping the experiences of 33 elementary and high school principals. But while the interventions are effective with most students, the serious needs and behaviors of a small group far exceed schools' abilities and resources, according to researchers in the College of Education and Human Development.
The study, conducted over the past year, also reflects the importance and effectiveness of parental involvement in developing, supporting and evaluating behavioral intervention and prevention strategies. However, the degree to which schools are able to rely on parental support varies. In some incidents, parents are as frustrated and unable as the schools to cope with the behavior of their children.
The report, "Principals' Perspectives on Challenging Behaviors in Maine Schools," sponsored by the UMaine-Maine Principals' Association Research Partnership, was presented and discussed Nov. 20 at a seminar on challenging behaviors, held in conjunction with the Maine Principals' Association's annual fall conference in Portland.
"We now have an idea of the major behavioral issues being exhibited in Maine schools," says lead author Jim Artesani, assistant professor of special education. The report documents that there is a group of students - 2-5 percent in any given school - that seems impervious to all efforts and with needs so complex that any effective intervention requires the involvement of communities and service agencies, according to Artesani. "It's common with what we see in the national literature," he says.
Principals described behaviors that fall into three major categories: defiant, which includes non-compliance with rules, insubordination, disrespect, resistance and refusal; aggressive, which physically hurts another individual, such as fighting, throwing objects, kicking, assaulting and ripping things off walls; and harassment, such as name calling, verbal and physical intimidation and bullying. The principals noted that fighting is often a result of verbal and physical harassment that took place earlier.
The report documents that most schools are trying to manage problem behavior with existing personnel, with teachers as the first line of defense, particularly those trained in crisis intervention or behavioral programming. Schools are also drawing upon a wide array of resources, including other in-house personnel such as special education and guidance staff, educational technicians and social workers, as well as outside specialists, parents and peers to help develop appropriate interventions and support services.
Encouraging the development of pro-social skills has always been a natural, informal part of what schools do, according to Professor Walter Harris, a specialist in behavioral disorders who also worked on the report. "Principals and teachers are beginning to realize that this previously hidden curriculum needs to become an explicit, visible, well-planned part of a school's overall mission and expectations that represent community values," Harris says. "Some schools are beginning to address this task, but many are reluctant to do so, believing that values and social behaviors are the exclusive province of home and family."
Teaching pro-social behaviors based on community values is not a complex matter, according to Harris, but it requires community support and sustained attention and commitment from teachers and administrators.
Artesani emphasizes that communities need to know what schools are coping with in terms of student behavior. "Kids should not have to be shot to grab the headlines," he says. "The fact that they are getting into fights, being defiant and harassing one another and teachers should be enough to get public attention and helpful response."
Researchers' recommendations for schools include:
- Conducting a systematic evaluation of challenging behaviors in individual schools
- Clarifying school and parental expectations around behavior
- Developing a set of schoolwide values concerning student behavior and principles upon which rules can be developed
- Developing a schoolwide discipline plan in conjunction with community agencies
- Developing a statewide Web page on the issue, with links to other related pages and a bulletin board for posting information and posing questions
- Developing working relationships with parents prior to the advent of behavioral problems.