With the increase in violence over the past few decades, academic and human development practitioners have tried to better understand the dynamics of conflict and develop effective intervention and prevention strategies. There is an ever-deepening appreciation for the mediation process. The mediation process is a powerful problem-solving and…

Peer mediation programs in schools are an effective way for children to learn the cooperative skills of conflict solving. This paper outlines the implementation of an action research based mediation program within a primary school setting. It examines both the characteristics of successful implementation and the dilemmas of change agentry. A model…

Students encounter numerous volatile situations throughout their school days. These videotapes and the accompanying teacher's manual and student handouts provide ways in which students can creatively assess and resolve these conflicts. The videotapes are designed for the whole school community: students and parents, teaching and non-teaching…

Invitational education aims at creating a total school environment that intentionally summons teachers and students to realize their potential in all areas of worthwhile human endeavor and to make classrooms "the most inviting place in town." Within this model, invitational teaching addresses the role of the teacher in summoning…

Students encounter numerous volatile situations throughout their school days, especially during times of increasing diversity. "Inter-Cultural Mediation" is a single half hour video that includes a teacher's manual and student handouts. Shot in Ontario, Canada during the Commonwealth Youth Conference in Conflict Resolution, this program…

Designed to help improve the staff-to-student communication style in schools, this book shows practitioners how to go from adversarial approaches to caring and helping--without losing control of the situation. The book offers time-tested methods that counselors and therapists have used successfully for years, methods that can be modified for…

Today's educators face the daunting challenge of preparing new generations of young people for life in a world undergoing economic, political, and cultural changes on a scale unmatched in history. After five decades, the United Nations remains at the center of the global effort to ensure peace and the equitable enjoyment of the planet's resources.…

This book offers guidance on how teachers can help their students write about sensitive topics or provide pragmatic suggestions for developing the skill and sensitivity necessary to venture into such difficult terrain. The book addresses students' need to articulate their thoughts and feelings about violence, anger, drug use, peer pressure, and…

The problem of student discipline is approached by synthesizing much that is known about child development, interpersonal relationships, identity, self-image, and change into a philosophy for individual growth and self-fulfillment. Goals, and methods for achieving them, are suggested that would help prevent discipline problems. These are to help…

This report is a partial revision of an earlier report, released in the spring of 1989, that described programs in which young adolescents engaged in community service. The first chapter of the present report discusses the benefits that accrue to society and early adolescents when early adolescents engage in community service. The review process…