One approach to student behavior that may be particularly useful in exclusionary settings is school-wide positive behavior supports (PBS). Increasingly, evidence shows that PBS is an effective approach to student behavior in regular public schools (Sugai & Horner, 2005). While the data on behavioral systems in exclusionary schools are…

This article describes a case study in the use of the Family Check-Up (FCU), a family-based and ecological preventive intervention for children at risk for problem behavior. The FCU is an assessment-driven intervention that utilizes a health maintenance model; emphasizes motivation for change; and offers an adaptive, tailored approach to…

The National Educational Longitudinal Study database was used to examine the educational development of students of low socioeconomic status (SES). A path analysis was conducted to determine the effects of student background, psychological, and behavioral variables on postsecondary educational attainment of low-SES students. The results show that…

Metaphors can both inspire and mislead the public. Current metaphors for youth violence are inconsistent with scientific evidence about how chronic violence develops and evoke inaccurate or harmful reactions. Popular, problematic metaphors include "superpredator", "quarantining the contagious", "corrective surgery", "man as computer", "vaccine",…

Certain parenting behaviors have been linked with youth aggression and violence, but less is known about whether parents' attitudes toward fighting are a risk factor for children's aggressive behavior problems and future injury risk. Social cognitive theory suggests that parents' beliefs about fighting and retaliation may influence their…

The study examined attitudes toward school inclusion of students with disabilities of 1,145 prospective teacher trainees from six national/religious groups in eleven colleges in Israel: The groups were secular, religious and ultra-orthodox Jews and Muslim, Christian and Druze Arabs. Participants responded to the "Opinion Related to Inclusion…

This study examined parent and child gender effects on parents' attributions and beliefs in regards to child symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Participants included mothers and fathers of 19 girls and 17 boys with ADHD. Groups of boys and girls, aged 5-13 years, were equated on age and medication status, as well as ADHD…

This study was conducted to examine the promising practice of using technology in teaching math and science in a charter high school in California. The research employed an in-depth qualitative case study method. The main participants were principals, lead teachers, teachers, and support staff. Interviews, observations, and archival documents were…

School suspensions are commonly used in schools to address challenging student behaviours, often on the understanding that suspensions send a clear message to the school community about what is acceptable behaviour. However, there is a growing body of evidence that school suspensions have a range of unintended negative consequences including…

Significant numbers of students are being pushed out of school as a result of "zero tolerance" school discipline policies. While nobody questions the need to keep schools safe, teachers, students, and parents are questioning the methods being used in pursuit of that goal. Initially enacted to counter violent behavior and drug use, zero tolerance…

Information about "family matters" is vital to developing targeted interventions, reducing placement disruption, and enhancing outcome in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). The quality of the caregiving environment and family function are associated with long-term outcome in natural history study of individuals with FASD. This article…

An urban American university, Georgia Institute of Technology, established a campus-community coalition to reduce high risk drinking, its harms and second-hand effects among university students and residents of the Atlanta community. The Atlanta-based institution was part of a ten-year, ten-university project, A Matter of Degree (AMOD),…

Opponents of school choice argue that private schools are not "accountable" because they are not subject to detailed oversight by a regulatory bureaucracy. They claim private school employees can be expected to engage in abusive and criminal behavior more frequently. School choice supporters respond that parents hold private schools…

This book explores the ways in which pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties can be effectively engaged in schooling -- either in school or at home. It explains the social and emotional underpinnings of learning and presents practical strategies for aiding engagement. "Nurture Groups", originally devised and implemented in the…

Leaders concerned with advancing mental health in school need to focus on much more than just increasing clinical services. This issue of the quarterly newsletter of the Center for Mental Health in Schools includes the following features and regular segments: (1) Mental Health in Schools: Much More than Services for the Few; (2) Many Schools, Many…