Connect for Success

The Untapped Power

of Schools: a workshop
Robert Wm. Blum, MD, MPH, Ph.D.
William H. Gates Sr. Professor and Chair
Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health

Lynne Michael Blum MS, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor Adjunct
Department of Mental Health

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Session 1: Why School Connectedness?

What is School Connectedness?

How does it impact behaviors as

well as education?
Why does it matter?
What is school connectedness?

Senseofbelonging,beingpartofschool;
Likingschool;
Perceivingteachersassupportiveand
caring;
Havinggoodfriendsatschool;
Beingengagedacademically;
Experiencingfairandeffectivediscipline;
Participatinginextracurricularactivities.
 Prior research from Add Health
has shown a strong association
between school connectedness
and every risk behavior
Methods
The Sample

The National Longitudinal Study of

Adolescent Health
A stratified random sample of 80 high schools
with primary feeder schools
N=134 schools (127 participated in school
survey)
N=71,515 students in 7th through 12th grade
N=127 school administrator surveys
Methods
School Characteristics

Size 42 to 5422 (average=642)

Public 82.7%
Class size 10 to 39 (average=23)
Location
Rural 18.6%
Suburban 59.6%
Urban 21.8%
 Substance Use
Students who feel connected to school
are less likely to use substances
Level of Substance Use

Frequency
of Use:
(SD Units)

Levels of connectedness
 Emotional Distress
Students who feel connected to school
experience less emotional distress
Level of Emotional Distress
(SD Units)

Levels of connectedness
 Violence or Deviant Behavior
Students who feel connected to school
engage In less violent or deviant behavior
Level of Violence or Deviant Behavior
(SD Units)

Levels of connectedness
 Pregnancy
Students who feel connected to school
are less likely to become pregnant
Percent ever Pregnant

Levels of connectedness
Results
Factors Associated with School Connectedness
THE SCHOOL
School size mattered
classroom size did not
School type is not associated with
connectedness
public, private, parochial
Location of school is not associated with
connectedness
urban, suburban, rural
Results
Factors Associated with School Connectedness
TEACHERS
Teacher experience was not associated
with connectedness.
Having a masters degree was not
associated with connectedness.
Results
Factors Associated with School Connectedness

SCHOOL CLIMATE
& Teacher Engagement/ Caring

The single strongest association with

connectedness was school climate
 Initiated Cigarette Use
Predicted Percent at Three Levels of Teacher Support

Multinomial logit models adjusted for social belonging, race/ethnicity, income, gender, family
structure, emotional distress, relationship with parents, hx of peer suicide, hx of family suicide
 Initiated Getting Drunk
Predicted Percent Three Levels of Teacher
Support

13.4
11.3
9.5

6.2
4.5
3.2

Multinomial logit models adjusted for social belonging, race/ethnicity, income, gender, family
structure, emotional distress, relationship with parents, hx of peer suicide, hx of family suicide
 Seriously Considered or Attempted
Suicide
Predicted Percent at Three Levels of Teacher Support

5.5 5.0 4.5

2.2 1.7 1.3

Multinomial logit models adjusted for social belonging, race/ethnicity, income, gender, family
structure, emotional distress, relationship with parents, hx of peer suicide, hx of family suicide
 Initiated Violence
Predicted Percent at Three Levels of Teacher Support

7.5
6.0
4.7

Multinomial logit models adjusted for social belonging, race/ethnicity, income, gender, family
structure, emotional distress, relationship with parents, hx of peer suicide, hx of family suicide
Students are Disengaged

Byhighschool,40
60%ofallstudents
arechronically
disengagedfrom
school.
Klem&Connell,2004
Students are more likely to be connected
to school when expectations are

High

Fair

Clear
Engaged students are more likely to
Payattention;
Domorethanisexpected;
Havehighergradesandtest
scores.
The Academic Benefits of Teacher
Support
Comparing academic advancement in
reading and math among 3rd graders with
high and low teacher support:
Reading: 1.5 yrs vs. 0.5 yrs advancement
Math: 1.67 yrs vs. <1 yr advancement
School Disengagement

Two thirds of all teens who wind up pregnant

or in the juvenile justice system have early
warning signs of school disengagement
The Relationship Between Skipping
School and Later Delinquency (OR)
ONSET OF SERIOUS CRIMINAL CRIMES
Class Skipper 4.12
Minor Truant (1-3 days) 4.03
Moderate Truant (4-9 days) 6.84
Chronic Truant (>9 days) 12.15
Schoolclimate,teachercaring,
andsocialconnectednessare
closelyintertwined.
Connection Matters

Second to home, school is the most

important environment in the lives of
young people.

Feeling engaged at school is critical for

both academic and social success.
 Wingspread Declaration

Students are more likely to succeed

when they feel connected to school.
School connectedness is the belief by
students that adults in the school care
about their learning as well as about
them as individuals."
 By the end of today
We will work together to build strategies for
your school and classroom
Before lunch
Interpersonal Connectedness
Assessing School Climate and
Connectedness
After lunch
Physical and emotional safety
Academic Engagement
Section 2

INTERPERSONAL CONNECTEDNESS
Making School Connectedness
Happen

The Triad of School Engagement

 Triad of Engagement

Interpersonal connectedness with

school staff and peers
An engaging environment that is
physically and emotionally safe
Academic engagement - high
expectations, support for learning, and
flexible, relevant instruction
The elements of the Triad are highly
interrelated
When schools excel in the triad of
engagement, students feel
supported, safe, and capable of
solving academic and personal
challenges.
Create personal connections

When school fosters positive

relationships between students and
adults a climate of respect and safety
is created which in turn fosters
student academic engagement.
When students feel connected to at least
one significant adult in their education,
they experience:
Positive academic attitudes and values
Satisfaction with school
Engagement in academic work
Better school attendance
Learning
Better academic performance
What teachers can do to create
connectedness
Know each students educational strengths
and weaknesses so as to maximize
strengths.
Use assignments to encourage students to
share stories about themselves.
Establish a regular time at least weekly for
students to share thoughts and concerns.
Ask questions and spend time listening.
Adults who connect

Listen
Compliment
Are not guided by prejudice
Do not assume
Treat students fairly
Adults who connect (cont.)

Get to know their students'

needs
Are welcoming
Respect students' input
Show each student they believe
in them
Adults who connect (cont)

Treat students with respect: public

compliments and private, supportive
corrections.
Advise and mentor students: meet one-
on-one with students to work on goals.
Empathize with and coach students who
face problems.
Individual Exercise

Take 3-5 minutes and jot down on a

piece of paper one strategy that you
use or know of that would provide a
personalized touch between yourself
and students in your class or school.
Share your idea: pass it to the person
next to you.
2:1 For every one dose of adult directions and
Thetake
lecture, goaltwo
is todoses
lecture less,
of kid talk less, direct
discussion and
less and
conversation.
Ask more questions using reflective

listening.
Wait for a response when a question is
asked because sometimes kids are slow to
respond.
Dare to get personal

Get to know your students personally--

not only their academic faces, but their
personal faces.
Make the classroom and the school a
place where kids feel you know their
stories and you know whats happening
to them.
A Personal Touch

Make sure that there is someone who

knows every student by name;
Greet students by name in the hallways,
classroom, lunchroom, as they get off the
bus.
Look students in the eye
Hibbins Story
I went to a big school where many adults
never learned my name. On the first day of
sixth grade, I was met outside the building
by the new school principal. As he greeted
all the students, he said to me, 'Hi, I'm Mr. So
and So and I'm glad you're here; welcome
back.' I was shocked.It made me feel I
belonged to a place where people cared
whether or not I was there.
A strategy for elementary school
children
At start of the year students write a few
paragraphs about themselves, their family,
likes and dislikes
Students are encouraged to bring in photos
that can be scanned into the document
The document can be printed and provided
to students and parents
The document can be added to over the
school year
Other personalizing strategies for
elementary school children
VIP Day (or week): where every student has
a day or week where they are the focus of
the class bring in pets (or photos), family
members, songs, clothes and food from
their familys country of origin
Personal Crest: with 4 quadrants: likes and
dislikes (e.g., food), favorite class, self
portrait, family portrait
Personalizing strategies for
elementary and middle school
Have students compile a guide for new
students that introduces the school from a
student perspective.

Use cross-age mentoring e.g., middle grade

students with elementary
Personalizing strategies for Middle
school years (cont)
Use writing assignments such as: If I were
principal.
Have students create a time line of their
lives major events (from their
perspectives) and post them on the walls.
Recognize and celebrate achievements
large and small.
Personalizing Strategies for High
School Students
Be willing to provide honest, clear, and non-
judgmental feedback on personal behaviors
(e.g., I am concerned since I often smell
cigarette smoke on your clothes)
Indicate your availability to listen by asking
questions (e.g., I have been concerned since
you often look sad and distracted. Whats up?
Can you talk about it?)
Other strategies that personalize the
school environment
Help students develop behavioral and academic
goals and provide a monitoring and reward
system.
Use popsicle sticks to call on students rather
than having them raise their hands.
Create a goal for yourself such as to increase
praise or develop new approaches to critical
feedback.
The Teacher of the Year

When asked what she did to become the

Teacher of the Year, a New Jersey school
teacher said: I made it my goal that
between Thanksgiving and Christmas I
would call every parent in my class to say
one thing nice about their child. For some it
is the only positive call they ever got from
school.
Personal Concern starts at the top

The evidence is clear that when

the school leadership is
concerned about staff, they in turn
are more likely to show concern
for the students.
Evidence-based ways to structure the
school environment to enhance
personal connections
Create a small school culture -"schools-within-a-school"
(i.e., small learning communities, magnet schools, or
career academies).
Use multidisciplinary team teaching, instead of changing
classes. Teachers are given prep release.
Use paraprofessionals
Implement looping: Have the same groups of teachers
stay with the same students across the school day and
school years.
Every teacher a mentor: use group mentorship formats
Small Group Activity: At your table take a
large post-it sheet and fill in the table below
(10 min.)
Interpersonal Connection Proposed solutions
obstacles in school/classroom
Ex: There is no time in the school Once a week, have Lunch Bunch:
day to personally connect with invite kids to bring their lunches to
students. your classroom to eat and play games.
1

4
Section 3
ASSESSING SCHOOL
CONNECTEDNESS IN YOUR SCHOOL
What data does your school have to assess climate
and connectedness?
School Climate data from:

students
teachers
parents
What data are missing?
Whose voice is most important in assessing
school climate?
What matters most in collecting more
information: process or data?
In Your School.
How will you know if students in your
school are connected? How do you
measure it?
What can students do to increase
connectedness to school? Improve
climate?
What about teachers, what can they do?
Administrators? Parents?
Activity (10 min)

Discuss with your team what

information you think is needed
that you do not have so as to
improve school climate. Why is it
needed? And from whom should
you get it?
Friebergs Assessment of School Climate

Noise in the lunch room

Hallway monitor treatment of students who
are where they dont belong
The presence (or absence) of doors and
toilet paper in bathroom stalls
Grafitti on school walls
School Climate Assessments: categories
for consideration

Safety (physical, emotional, academic)

Bullying/Teasing/Social Isolation
Trust/Respect/Caring
Racism and racial segregation
Parent/School relations
School Connectedness

Commitment (e.g., school spirit)

Attachment/Belonging
Involvement/Participation
Belief about school rules and policies
Power and Authority
Central Themes of School Connectedness
Academic Engagement
Belonging
Fairness of rules
Liking School
Student Voice
Participation in activities
Peer relationships
Safety
Teacher support
Small Group Activity (10 min.)

Looking at the various types of

information that can be collected
that relate to school
connectedness and school
climate, which do you think will be
most important for your school
and why?
Large Group Activity

Lunch
Section 4 The Triad of Engagement: Creating a Safe
Environment
THE BEHAVIOR SAFETY ZONE
THE SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL SAFETY
ZONE
Creating a Behavior Safety Zone
Connectedness increases when
The lunchroom, playground, and hallways
are emotionally and physically safe, not
behavioral minefields for students.
Unstructured common area activities are
monitored by staff members who ensure
respect and order.
Noise levels are moderated in shared
spaces.
Creating Pride in the School Facilities
Decorate common spaces with student art
Clean graffiti immediately
Rotate the assignment of maintaining
aspects of the facility, creating a peace
garden
Establish a parent volunteer group for
beautifying the school grounds
Hold school clean up day in conjunction with
Earth Day or planting shrubs and trees in
conjunction with Arbor Day.
Establish a protective discipline system
Provide a fair and just discipline program
Involve students in creating the system
Consistently to enforce consequences
Engineer the discipline system so that it is
compassionate, teaches appropriate
behavior and allows for corrections
Ensure that ALL adults in school are
accountable for respectful behavior toward
each other and students
Positive Behavioral Interventions
and Supports (PBIS)
PBIS emphasizes changing the school
environment, teaching new skills, modifying
student and adult behavior, and removing the
secondary gains that tend to come with problem
behavior.
Establishes uniform expectations and rules for
student behavior and posts those rules;
Teaches students appropriate, pro-social
behaviors;
Rewards students when they are "caught doing
something good."
PBIS VIDEO
What Teachers can do

Establish a behavioral Magna Carta for the

class together with students
Use infractions as teaching opportunities
Provide respectful and clear feedback
Use non-aggressive strategies to correct or
extinguish unacceptable behavior
School as an Arena of Comfort
CREATING A SOCIAL AND
EMOTIONAL SAFETY ZONE
Individual Activity (3-5 min)

When you think of school as an emotional

safety zone, what kinds of things come to
mind?
List 2-3 things that you could do to enhance
school as an emotional safety zone.
Creating School as an Arena of
Comfort
Create a cultural celebration day where students
can share the language, food, costumes, and
culture of their familys country of origin
Showcase everyones work not just the best in
the class
Use the popsicles or fishbowl to call on students
rather than hand raising
Provide a complaint box where students can
share their concerns
 Safe to make mistakes
Encourage "redo's" on papers and tests.
Remember, the goal is that students learn not that
they get it right the first time around
Make time to meet with students to help them
learn from mistakes
Provide correct responses when grading papers
Never tolerate students making fun of others who
get answers wrong
Create an environment of tolerance for all levels
of learning
Use the classroom and playing field
to teach conflict resolution
Use role play to explore conflict resolution
options
Use literature and history and discuss
alternatives to resolving the conflict
Use conflicts that arise at school as
teaching moments to explore possible
alternatives that could have been learned
The school should be safe from
bullying
Boys are more likely to bully through
physical aggression and girls through
isolation
Discuss bullying at PTAs and encourage
parents to inform school when they suspect
their children are being victimized
Teach respect and coping skills in the
classroom
School-wide Inclusiveness
Programs
Implement a student-run, year-round welcome programs

for new students

Create structures that enable friendships by increasing
students' social awareness.
Implement social and emotional learning programs to help
create social awareness among students
Provide alternatives to lunchroom loneliness: Run club
meetings during lunch where students can take their
lunches and work on the club activities or create a lunch
bunch where activities are held.
Structure activities on the playground (for younger
students), led by older student volunteers who can run
structured play activities.
And now

A BREAK
Section 5
ACADEMIC ENGAGEMENT
Three Elements of Academic
Engagement
1. Set high academic and
behavioral standards.
2. Implement flexible teaching
methods.
3. Make subjects relevant.
Center for the Social Organization of Schools
Johns Hopkins University
School connection is the belief by students that
adults in the school care about their learning as
well as about them as individuals. The critical
requirement for feeling connected include
students experiencing

Highacademicexpectationsandrigor
coupledwithsupportforlearning;
Positiveadultstudentrelationships;
Safety:bothphysicalandemotional.
#1 Set high behavioral and academic
standards
Provide school-wide tutoring and other
learning supports
Provide school-wide academic incentive
programs based on as soon as strategies
Provide supports for teachers that frees
them from trivial administrative tasks so as
to focus on individual assessment and
instruction
Establish individual student educational
goals and monitor progress toward them
Establish Professional Learning
Communities
This strategy provides an environment fostering
collegial support and "synergy of efforts."
Staff teams meet regularly to receive training and
assist one another in planning more effective
lessons, critiquing student work, and solving the
common problems of teaching.
For more information, visit www.nsdc.org,
National Staff Development Council.
Low Expectations of Students

Is commonly experienced by students

Sends the message of incompetence
Is seen as disrespectful by students
Can lead to a school environment
characterized by disrespect
The key elements of an effective
school

High Expectations coupled with

High Supports
High Expectations help students
achieve their Personal Best
Expectations and support have to be
determined student by student.
Expect students to reach their personal
goals, not necessarily the goals for average
students.
Support underachieving as well as gifted
students and help them meet their highest
personal best
Grading

Allow re-tests and re-writes the goal is

information acquisition and skill
development not test proficiency
Provide the correct responses so that
students can learn from errors
Make time to meet with students after
class or school to provide feedback
#2 Flexibility is key

Students dont all learn in the same way or at the

same pace
School leaders that encourage teachers to adapt
teaching styles to mesh with learning styles and
needs of students create supportive learning
environments
Reward teachers for innovative teaching
methods
School systems that encourage
flexibility
Provide teacher training, in-service opportunities, and
coaching to help teachers keep pace with innovative
instructional methods.
Encourage teachers to address all learning styles.
Vary their assessment methods to meet the needs of the
students.
Use strategies to encourage use of higher-level reasoning
skills, not just memorization skills.
Adjust the curriculum to accommodate to transfer
students.
Accommodate to the learning needs and strengths of
students
Accomodation
Schools that accommodate allow students
to demonstrate what they know using the
modalities that work best for them. This
may mean:
--oral examinations
--untimed testing
--separate room for testing of highly
distractible students
 Raising Healthy Children
Raising Healthy Children is a program that
engages the emotions, elements of
movement and novelty during learning.
It encourages questioning.
One strategy is:
Think-pair-share where, during oral language
exercises, students "think" by correcting mistakes
in the sentences, "pair" with a partner to explain
their corrections, and then "share" the correct
answers with the class.
#3 Relevance and learning

We learn when the information has meaning

in our lives.
Relevance comes through getting students
involved in their learning.
Relevance comes when knowledge is
drawn from the students life stories.
Relevant Instruction
If there are students with chronic illnesses
or disabilities in the class teach history by
including influential figures with those
conditions.
Read literature about heroes who the
students can identify with.
Teach writing by having students write
their autobiographies and/or keep diaries
Engaging schools use Active Learning

Active learning places students in

activities that demand decision-
making and problem-solving skills (for
example, it uses assignments where
students need to investigate answers,
interview people, visit sites, and report
back).
Service Learning makes instruction
relevant
It provides an opportunity for hands-on
learning and perspective taking
It teaches skill-building
Through problem solving it builds self-
efficacy
By helping others it builds self-esteem
To be effective there must be adult mentorship and
an opportunity to process experiences
Service Learning is associated with
Lower dropout and suspension rates and
improved engagement with school
Less alcohol consumption
Improved attitudes toward older people
Increased civic engagement as adults
Increased attention to the news
Better work attitudes
Increased attendance and persistence in
schoolwork.
Small Group Activity (10 min.)

In your group, brainstorm two or three

examples of Academic Engagement
strategies:
How to communicate high expectations
Increase flexibility of instruction
Increase relevance of instruction
Section 5
CONCLUSION
Positive school climate includes
Emphasis on academic achievement;
Positive relationships between students
and teachers;
Respect for all members of the school
community;
Fair and consistent discipline policies;
Attention to physical safety;
Family and community involvement.
Connected students

Like school;
Say that teachers provide positive feedback;
Say teachers listen to them;
Believe that all students are treated fairly;
Feel safe;
Dont experience prejudice.
Characteristics of Well-managed
Schools and Classrooms
Expectations are clear for individual
responsibility and conflict resolution
Teachers consistently acknowledge all
students
Students are actively involved in
classroom management
Discipline is authoritative not authoritarian
Social integration of students is structured
Increasing the number of students
connected to school is likely to impact
critical accountability measures, such as
Academic performance;
Incidents of fighting, bullying, or
vandalism;
Absenteeism;
School completion rates.
Strong scientific evidence demonstrates
that increased student connection to
school promotes
1. Educational motivation;
2. Classroom engagement;
3. Improved school attendance.

These three factors in turn increase academic

achievement. These findings apply across racial,
ethnic and income groups.
Creating Conditions for Learning
Students are supported
Meaningful connection to adults
Strong bonds to school
Positive peer relationships
Effective and available support
Students are safe
Physically safe
Emotionally and socially safe
Treated fairly and equitably
Avoid risky behaviors
School is safe and orderly
Students are socially capable
Emotionally intelligent and culturally
competent
Responsible and persistent
Cooperative team players
Contribute to school and community
Students are challenged
High expectations
Strong personal motivation
School is connected to life goals
Rigorous academic opportunities
Their Futures are in your hands!