How school policies, strategies, and relational factors contribute to teacher victimization and school safety.

In this study, we examined how school policies and strategies (i.e., positive discipline, hardening strategies, and positive behavioral strategies) affect teacher relational factors and teacher reports of victimization and safety. Specifically, we examined the mediational roles of teacher support of student learning, maltreatment of students by teachers, and teachers' differential treatment of students in schools. Using a sample of 6643 pre-K-12th-grade teachers, path analysis results revealed that positive behavior strategies, hardening strategies, and positive discipline were indirectly associated with teacher victimization and sense of safety. Additionally, teachers' perceptions of other teachers maltreating students had the greatest contributions to their sense of safety and victimization by students. Positive discipline was directly and indirectly associated with teacher victimization and safety. Implications and directions for future studies are discussed.

Addressing violence against educators: What do teachers say works?

School personnel safety and well-being have received increased attention via national outlets; however, research is limited. The current investigation is the first to examine the reported use and perceived effectiveness of commonly used school-based intervention approaches for addressing school violence, specifically violence against teachers in U.S. schools. A sample of 4,471 prekindergarten-12th grade teachers was asked to rate the use and perceived effectiveness of common school-based approaches, namely exclusionary discipline (e.g., suspensions), school hardening (e.g., metal detectors, school police), prevention (e.g., school climate improvement, social-emotional learning, classroom management), and crisis intervention practices (e.g., de-escalation, physical restraint) to address verbal/threatening, physical, and property violence against teachers. Findings revealed that teachers rated prevention practices as most effective in reducing violence against teachers. The use of exclusionary discipline and crisis intervention practices at school was positively associated with all three forms of violence. Ratings of the effectiveness of specific practices were associated with lower likelihoods of verbal/threatening (i.e., hardening, prevention), physical (i.e., exclusionary discipline, hardening, prevention), and property (i.e., hardening) violence. Implications for school practice, research, and policy are presented. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

An eighteen-year longitudinal examination of school victimization and weapon use in California secondary schools.

BACKGROUND: School safety has been a major public health issue in the United States and internationally for more than three decades. Many policies and programs have been developed and implemented to prevent school violence, improve the school climate, and increase safety. There are only a few peer-reviewed studies of changes in school violence over time. The study examined changes over time in school victimization, weapon involvement and school climate, comparing change trajectories by gender and race and different change trajectories among schools. METHODS: A longitudinal study of the biennial California Healthy Kids Survey in secondary schools from 2001 to 2019. The representative sample included 6,219,166 students in grades 7, 9, and 11 (48.8% male) from 3253 schools (66% high schools). RESULTS: All victimization and weapon involvement items had significant and substantial linear reductions. The largest reduction involved being in a physical fight (from 25.4% to 11.0%). There were reductions in weapon involvement (d = 0.46) and victimization (d = 0.38). Biased-based victimization only declined slightly (d = -0.05). School belongingness and safety increased (d = 0.27), adult support increased a small amount (d = 0.05), and student participation declined (d = -0.10). Changes were smallest among White students. Ninety-five percent of the schools showed the same pattern of reductions. CONCLUSIONS: The findings are in contrast to the public's concerns that school violence is a growing problem. Reductions in school violence may result from social investment in school safety. A distinction should be made between school shootings and other forms of school violence.

Districts' and schools' role in identifying and providing services for homeless students: Nested ecological case studies in school districts with high- and low-socioeconomic status.

Even though homeless students are nested in schools and districts with different socioeconomic status (SES) contexts, little is known about the role of schools and districts for homeless students in these differing contexts. This comparative case study explored the identification, service provision, and school experience of homeless students in high- and low-SES districts. Mixed-methods case study methodology was used to compare two school districts and their four elementary and middle schools in California. The districts differed based on their SES: low to medium versus high. Findings show that despite differences in the SES context, both districts were underidentifying homeless students. Hence, both districts were underserving and lacking awareness of homeless students that were not identified. However, the low-SES district had far greater poverty awareness and, subsequently, an existing organizational structure than the high-SES district to support identified homeless students. Poverty awareness and districts' organizational structure are important contextual factors to consider in designing local and tailored interventions and services for homeless students.

"We Need to Address the Trauma": School Social Workers' Views About Student and Staff Mental Health During COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent school disruptions shined a spotlight on the mental health needs of young people, and the importance of schools and school social workers (SSWs) in attending to those needs. This study sought to understand SSWs' views about mental health and trauma in relation to the pandemic and schools reopening. Data came from written responses to open-ended questions on a national survey of SSWs during June-July 2020 (Kelly et al., 2021; Watson et al., 2022). In the national survey, 450 SSWs responded to open-ended questions, providing 115 single-spaced pages of detailed qualitative comments. A unified conceptual model for a trauma-informed school was created by integrating components suggested within the literature. This conceptual model was then used to generate a theory-based coding schema. Responses mapped well onto the conceptual model. Major themes included recognition of COVID-19 and 2020 social unrest as a unique period and potentially traumatic experience; the need for a trauma-informed school response; the challenges of addressing all facets of safety during the pandemic; and the essentiality and difficulty of maintaining school-based relationships during school closures and remote learning. Results demonstrated that SSWs used and discussed key components of a trauma-informed approach. Respondents offered several recommendations for implementing trauma-informed approaches during and after the pandemic, many of which required collaboration from other school staff. Findings provide empirical support for a unified school model that integrates components of a trauma-informed approach found in the literature. We make recommendations for interpersonal, organizational, and policy adaptations schools can take to become more trauma informed.

Needs of Children and Families during Spring 2020 COVID-19 School Closures: Findings from a National Survey.

Despite extensive reports during the COVID-19 pandemic of the academic challenges facing students, and the effects of online learning on academic achievements, we have little information regarding the needs and difficulties of K-12 students and their families from a social work perspective. The present article shares findings from a nationwide survey of 1,275 school social workers (SSWs) reporting on their clients-schools, children, and families-during the spring 2020 COVID-19 school closures. SSWs indicated that the children and families they served had significant unmet basic needs, including for food, healthcare, and housing. Poverty and mental health compounded pandemic difficulties, which were associated with the sociodemographic makeup of schools. Student engagement in social work services during the closures was significantly lower than prepandemic levels, generally due to unmet material needs. Several policy and practice implications arise from these findings, including a need for additional services for students and families, a plan to address structural inequities in our schools and communities, coordinated outreach to reengage missing students, and recognition of the strong work being done by school staff coupled with a need for additional supports and resources to combat persistent inequality.

Teachers victimizing students: Contributions of student-to-teacher victimization, peer victimization, school safety, and school climate in Chile.

Although most of the school violence literature is focused on peer victimization, interest is growing in teachers being victimized by their students. However, there is far less interest in students being victimized by their teachers, patterns of mutual victimization, and how they are associated with other school factors. Using the conceptual framework of school violence in evolving contexts, the present study examined teacher-to-student victimization in Chile and tested, for the first time, the associations of student-to-teacher victimization, peer victimization, school safety, classroom climate, and school climate at the individual and school levels. The sample consisted of 50,344 students (51.6% female) in Grades 5-8 in 431 schools in Chilean public-funded schools. Findings indicated that verbal types of teacher-student mutual victimization were more prevalent than physical and sexual victimization. Teacher-to-student victimization was higher among male and younger students. Multilevel analyses showed that student-to-teacher victimization, school safety, classroom climate, and school climate were associated with teacher-to-student victimization. We discuss the need for whole-school approaches that enhance social and academic support from teachers to reduce mutual forms of victimization and suggest a public health approach that places the school in the center. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Role of school-climate in school-based violence among homeless and nonhomeless students: Individual- and school-level analysis.

BACKGROUND: Research is scarce regarding homeless students' school-violence experiences, specifically while considering the role of school-climate and the different groups within the homeless student population. Understanding the relation between school-violence and school-climate might help towards the development of support for homeless students. OBJECTIVE: Examine the association between school-climate components, homelessness and school discriminatory bullying, behavioral victimization and weapon involvement at the student and school levels. PARTICIPANTS: 389,569 high school students and 811 schools from a representative California statewide sample (2011-2013). METHODS: Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used to examine differences between the subgroups of homeless students as compared to nonhomeless students. Hierarchical logistic regressions were conducted to examine the relation between school-climate and discriminatory bullying, behavioral victimization and weapon involvement in school at the individual level, and hierarchical linear regressions were conducted at the school level. RESULTS: At the student level adding school-climate dimensions contributed significantly to each outcome. Positive school-climate was associated with lower rates of all school-violence outcomes. Safety, positive relationship and connectedness were all significantly negatively associated with the outcomes, especially safety. At the school level, the partial linear regression coefficient of school-climate is negative and significantly (p < .001) decreases discriminatory bullying, behavioral discrimination and gun involvement. CONCLUSION: Positive school-climate serves as a protective factor for homeless students with regards to school violence outcomes. Enhancing whole-school interventions improving school-climate at the school level, would benefit students experiencing homelessness.

Substance use off and on school grounds: A California statewide comparison between different groups of homeless students and nonhomeless students.

About 1.3 million homeless students attend schools across the US, yet little is known about their substance use patterns, especially substance use on school grounds. The objectives of this study were to examine differences in substance use on and off school grounds between nonsheltered homeless, sheltered homeless, and nonhomeless public school students, and to examine the relationship between homelessness and substance use in school. Data were from a statewide representative sample from the California Healthy Kids Survey collected in 2011-2013, (n = 390,028). Bivariate and multivariate analyses were applied. Findings show that compared to nonhomeless students, homeless students, both sheltered and nonsheltered, reported higher rates of age at first time of use under the age of 10, and recent substance use, for an array of substances, indulging alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana and other illegal drugs. Additionally about 50% of nonsheltered homeless students, and 15% of sheltered homeless students reported having used substances in school in the past 30 days. Results from logistic regressions indicate that homelessness is associated with substance use in school. Particularly, nonsheltered homeless students were 17.41, 12.09, 11.36 and 17.59 times more likely to report smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, using marijuana and using other illegal drugs (respectively) in school in the past 30 days, compared to nonhomeless students. Sheltered homeless students were also more likely to use substances in school compared to nonhomeless students, but less likely compared to nonsheltered students. Findings highlight the need to develop differentiated school-based responses to each homeless subgroup and have conceptual, scientific and policy implications.

A School-Based Multilevel Study of Adolescent Suicide Ideation in California High Schools.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the between-school variation in suicide ideation and to estimate the contribution of school-level attributes, student-level characteristics, and 2 cross-level interactions (school by student) to student suicide ideation. STUDY DESIGN: A secondary analysis of the California Healthy Kids Survey in 2 large and representative samples of California high schools and students: 2009-2011 and 2011-2013. This is a population sample of all public high school students (grades 9 and 11) in California. Analyses were first conducted on surveys administered in the 2011-2013 academic years to 790 schools with 345 203 students and replicated on surveys administered in 2009-2011 to 860 schools with 406 313 students. RESULTS: School-level suicide ideation rates ranged between 4% and 67%, with a median of 19.3% and mean of 20.0% (SD, 5.7%). Student suicide ideation was explained by student-level characteristics (R2 = .20) and to a larger extent by school-level attributes (R2 = .55). Student-level characteristics predictive of suicide ideation included, sex, ethnic and racial affiliation, victimization, and perceptions of school climate. In both samples, school size and average level of academic achievement were not associated with rates of school suicide ideation. Schools with a larger number of girls and higher levels of victimization had higher rates of suicide ideation in both samples. The hypotheses regarding cross-level interactions were not confirmed. CONCLUSIONS: Differences among schools in student suicide ideation are meaningful. The findings suggest an emphasis on the role of schools in prevention programs, public health campaigns to reduce suicide, multilevel research, and theory development.

School-related experiences of adolescents in foster care: A comparison with their high-school peers.

Although adolescents in foster care are known to be more at risk for school-related academic challenges, there is a paucity of research on their school-related experiences, such as victimization and relationships with teachers, compared with their same-age peers not in care. The aim of this article is to compare foster-care adolescents and their schoolmates on data that was drawn from the statewide representative California Healthy Kids survey and includes 165,815 nonfoster youth and 706 foster youth in 9th and 11th grades. Findings indicate a consistent pattern: After controlling for age, gender and race, adolescents in foster care have lower (self-reported) academic achievements and experiences that are more negative in school compared with their peers. However, hierarchical regression equations indicate that after controlling for background and school experiences, there were no significant differences in academic achievements between foster care youth and their high school peers. This finding may reflect that in-school experiences are responsible for many of the more negative academic outcomes experienced by foster youth. (PsycINFO Database Record

Associations between school violence, military connection, and gang membership in California secondary schools.

Recent studies have found that military-connected students confront many challenges-such as secondary traumatization-that may stem from a parent's deployment and frequent relocations. It is possible that multiple moves and deployments of family service members are associated with military-connected students' gang membership and involvement with school violence behaviors. In this study, a total of 13,484 students completed the core and military modules of the California Healthy Kids Survey. Logistic regressions examined the odds of a student being a member of a gang given their grade, gender, race/ethnicity, school violence behaviors, military-connectedness, changes in schools, and familial deployments. Results indicated that of the nearly 8% of students sampled who reported being in a gang, those with a parent or sibling currently serving in the military reported a higher prevalence rate of gang membership than students with no military connection. Students who reported being in fights or carrying weapons to school were at least twice more likely to be a gang member than students who reported not having been in fights or carrying weapons. Changing schools 4 or more times in a 5-year period and experiencing at least 1 familial deployment were also associated with an increased likelihood of gang membership. The findings of this study offer incentive to further explicate the gang and school violence experiences of military-connected students. This study supports schools in understanding the characteristics of the military-connected students and families they serve so they can implement appropriate interventions to curb gang and school violence behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record

Examining the Relationship Between School Climate and Peer Victimization Among Students in Military-Connected Public Schools.

In the Iraq and Afghanistan war context, studies have found that military-connected youth- youth with parents and/or siblings serving in the military-have higher rates of school victimization than their nonmilitary-connected peers. A positive school climate-where students perceive high levels of school connectedness, caring relationships and high expectations from adults, and meaningful participation-is associated with lower rates of victimization in secondary public schools. Based on a survey of 7th, 9th, and 11th grade students (N =14,493) enrolled in 6 military-connected school districts (districts that have a significant proportion of military-connected students), this study explores victimization rates and the role of school climate, deployment, and school transitions in the victimization of military-connected students and their civilian peers. The findings indicate that deployment and school transitions were significant predictors of physical violence and nonphysical victimization. In addition, multiple school climate factors were significantly associated with physical violence and nonphysical victimization. The authors conclude with a discussion of future directions for research on school climate, victimization, and military-connected youth.

Substance Abuse and Other Adverse Outcomes for Military-Connected Youth in California: Results From a Large-Scale Normative Population Survey.

IMPORTANCE: Military families and military-connected youth exhibit significant strengths; however, a sizeable proportion of these families appear to be struggling in the face of war-related stressors. Understanding the consequences of war is critical as a public health concern and because additional resources may be needed to support military families. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether rates of adverse outcomes are higher for military-connected adolescents during war compared with nonmilitary peers. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This study is a secondary data analysis of a large, normative, and geographically comprehensive administrative data set (2013 California Healthy Kids Survey) to determine whether military-connected youth are at risk for adverse outcomes, including substance use, experiencing violence and harassment, and weapon carrying, during wartime. These outcomes are of particular concern because they affect socioemotional adjustment and academic success. Data were collected in March and April 2013 and participants included 54,679 military-connected and 634,034 nonmilitary-connected secondary school students from public civilian schools in every county and almost all school districts in California. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Outcomes included lifetime and recent use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, prescription medications, and other drugs, as well as experiences of physical and nonphysical violence and harassment and weapon carrying during the last year. RESULTS: Multivariable logistic regression models indicated that military-connected youth had greater odds of substance use, experience of physical violence and nonphysical harassment, and weapon carrying. For example, military-connected youth had 73% greater odds of recent other drug use (eg, cocaine and lysergic acid diethylamide; odds ratio [OR], 1.73; 95% CI, 1.66-1.80) and twice the odds of bringing a gun to school (OR, 2.20; 95% CI, 2.10-2.30) compared with nonmilitary-connected peers. Their odds of being threatened with a weapon or being in a fight were also significantly higher than their civilian counterparts (OR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.80-1.95 and OR, 1.67; 95% CI, 1.62-1.71, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Most military-connected youth demonstrate resilience. However, results suggest that during wartime, military-connected youth are at increased risk for adverse outcomes. Further, when compared with data from 2011, the rates of these negative outcomes appear to be increasing. These findings suggest a need to identify and intervene with military-connected adolescents and reflect a larger concern regarding the well-being of military families during wartime.

The promotional role of school and community contexts for military students.

This article examines how supportive public school environments can serve as a promotional context for the development of children and adolescents from military families. The authors integrate theory and research from multiple research strands (e.g., human development, studies of at-risk youth, educational reform, goodness of fit theory, and school climate) to outline how public schools can support the development of all children and adolescents. This article provides further support for the supposition that school climates and the social-ecological contexts surrounding a school (e.g., universities, communities, school districts) have the potential to protect at-risk children and adolescents from an array of negative social, emotional, and psychological outcomes. The authors draw linkages between these research domains and the development of military children and adolescents. Promotional civilian school environments embedded within supportive and inclusive contexts can create a social infrastructure that supports the development of military children and adolescents. The authors argue that this conceptual approach can create a foundation for interventions and research that focuses on schools as normative supportive developmental settings for military children and youth during challenging times of war (e.g., deployments and multiple school transitions). This article concludes with a discussion of future directions in research on the development of military children and adolescents. Based on a heuristic conceptual model that outlines areas needing further research, the authors call for a deeper theoretical and empirical integration of school climate and external contextual factors surrounding the school. Investigating the social and organizational dynamics within these contexts can result in a more comprehensive picture of the development of military children and adolescents.

Gang membership of California middle school students: behaviors and attitudes as mediators of school violence.

Empirical evidence examining how risk and protective behaviors may possibly mediate the association between gang membership and school violence is limited. This study utilizes a statewide representative sample of 152 023 Latino, Black and White seventh graders from California to examine a theoretical model of how school risk (e.g. truancy, school substance use and risky peer approval) and protective (e.g. connectedness, support and safety) behaviors and attitudes mediate the effects of gang membership on school violence behaviors. The dataset was collected in the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 academic school years using the ongoing large-scale California Healthy Kids Survey conducted by WestEd for the State of California. Approximately 9.5% of the sample considered themselves to be a member of a gang. The findings indicate that school risk behaviors and attitudes mediate the association between gang membership and school violence behaviors. Although the direct negative association between gang membership and school violence perpetration is weak, the positive indirect effect mediated by school risks behaviors and attitudes is strong. This indicates that when gang members engage in school risk behaviors, they are much more likely to be school violence perpetrators. Implications for further research, theory and practice for both gang and school violence researchers are discussed.

Substance use among military-connected youth: the California Healthy Kids Survey.

BACKGROUND: Young people in military-connected families may be exposed to deleterious stressors, related to family member deployment, that have been associated with externalizing behaviors such as substance use. Substance use predisposes youth to myriad health and social problems across the life span. PURPOSE: This study examined the prevalence and correlates of lifetime and recent substance use in a normative sample of youth who were either connected or not connected to the military. METHODS: Data are from a subsample of the 2011 California Healthy Kids Survey (N=14,149). Items in the present analyses included present familial military affiliation (no one, parent, sibling); number of deployments (none, one, two or more); gender; grade; and race/ethnicity. Substance use items assessed whether the youth reported lifetime use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, other drugs, or prescription drugs; and recent (past 30 days) use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and other drugs. RESULTS: Multivariate analysis conducted in 2012 revealed that an increase in the number of deployments was associated with a higher likelihood of lifetime and recent use, with the exception of lifetime smoking. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that experiences associated with deployment of a family member may increase the likelihood of substance use.

High school students' posttraumatic symptoms, substance abuse and involvement in violence in the aftermath of war.

This study examined one-year after effects of exposure to war events on adolescents' Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms (PTS) and risk behaviors (substance use and involvement in school violence). In addition, it addressed two potential vulnerability factors: at the micro level, it examined whether childhood trauma raised the vulnerability of Israeli adolescents to PTS and risk behaviors when exposed to war events. At the macro level, we explored whether ethnicity, i.e., being an Israeli Arab, is a vulnerability factor to PTS and risk behaviors. We used a representative sample of 7th to 11th grade students from the north of Israel that included 4151 students: 1800 Jewish (54.4% boys) and 2351 Arab (41.5% boys). We assessed exposure to war events and childhood traumatic events, PTS and PTSD, substance use (alcohol, cannabis, Ecstasy) and involvement in school violence. The findings revealed extensive exposure to war events among both Jewish and Arab students. A year after the war, its effects on adolescents were still manifested in PTS, and involvement in school violence and substance use. Exposure to child physical abuse was associated with higher levels of PTS symptoms, substance use and involvement in violence. Exposure to other traumatic events was also associated with greater PTS symptoms and involvement in violence but not with greater substance use. Arab students were a more vulnerable population. They reported higher PTS symptoms, more cannabis use and greater involvement in school violence than Jewish students. However, exposure to war events had similar effects on both Arab and Jewish students. We conclude that war effects include a broad range of psychological distress and risk behaviors that last long after the war ends, especially among youth who have experienced childhood trauma and high exposure to war-related stressors.

Putting context into a cultural perspective: examining Arab and Jewish adolescents' judgments and reasoning about spousal retribution.

In this study, we examined what contextual factors influence adolescents' judgments and reasoning about spousal retribution. Adolescents were drawn from Central and Northern Israel and consisted of 2,324 Arab and Jewish students (Grades 7-11). The study was set up in a 2 (Arab/Jewish respondent) × 2 (spousal retribution scenarios) factorial design. Our findings suggest that societal and cultural norms may be more powerful contextual variables than group stereotypes in influencing Arab and Jewish adolescents' evaluations of spousal retribution. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Students' personal traits, violence exposure, family factors, school dynamics and the perpetration of violence in Taiwanese elementary schools.

School violence has become an international problem affecting the well-being of students. To date, few studies have examined how school variables mediate between personal and family factors and school violence in the context of elementary schools in Asian cultures. Using a nationally representative sample of 3122 elementary school students in Taiwan, this study examined a theoretical model proposing that negative personal traits, exposure to violence and parental monitoring knowledge have both direct influences as well as indirect influences mediated through school engagement, at-risk peers and poor student-teacher relationships on school violence committed by students against students and teachers. The results of a structural equation modeling analysis provided a good fit for the sample as a whole. The final model accounted for 32% of the variance for student violence against students and 21% for student violence against teachers. The overall findings support the theoretical model proposed in this study. Similar findings were obtained for both male and female students. The study indicated that to reduce school violence more effectively in the context of elementary schools, intervention may exclusively focus on improving students' within-school experiences and the quality of the students' relationships with teachers and school peers.