- Handouts and resources from the day may be found on the Southeast Polk Professional Development site at the link below:
Southeast Polk Mental Health Professional Development 1.18.16
- Below is a summary of an article on nurturing student resilience. It captures many of the efforts implemented at Southeast Polk, including building relationships and growth mindset.
Three Key Factors That Nurture
Student Resilience
In
this article in Kappa Delta Pi Record,
California consultant/researcher Sara Truebridge addresses the central question
about resilience: Why do some children
who are exposed to high-risk environments successfully adapt while others do
not? Truebridge challenges the notion that resilience is a trait that
students either have or don’t have. All people have the capacity for resilience,
she says, and there are three factors that tap and nurture that potential: (a) caring
relationships, (b) high expectations, and (c) meaningful opportunities for
participation and contribution. The three factors help develop children’s
social competence, problem-solving ability, sense of self and internal locus of
control, and sense of purpose and optimism about the future – all of which are
key to dealing successfully with adversity.
“When these protective factors
exist together in any one environment – home, school, community, or peer group
– the climate in that environment becomes one that is optimal for nurturing the
resilience of a child, youth, or any individual,” says Truebridge. “Applying
these approaches does not cost extra money, but rather requires a focus on
re-culturing schools in a unified vision to create, nurture, and sustain
important protective factors that provide a positive influence and buffer
students from adversity, threat, stress, and risk.” Having all three factors
present in a school can compensate for their absence in the family, community,
or peer group. And a school with these factors can be resilient as an
organization in the face of challenges and traumatic events it may face.
•
Caring relationships – This is all
about providing a sense of connectedness and belonging, “being there,” showing
compassion and trust. Teachers get to know the life context of each student and
model empathy and compassion. Principals engage students, staff, and parents in
school climate surveys and have an open-door policy that makes students
comfortable dropping in if they need help or just want to talk. Superintendents
make regular visits to schools and sponsor “dialogue nights” where adults and
youth can talk together in an atmosphere of mutual trust and safety.
•
High expectations – Teachers make appropriate
expectations clear and recognize progress as well as performance. They also
encourage mindfulness and self-awareness of moods, thinking, and actions. Principals
orchestrate a curriculum that is challenging, comprehensive, thematic,
experiential, and inclusive of multiple perspectives. They also provide
training in resilience and youth development, and work to change deeply held
adult beliefs about students’ capacities. Superintendents question how success
is defined and ensure a commitment to being culturally responsive.
•
Meaningful opportunities for
participation and contribution – Teachers hold daily class meetings and
empower students to create classroom norms and agreements. Principals establish
peer-helping/tutoring and cross-age mentoring/tutoring programs and set up peer
support networks to help new students and families acclimate to the school
environment. Superintendents scour the neighborhood to identify pro-youth
resources, services, and facilities, and hire a community liaison officer to
enhance communication, cooperation, and understanding.
Truebridge draws on her own
research and that of several other researchers to make these observations about
resilience in schools:
