South Orangetown Central School District

Back in November, this blog addressed the importance of increasing the volume of books in a home and noted the relationship between the time that parents and other adults spend reading to children and academic success. I encouraged Black Friday shoppers to purchase books for gift-giving.

 
One of the most active community service organizations in Rockland County, the Tappan Zee High School Leo’s did more than simply write about this need. They took action. In the early spring sixty-five Leo’s sought donations of children’s books from community members who responded with over 3,500 books. These industrious high school students worked to assess the quality and appropriate levels of the books and organized a distribution process at William O. Schaefer School. Twelve members of the high school’s English Honor Society joined the Leo’s in this work.

Before distributing the books, high school students visited WOS to read to our kindergartners and first graders. The students shared what and why they liked to read. Most importantly, they shared their enthusiasm. A few days later they assisted our youngest readers who had the opportunity to select books they could bring home to add to their home libraries. The Leo’s spent 230 hours organizing, planning, and delivering literacy to our youngest students! (This was the Leo’s thirtieth community service event this year.)

 
It is well-documented that academic and career success is strongly correlated with one’s literacy and ability to use language – spoken and written. (There is also a lifelong joy that one gets from reading but that is rarely measured.) Research confirms that when very young children are shown at an early age some simple reading tasks, such as identifying letters, reading from left to right, pointing out letters or words, and identifying capital letters, their reading skills rapidly improve. We also know that the more vocabulary children hear – which comes through reading aloud – the greater the impact on their learning success. We use language to communicate, but we also use language to think – to receive, analyze, organize, and create. When one’s vocabulary is greater, the capacity to think is stronger.

 
Our elementary teachers value the importance of language-rich learning environments while most of our parents foster literacy in their homes. Now, thanks to our Leo’s , our youngest learners have heard from our high school students who have not only modeled a love of reading but one of generosity.

 
All of this work was done without spending a dime. Thanks to the contributions of gently used children’s books by members of the community and an extraordinary amount of time devoted by our students and teacher volunteers, such as Ms. Castelli at TZHS, both those who received and gave lessons in literacy and service profited. These are immeasurable lessons that will not be followed by an exam but will have an impact far more valuable than any test score.

History has taught us that with advances in technology, there are inevitably abusive applications of it.  Media reports about the need for cyber security to protect against hacker attacks that strive to access or steal information and vandalize both personal  and organizational computer systems that run important functions of businesses, utilities, communities, or governments continue to increase. 

In addition to hacking and cyber vandalism, there has also been a rise in the use of the Internet to intimidate others.  Cruelty and insensitivity are not new phenomena in the course of the human experience; however, tools provided by emerging technologies provide the modern bully with an expanded arsenal to inflict harm.  Through the misuse of social networking sites, cell phones, text messages, video clips, and e-mails, malicious individuals can now launch a viral and seemingly indefensible assault on one’s peers.   While name calling and bullying behaviors have always been an unfortunate aspect of childhood and adolescence (and too often adulthood), this new set of tools provides an anonymity that frustrates one’s ability to respond.
 

As the technology develops and rapidly changes form, it is difficult for the average user to stay current about the tools and venues used to deploy verbal and psychological aggression towards others.  By now most adults and children understand that the Internet, while a fabulous tool for gathering information, communicating, learning, and promoting commerce, can also be a device for bullying.  There is a growing desire and need to know how to prevent and respond to such behavior.
 

Personnel in South Orangetown have been studying the problem and attempting to assess its frequency in this community.  We have also been working with law enforcement and our legal counsel to understand the ways in which we can respond within our jurisdiction.  While many questions remain unanswered, there is an emerging body of resources to help schools and parents.
 

In the December 4, 2010, edition of the New York Times, there was a two-page spread about the growing problem of cyber bullying.  The article provided resources to help families and schools understand and promote student understanding of the problem.  The following internet links were referenced in the piece: 

www.connectsafely.org

www.stopcyberbullying.org
 

These links will also be posted on the District’s website under the button of Fostering a Respectful Learning Environment where similar information also resides.  In our efforts to partner with families to educate our children, we hope that you will find this information helpful in both understanding and addressing the problem of cyber bullying.  Let’s work together to keep them safe out there on this new frontier.
 

I recently received a call from a parent whose child had observed another parent at a school event using belligerent and profane language while speaking to a member of the staff.  I was asked by this parent what the District was going to do to support the children who observed the behavior of the offending adult.
 

When I asked the parent what she had said to her own child, she responded, “I told her that some kids never grow up.  They couldn’t manage their impulses when they were five and fifteen, and have not yet been able to so, even though they are now fifty.  But that’s what they are supposed to do because they are the adults.  There’s a time to put away not only childish things but childish behaviors.” What a great answer for a difficult question!
 

As you know, the school district has embarked on an ambitious effort to teach students lessons on civility and respect for others.  Schools cannot do this alone. Children and teens watch adults – whether they are school employees, adults in their personal lives, such as neighbors, coaches, or relatives, or adults in the media.  When parents respond as well as the one I mentioned, it makes for a better community and school system.
 

Most adults are very good models for our children and because of that, in spite of our inclination to generalize deviance, there is more civility than incivility in our world.  As a society we are always striving to reduce and ideally eliminate social behaviors that make life more difficult than it already is.  It is sometimes very difficult to find answers to children’s questions about why some adults behave in a less than civil way.
 

While society cannot always protect our youngsters from being exposed to the deviant behaviors and inappropriate actions of adults who enter their worlds, all of us have an opportunity to teach them during these moments.  The teaching comes in different forms: how we act, what we say, or what we don’t say.  Most adults know the right thing to say and to do.
 

Parents often believe that as their children enter adolescence, they do not care what their parents have to say.  That’s a faulty assumption.  Adolescents may begin to assert their independence by challenging adults in their world or looking to peers for ideas about the world, but they continue to watch and learn from what we do, what we say, and what we fail to say.  There are certainly enough opportunities for us to do some teaching through good modeling.
 

View a brief and somewhat provocative video that illustrates the power of adult modeling.  Be advised that some individuals may find it disturbing.  Click here

 A National Concern

In August, the U.S. Department of Education held its first anti-bullying summit in Washington, D.C.  The summit was co-sponsored by multiple agencies, including the Justice Department and Health and Human Services.  In attendance were educators, researchers, and health officials.  Expert panelists discussed and debated some of the concerns in defining “bullying” and identifying best practices to prevent and eradicate it.

There are 43 states with laws banning bullying; however, the language that defines bullying is inconsistent.  Such variation impacts researchers’ ability to determine the extent of the problem, the types of bullying behaviors, and the best responses to combating them.  There is, however, consensus over some key findings about such behaviors that are likely to be refined over the next few years. 

South Orangetown’s Focus & the Importance of Partnering

Over the past year, educators in South Orangetown have been studying the most current research and have been reviewing and assessing our own efforts towards prevention.  In addition, we have identified ways in which we can enhance our efforts and add programs to bolster such work.  This is a major objective of South Orangetown’s educators and will continue to be so.

 We are aware of the research that indicates that success occurs when lessons about respect and civility begin early and have the support of families and the community.  We have also learned that successful implementation occurs when there are consistent messages that are transmitted through articulated programs, practices, and language across the K-12 system.  The lessons about respect, kindness, compassion, and responsibility that begin in the home need to be reinforced and sustained in the classroom, as well as throughout the school experience.

On the SOCSD website, we will periodically provide information about the progress of this work.  We will also be providing resources via various weblinks to those who partner with us in this important mission.  We consider anyone involved in preparing our children and teens for adulthood to be such partners.  Please join us.

 (Find more information on the district webpage.  Click here on Foster a Respectful Environment to find resources and links about bullying prevention.)