problems as peer mediators.
http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20130110/NEWS02/701109901
Union Street students solve student problems as peer mediators
By Christian Avard
Staff Writer | January 10,2013
Rutland Herald
SPRINGFIELD — Fifth-graders Nadine Spigel, 11, Jessica Cerniglia, 10, Ryan Kirker, 11, and Kristos Iliopoulos, 11, are making a difference at Union Street Elementary School. They are four students who are trained in defusing potential conflicts in the school and on the playground.
On Monday, the peer mediators and their advisor, school counselor Jan Rounds, met with Elizabeth Harty’s third-grade class, performed a skit, and discussed how they can help students when trouble arises.
“We are not judges. We are not here to punish you or tell you what to do. We are here to help you resolve your conflict,” Kirker said in a skit performed with peer mediators.
The students acted out a situation that would be hurtful, imagining a student who is left out of an activity by a friend. Kirker and Cerniglia asked Iliopoulos and Spigel what they could do to make the situation better. They each suggested ideas and eventually came to an agreement. The Union Street peer mediation program is in its 13th year at Union Street Elementary. According to faculty and staff, the program is effective in helping students solve problems in a constructive manner.
“We have 12 peer mediators who advised in 23 situations. They sat down with kids and helped them figure things out on their own.”
Rounds was introduced to student peer mediation at Riverside Middle School. She took the program model and worked with fifth-graders in their final year at Union Street Elementary.
Rounds teaches all fourth-graders in peer mediation and they receive certification. Teachers choose 12 students as mediators while those not chosen can volunteer as deputies.
The deputies monitor students on the playground, in classrooms, and in other areas where students congregate. They refer problematic situations to peer moderators who take over from there.
Even when students are not selected as peer moderators, many are eager to fill in as deputies. “Being a deputy is voluntary but we have 70 deputies who are willing to help out. They also enjoy the responsibilities they have,” Rounds added.
Having student mediators and deputies has made Union Street a supportive school for everyone. Knowing that fifth-graders are helping them find solutions contributes to a positive learning environment.
According to the fifth-graders who spoke to Harty’s class, being a peer moderator is more than just helping students.
“It’s about leadership, helping people and teaching them skills to where they want to go,” Iliopoulos said.
Cerniglia agreed.
“It feels good because you know you can help people,” she said.
Spigel added that mediation skills also help outside of the classroom and are empowering.
“These skills can be used in families. They are good skills to know and I feel strong,” Spigel said.
who do we blaim this one on ???
ReplyDeleteno driving, no beer, no flying alone on airplanes... everything else, out source to an 11 year old.
"trained in defusing potential conflicts in the school and on the playground"
you better train them, that way you can reduce the school budget.
bad answers lead to bigger problems
“We have 12 peer mediators who advised in 23 situations. They sat down with kids and helped them figure things out on their own.”
ReplyDeleteCareful with the 'nazi' statements.
DeleteTeachers choose 12 students as mediators while those not chosen can volunteer as deputies.
ReplyDeleteThe deputies monitor students on the playground, in classrooms, and in other areas where students congregate. They refer problematic situations to peer moderators who take over from there.
“These skills can be used in families. They are good skills to know and I feel strong,”
Christian Avard promotes the swastika for Vt.
Now if they could completely eliminate the teachers since the students are doing their jobs, Union Street can complete the final transition into a "Lord Of the Flies" school.
ReplyDeleteThe above comments are silly provocation. The peer mediator program is a great way to help children resolve simple problems and conflicts. The skills taught empower students not only in the classroom but in many aspects of life. The program teaches patience, reasoning, problem solving, and most importantly compassion for others. When I was a young student in Springfield I received help from peer mediators and they made a positive difference. In more serious matters teachers are always brought in. Every student should be involved in the program in some way, programs like peer mediation help build a stronger, more confident community inside our schools.
ReplyDeleteToday's mediators are tommorrow's crises actors
Deletethey are hiring !
sorri my english not so good. Crisis Actors.
DeleteNonsense. The only time Union school was well disciplined was when the principal kept a paddle in her desk and occasionally put it to work on the backsides of ill-mannered children. Amazing how simple, effective and low cost it was and it worked great. No need for "peer mediation" or idiots teaching it to children.
DeleteFormer Springfield Student-- Absolutely spot on! If you want a citizenry that will recognize a problem and roll up their sleeves to do something about it, you have to give them the opportunity to learn how to do it, and peer mediation is EXCELLENT training. Who wants people to ignore unpleasant and even potentially dangerous developments in the hope that "someone in authority" will do the right thing?
DeleteIn addition, peer mediation teaches students that not only do they have the power to confront conflict, they also have the respect and backing of their peers for doing so.
Finally, the wrongdoers learn at least to some extent that their peers expect better of them and will hold them accountable in the future. Sometimes a lesson has to be repeated, but eventually repeated often enough the lesson is learned.
Expecting discipline to be administered by a powerful central figure is very, very bad for any country, especially a democracy. Remove the authority, and the population goes nuts, as it did in Russia when the USSR collapsed. The bad guys (formerly the nomenklatura, now the plutocrats, and the KGB, now the Putin government) went wild and got it all.... We can't afford that here.
Kudos to Seth, below, as well.
Chuck, your last paragraph...
DeleteAre you saying that didn't all start with the same wrong moves being made here?
you need to learn your past better in an effort yto not repeat it
11/13: For Vermont to arrive at the "evil socialist" condition you seem to allude to, here's what would have had to happen: Ethan Allen would have had to acquire as one of his chief lieutenants a man with an extensive criminal background and a substantial web of very effective criminal associates. Allen would have charged this man with appointing town clerks and police in every town. Upon Allen's death, this man would then have murdered Allen's other appointees and Allen's original Green Mountain Boys in order to get all the reins of power in his hands.
DeleteHe then would have replaced town administrators and selectboards with more of his own, probably rigging the constitution so that only candidates from his now tightly-controlled Green Mountain Boys party would be eligible to run. Still of a criminal mind, he would ensure gang-like obedience to his rule by replacing every teacher in the state and encouraging a cult of snitches. Every child in the state would grow up knowing that to express an unorthodox opinion or an independent action would be to bring great harm and that everybody around him was ready to snitch. Then, when the Greatest Green Mountain Boy dies and the system collapses, most of the well-trained citizenry stand by unprotestingly as the remaining members of the ruling class make themselves into oligarchs.
Vermont is nowhere near the condition you imagine. Nice imagination, though!
@ 11;16
DeleteChuck, just looking around. Who is Ethan Allen? Do you mean the home building company ?
What are the Green Mountain Boys ? are there any here in Springfield ? where are they ? Are they underground at the moment ?
It sure would be nice to see these guys that you tak about.
Sorry, but they're all dead, Anonymous. Definitely underground at this time, unless Ethan Allen got assumed bodily into Heaven. Nobody's going to find out about them on Fox News, either. Please, please continue the snark! I love it!! We need more of it here.
DeleteTlaloques approves
DeleteConflict resolution skills are very important. These skills help prevent situations escalating to a dangerous level, at any age. Programs like this lead to safer schools and communities. I, truly, cannot comprehend how people could read this story and think that this reflects negatively on the job our teachers are doing. Anyone worried about how the public system is treating Springfield youths can mentor, volunteer in the schools, or even get a teaching degree to show us all how it should be done.
ReplyDeleteand so are acting skills and lying skills and going along with what your friends said skills, natural looking responses come more genuinely with early training.
DeleteYour response would be far more intelligible, if correct punctuation and grammar were to be used. A very small part of these children's learning experience is picking one's battles wisely. The world will be a better place when everyone can speak to each other calmly, avoiding stupid, violent conflict.
DeleteUnfortunately the school system has failed and now is overrun by idiots chasing fools errands at the expense of the taxpayers and the children.
DeleteSo man/woman up and put your name where your complaints are. Or, put your time into making things better.
Delete@ 7:00p.m. so true.
DeleteSeth, do you work in the school system ? Have you reported this blog to your deputy or mediator yet ?
You better point your finger and isolate us from those who's opinions count and matter.
It's not like our job is hard enough
I do not work within the school system or the government in any capacity. I do, on the other hand, work full time, pay taxes, and volunteer some of my free time for the betterment of our community. I'm not sure how asking people to put their name next to their opinion is isolating anyone, and I value critical opinions, if a solution is also offered. I must ask, what's the good fight you're fighting, and what job is already hard enough?
Deleteso the kids can be trusted to not abuse their power. you have got to be kidding me. little rats every where. watch out we are watching you. i just remember the kids who would instagate and then run to the teacher.so what happened to sticks and stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me.
ReplyDeleteThey learn how to do peer mediation under the guidance of teachers. Contrary to what some people apparently believe, teachers do pay attention to what kids do in school.
DeleteOfficer Candidate School had the equivalent-- the drill instructor would send up an OC for "discipline" for whatever reason. The only case we dealt with was a commander's son who had tried to convince the DI that he had joined the Navy because he wanted to, not because he was riding on his father's coattails.
We had to punish him, of course, because if we hadn't, all five of us on the board would have been sent up. The administrative of military justice would have been a nightmare, with half of the class now empaneled to deal with five more cases.
Might I point out, thank heaven the public schools are not run like the military. In peer mediation, kids don't have to judge to make the teachers happy, and if the teacher disagrees, the judges don't suffer for their principles, as we would have in the service.
"Springfield Blog" and "agreement" NEVER go hand-in-hand!
ReplyDeletethat's what keeps me reading it! I suspect the blogger has to hire an occasional nut job to keep my interest up. And it's bad for my blood pressure, doncha know?
ReplyDeleteKids helping kids is GOOD. Someone has to do it.
ReplyDeleteCan we please not bring the NAZI's into everything, no matter what the truth is the socialist system we OBVIOUSLY live in daily in this town.... !!? These are children.... can we at least shelter them for a few more years?
ReplyDeletesure, we'll just call them DEMOCRATS !
DeleteI am concerned that maybe we are setting these chosen children up. What are the teachers doing when they have the children outside? Why can't they monitor the children. I do agree that providing children with problem solving skills to help them resolve conflicts is great. Maybe the teachers should take this training. By the way Where is the principal? Why is she not helping out? Teachers need to teach and children need to be children!
DeleteAmen 12:42
DeleteIf you want teachers to have the ability to teach/supervise efficiently, vote yes on the school budget. Or, be a parent/community volunteer.
DeleteBoss Hogg7/15/12, 8:50 PM
ReplyDeleteSpeak for yourself Alpin Jack, here we are trying to preserve a slum in this town by benign inaction from the Town government. The town fathers have been very accomodating in providing a place for these people to live and a way for them to make money. They even have their own police force that occasionally burns down the residences of people who screw up in the system. All you do-gooders are just depriving these people of a way of earning a living. Besides, they help provide income to the private corporations that manage the prisons and bring in these wonderful prison guard families with their youth organizations that have these colorful and distinctive clothing. We don't need your liberal sop.
Ahhh, the peer mediation program, which conveniently diverts the students' efforts away from core curriculum studies of English, math, science, etc. to the utter nonsense of playing court. And America wonders why it continues to fall further behind the rest of the world in all academic performance areas. Taxpayers should be outraged that time is being devoted to this folly.
ReplyDeleteChildren being able to peacefully reconcile their differences doesn't necessarily take away from their studies; it does give them a sense of personal responsibility and community. That, in turn, makes it more likely that they help each other with their weakest subjects, saving time, conflict, and taxpayer money.
DeleteSeth is nuts and is proving it with his ridiculous posts. I am sure you mean well Seth but you, like many others, have lost your way. Get a life and stop spewing nonsense. The Springfield School District can be easily saved but only by first removing the vermin and loons running it first. Springfield had a successful school system for decades before the loons got control and destroyed it.
DeleteHow many school board meetings have you been to? If you want to make positive changes, that is your first step. Call me anything you want, by the way.
Delete