Improving the School Environment to Reduce School Violence: A Review of the Literature*

BACKGROUND: School violence can impact the social, psychological, and physical well‐being of both students and teachers and disrupt the learning process. This review focuses on a new area of research, the mechanisms by which the school environment determines the likelihood of school violence. METHODS: A search for peer‐reviewed articles was made in six databases and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's report on school‐violence interventions. Twenty‐five articles that attempted to understand the influence of either the school social or physical environment in determining teacher and student perceptions of safety and experiences of violence were included. RESULTS: Most of the included articles were cross‐sectional surveys of junior high or high school students and staff. As articles used different measures of the school physical and social environment, a classification system was created. Using this system, studies show that schools with less violence tend to have students who are aware of school rules and believe they are fair, have positive relationships with their teachers, feel that they have ownership in their school, feel that they are in a classroom and school environment that is positive and focused on learning, and in an environment that is orderly. CONCLUSION: The school social and physical environment appears to offer intervention opportunities to reduce school violence. However, the lack of consistency in school environment variables as well as the lack of longitudinal and experimental research designs limits the applicability of these findings.     

Chinese parents' perceptions and practices of parental involvement during school transition

Parents' perceptions and practices of parental involvement during the transition from kindergarten to primary school were captured through individual interviews with 18 Chinese parents after their children had entered primary school. The responses revealed that in order to facilitate children's adjustment during school transition, parents tended to become more academic-focused in their involvement at home. Parents also reported their dissatisfaction with the infrequent home–school communication as well as the lack of opportunities for active involvement in school (e.g. volunteering and decision-making). The implications of this research for promoting a smooth school transition for children are discussed, together with directions for future research.     

两种假设检验思想的比较

探讨经典统计学派与贝叶斯学派设检验思想的异同。 方法总结和概括两种思想，并结合一个实例对两种思想进行比较，结果两种思想统一于贝叶斯定理，并特定场合下相互等价；贝叶斯方法在先验信息的利用，等方面经典方法具有明显的优势。结论贝叶斯学派的理论应用受到重视。     

Elementary school parents'/guardians' perceptions of school health service personnel and the services they provide

BACKGROUND: The school nurse, the school social worker, and the school counselor play an important role in promoting the health of children. Health services in the school setting provide opportunities to appraise, protect, and promote student health. The purpose of this study was to identify parents' or caregivers' perceptions and beliefs regarding the importance of schools providing various health services to their elementary school-aged children. In addition, the study examined the levels of parental support for, perceptions of, and contact with school health service personnel. METHODS: In 2005, a nationally representative random sample of 369 (51% return rate) parents of elementary school-aged children completed the questionnaire developed for this study. RESULTS: A majority of parents/caregivers reported that their child's school had a school nurse (78.8%) and counselor (60.5%), but only 22.6% reported their school had a social worker. A majority of parents/caregivers perceived full-time school nurses (86.3%), school counselors (78.6%), and school social workers (56.3%) as important or extremely important and that schools should be held responsible for having each in their child's elementary school. A majority of parents/caregivers were willing to pay an increase in yearly tax dollars to have full-time school health personnel. CONCLUSIONS: This study established a level of parental support for, perceptions of, and contact with school health service personnel. Parents were most supportive of school nurses and should be perceived as allies in ensuring job security.     

地方医学院校办学新理念

地方医学院校要在高等教育的激烈竞争中立于不败之地,首要是确定办学新理念,即特色立校、开放办学、依法治校、教学创新.唯此,地方医学院校才能与社会经济发展合拍,才能适应地方公共卫生事业发展的新需求,学校也才能在高校之林中占有一席之地.     

山西省中学校园欺负行为现状及影响因素调查

目的了解山西省中学生校园欺负行为现状及其影响因素,为校园欺负行为干预提供参考依据。方法于2014—2015年采用多阶段分层整群抽样方法,抽取山西省9 905名中学生进行匿名问卷调查。结果 9 905名中学生中,过去30 d卷入欺负行为、欺负、被欺负、欺负–被欺负行为的流行率分别为8.8%、4.2%、6.8%和2.3%,卷入欺负行为流行率在不同性别、学校类别、目前在家和谁一起居住、家庭经济状况、父母婚姻状况、学习压力及负担、不上学的社会朋友数、和同学及老师的关系、当前是否饮酒、是否有儿童期虐待(情感、躯体及性虐待)之间差异均有统计学意义(均P<0.001)。多因素logistic回归分析显示,男生(OR=1.983,95%CI=1.683~2.336)、初中生(OR=2.168,95%CI=1.671~2.813)、拥有社会上的朋友数≥3个(OR=1.435,95%CI=1.170~1.759),和同学及老师的关系差(OR=5.466,95%CI=2.538~11.770;OR=2.624,95%CI=1.654~4.162)、目前在家和母亲一起居住(OR=1.369,95%CI=1.004~1.867)、父母偶尔吵架(OR=1.301,95%CI=1.100~1.539)、当前饮酒(OR=1.787,95%CI=1.453~2.197),儿童期情感、躯体和性虐待(OR=2.333,95%CI=1.899~2.865;OR=2.389,95%CI=1.760~3.243;OR=3.857,95%CI=3.159~4.709)经历均是中学生卷入校园欺负的危险因素,家庭经济状况较好(OR=0.648,95%CI=0.437~0.961)和学习压力没有–较小(OR=0.677,95%CI=0.526~0.872)是中学生卷入校园欺负的保护因素。结论山西省中学生校园欺负行为发生较为普遍,应从个人、学校及家庭等多个层面应对校园欺负行为。     

School food provision in England: A historical journey

School food provision is an important lever to shape the eating behaviours and dietary intake of school‐aged children and young people, and may help to address issues of childhood obesity, inadequate nutrient intakes and the widening gap of health inequalities. The regulation of school food has been an issue since the 1940s, with the challenges of developing a school food policy that supports health and wellbeing and that can be effectively translated in practice remaining to the present day. This paper examines changes to school food provision in England since the 1940s, with regard to the political structure and decisions made by each respective government. It considers the lessons learned from the development of school food policies over this period and possible ways to improve the standards of school food in the future.     

More than words? The status and impact of smoking policies in Scottish schools

The aim of this study was to investigate the current status of smoking policies in Scottish schools, and the relationship between policy status, enforcement of smoking restrictions and perceptions of smoking behaviour among pupils and teachers. A representative sample of 15-year-old school pupils from 77 Scottish secondary schools was surveyed in 1998 regarding their perceptions of smoking in several locations within and outside the school building. Two staff members from each school were also surveyed regarding school smoking policies for pupils and teachers, the nature of the school's smoking restrictions, and the extent to which the restrictions were enforced. The results showed that more schools had a written policy on teacher smoking than on pupil smoking. All schools in the sample banned smoking by pupils, but the majority allowed smoking by teachers in restricted areas. Irrespective of the type of policy or restrictions on smoking, pupils reported seeing smoking among both pupils and teachers on school premises in all of the sample schools. Whether or not a school had a written policy appeared to be unrelated to pupil smoking in the toilets or teacher smoking outdoors on school premises. However, pupils were less likely to be aware of pupils smoking outdoors and teachers smoking in the staff rooms in schools where there were written policies on pupil and teacher smoking, respectively. Consistent enforcement of a ban on pupil smoking was associated with lower levels of perceived smoking among pupils. Where a complete ban on teacher smoking existed, smoking among teachers was seen less often in the staff rooms, but more often in outside areas on school premises. The results have implications for the use of policy in promoting a healthy school environment.     

Frequent fliers, school phobias, and the sick student: school health personnel's perceptions of students who refuse school

BACKGROUND: This study explored school personnel's perceptions of school refusal, as it has been described as a “common educational and public health problem” that is less tolerated due to increasing awareness of the potential socioeconomic consequences of this phenomenon. METHODS: In‐depth interviews were conducted with school personnel at the middle school (N = 42), high school (N = 40), and district levels (N = 10). The findings focus on emergent themes from interviews with school health personnel (N = 12), particularly those themes related to their perceptions of and role in working with school‐refusing students. RESULTS: Personnel, especially school health services staff, constructed a typification of the school‐refusing student as “the sick student,” which conceptualized student refusal due to reasons related to illness. Personnel further delineated sick students by whether they considered the illness legitimate. School health personnel referenced the infamous “frequent fliers” and “school phobics” within this categorization of students. Overarching dynamics of this typification included parental control, parental awareness, student locus of control, blame, and victim status. These typifications influenced how personnel reacted to students they encountered, particularly in deciding which students need “help” versus “discipline,” thus presenting implications for students and screening of students. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, findings suggest school health personnel play a pivotal role in screening students who are refusing school as well as keeping students in school, underscoring policy that supports an increased presence of school health personnel. Recommendations for school health, prevention, and early intervention include the development of screening protocols and staff training.     

早餐质量对小学生在校学习行为的影响

目的　以较客观的方法观察早餐质量对小学生在校学习行为的影响。方法　以广州市两所小学三年级小学生共 1 59人为研究对象 ,随机分为两组 ,以交替方式分别食用两种不同质量的早餐 ,共 5天 ,并于实验当天上午进行学习行为和耐力方面的测试。结果　食用能量充足、配比均衡早餐的学生在数字运算、创造想象力和身体耐力等方面表现优于食用能量不足、配比不合理的早餐的学生 ,差异有显著性 (P<0 .0 5)。结论　早餐质量对小学生在校学习行为有较显著的影响 ,为推广学生营养早餐、加强营养教育提供了科学依据     

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) Characteristics Associated With Violence and Safety in Middle Schools

BACKGROUND

This study used a new Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) assessment tool to test the associations between physical attributes of schools and violence‐related behaviors and perceptions of students.

METHODS

Data were collected from 4717 students from 50 middle schools. Student perceptions of risk and safety, and violence were assessed. Evaluators used the CPTED School Assessment (CSA) to quantify how well the physical elements of each school correspond to ideal CPTED principles. Generalized linear mixed models were used to adjust for school‐ and student‐level characteristics.

RESULTS

Higher CSA scores were generally associated with higher perceptions of safety and lower levels of violence perpetration and perceived risk in unadjusted models. Higher CSA scores were also associated with lower odds of missing school because of safety concerns in most adjusted models, with significant adjusted odds ratios (AORs) ranging from 0.32 to 0.63. CSA scores for parking and bus loading areas also remained associated with higher perceived safety (AORs = 1.28 and 1.32, respectively) and lower perceived risk (AORs = 0.73 and 0.66, respectively) in adjusted models.

CONCLUSIONS

The CSA is useful for assessing school environments that are associated with violence‐related behaviors and perceptions. The CSA might help guide school environmental modifications to reduce violence.