Soon after it came to power in 2008, the Australian Government adopted six key targets relating to life expectancy, infant mortality, education and employment in its policy "Closing the Gap on Indigenous disadvantage". As it became apparent in 2011 that these targets were not being met, the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, in her annual report to…

Research indicates that enrolments in separate special educational settings for students with disruptive behaviour have increased in a number of educational jurisdictions internationally. Recent analysis of school enrolment data has identified a similar increase in the New South Wales (NSW) government school sector; however, questions have been…

Recent concerns in the UK about youth disaffection, anti-social behaviour and gang culture have led to an increase in pre-emptive intervention strategies focused on the policing of groups of young people. This article explores the literature on youth/police relationships and the evidence that suggests that preventive police strategies may have…

Clearly, low performing, and especially failing schools, are a high priority concern for policy makers. And it is evident that fundamental systemic changes are necessary. The authors contend that it is essential that policy makers move to a three-component framework for turning around, transforming, and continuously improving schools. The third…

Students with emotional behavioral disorders (EBD) require pervasive supports that are typically addressed through behavior intervention plans. This article illustrates one student's ("Mark") journey from the general education high school campus, to an alternative discipline campus, and subsequent placement at a juvenile corrections setting. Also,…

This article explores the developing role of mediation as a conflict resolution process in schools. It gives an accepted definition and clarifies the purposes of mediation, outlining the range of contexts in and beyond schools in which mediation is already offered as a formal intervention. The typical process of mediation itself is described. The…

There is considerable interest in many sectors of society in trauma intervention. School yard bullying has been getting a lot of attention as of late. It is widely reported and analyzed repeatedly in the media. As a clinical psychologist and adjunct psychology professor for over 30 years, the author has had occasion to see bullying in many forms…

In this article, the author talks about a family-centered practice model for working with students with non-attendance problems. Family-centered practice positions the family at the center of attention or field of action. Its focus is on those transactions occurring between a person, family, and environment, which affect individuals, families and…

The impact of the economic crisis in America is having significant consequences across all environments. Children in Alabama are being hit particularly hard, with budget constraints leading to greatly reduced services for marginalized children and families in rural and urban areas. According to the United States Census Bureau, 16.6% of the…

"Positive Unified Behavior Support" (PUBS) is a school-wide intervention designed to establish uniform attitudes, expectations, correction procedures, and roles among faculty, staff, and administration. PUBS is grounded in the general principles of positive behavior support and represents a straightforward, practical implementation model. When…

Mentoring programs are increasingly popular as preventive and/or supportive interventions for youth with various needs. A meta-analysis of mentoring program effects conducted by DuBois, Holloway, Valentine, and Cooper (2002) suggests that youth from backgrounds of risk (defined broadly) have the capacity to benefit from mentoring, especially when…

Health promotion and community building strategies are increasingly using the arts as a basis for engaging young people. Through involvement in arts activity, participants have been shown to develop supportive social networks and report increased feelings of well-being (Jermyn, 2001). In particular, drama strategies and programs have been used as…

Immediately following the 1999 Columbine High School shootings in Colorado, the issue of school size jumped onto the front pages and into policy discussions. When violent episodes broke out in Littleton, Colorado, Port Huron, Michigan and in other districts, they have dominated the national media scene for months in a way that student deaths in…