JC Schools: School behavior issues have declined

Rather than just sending misbehaving students to the office, Jefferson City School District educators have been trying alternative strategies to change behaviors. Some have achieved the desired results, educators said, but there is still work to be done.

Office referrals and suspensions decreased from August 2018 to December 2019, Chief of Learning Brian Shindorf said. He said the administration has talked to the principals about how to better address behavioral issues because a suspension typically doesn't result in a behavior change and is only necessary for safety reasons.

"It's important that we come up with the strategies that we can provide some kind of service on site in our school," he said. "Because we then can control the services you're getting as opposed to, in some cases, kids are suspended from school and nothing happens. They're sitting at home."

Office referrals are down by 1,000, out-of-school suspension days are down by 2,000, and in-school-suspension days are down by 800.

The data doesn't include Simonsen and Capital City High School - CCHS did not have students last year, and Simonsen does not have students this year. It also does not include South Preschool. Out of the other 16 district schools, 14 saw reductions in office referrals and suspensions.

Recording the biggest drops in office referrals were: Thomas Jefferson, Moreau Heights and West Elementary. Thomas Jefferson had 656 fewer referrals, Moreau Heights had 168 fewer and West had 147 fewer.

Some schools did record more referrals. Cedar Hill Elementary had 82 more office referrals, and North Elementary had 63 more.

Office referrals often can result from these categories: disruptive content, bus misconduct, truancy, bullying, tobacco use and dishonesty.

Disruptive conduct had the largest decline, with 600 fewer office referrals. Bus misconduct had the second greatest decline, with 443 fewer office referrals. Truancy had the third greatest decline, with 185 fewer referrals. There was also a slight reduction in bullying, tobacco use and dishonesty, Shindorf said.

Disruptive behavior is the most common behavioral issue at the secondary level, said Gary Verslues, the assistant superintendent of secondary education.

"The good news is our highest one, the one that happens the most, is the one that actually is decreasing," Verslues said.

There are some behavioral issues that have not improved, including disrespect to staff and physical aggression between students. Shindorf said he plans to address this by determining which strategies are effective for these specific issues and which ones are not.

These strategies, which vary by school, aren't necessarily new.

But the administration has continued to talk to staff about the importance of using them more often and more effectively, Director of Communications Ryan Burns said.

It is possible the district is seeing the impact of these strategies and services, Shindorf said.

Four years ago, the school district hired behavior interventionists to train teachers on effective ways to handle inappropriate behavior. This year, the behavior interventionists also began training bus drivers on effective strategies, which can be as simple as learning the students' names and building relationships with them.

Behaviors at elementary schools

In the elementary schools, the district offers several different approaches to addressing behavioral issues.

In some elementary schools, there are buddy rooms - private, peaceful rooms where students can go to de-escalate. Another option is a designated space in the classroom that is more calm and secluded.

The students can voluntarily go to these spaces, or teachers can send them. They can spend time in these spaces alone, or they can spend time with a staff member and talk about what they're going through.

Shindorf said these calm spaces are a better solution than sending a child to the principal's office, because the child can then go back to class and learn instead of sitting in the office.

Schools that use these spaces effectively, such as West Elementary School, have more behavioral success, he said.

"A lot of kids really can deregulate themselves if they're given the opportunity or the right circumstances to do that," Shindorf said. "Used appropriately, it is a very effective strategy compared to a suspension."

Another strategy is "four to one," which means instead of giving one negative reinforcement when a child is struggling, the teacher gives four positive reinforcements when the student acts appropriately because negativity can cause a child to act up more.

Positive reinforcements usually include verbally encouraging the child for appropriate behaviors, Shindorf said, but it can include any kind of positive reinforcement, such as letting the student choose where to sit.

Some elementary schools also have "Zones of Regulation," a program where school counselors talk to elementary school students about what kind of behaviors are appropriate. Many schools also have morning meetings where teachers talk to the children about how to be respectful.

"Ultimately, our goal is to help students with strategies to regulate themselves, because the more often that an adult has to regulate you, the less successful it is," Shindorf said.

Behaviors in the upper grades

At the secondary level, Thomas Jefferson Middle School and Jefferson City Academic Center had the greatest reduction in office referrals. Thomas Jefferson had the greatest reduction in office referrals out of each school. JCAC, the alternative school, had 99 fewer office referrals.

Last summer, Thomas Jefferson started a vision team that re-established expectations for the staff, which has contributed to this success, Verslues said.

Thomas Jefferson and all the elementary schools have an initiative called "Second Steps" that teaches students social and emotional lessons such as coping mechanisms, decision-making skills and how to internalize the impact their decisions have on others.

Thomas Jefferson also implemented "Love and Logic," a program that involves delaying a consequence of inappropriate behavior so the teacher can have time to think of an effective solution.

Verslues said the behavioral success at JCAC is attributed to a building-wide spreadsheet that lists communication that has been made with students and parents about the students' behavior.

"They're keeping track of what was talked about and what was put in place to make sure that, to the extent possible, they're getting at the core of why the student is struggling to understand the support that is needed," Verslues said. "I would say the consistency and communication and the resulting counseling that the student receives has been a contributing factor to JCAC's decline in office referrals."

Next steps

Shindorf said he plans to continue to address behavioral issues through a behavior task force of staff members - mostly teachers - across the district.

He is recruiting volunteers, and he expects the first session to start by early March. He said he hopes to recruit about 40 teachers, but it will also consist of behavior interventionists and administrators. The task force may also include subcommittees.

This task force will set expectations, improve strategies and implement new strategies if needed, Shindorf said. It will also help teachers implement the most effective strategies across more schools.

"We know that just because we had a reduction in some behaviors, it's not fixed," Shindorf said. "We still have work to do. The question is what is that work going to look like, and we want our task force to help design the answers to those questions."