Engaging Troubling Students

"Danforth and Smith have written an exceptional book on educating ′troubling′ students. It is a clear alternative to current books on educating children with emotional and behavioral disorders, most of which are based on behavioral theories. They offer practical guidance, well illustrated with stories from their own experiences on collaboration, working with families, conflict resolution, social support for students, providing a caring pedagogy, and teacher development." James L. Paul, Professor, Special Education University of South Florida Truly teaching "troubling" students means connecting with them in ways that can last a lifetime! Teachers are consistently faced with students who behave in disruptive or disrespectful ways. These "troubling" students are frequently disengaged from both academics and the possibility of meaningful relationships with caring adults. How can teachers engage these students in instruction and learning as well as the development of trust and personal growth? Engaging Troubling Students offers instructional and student support practices grounded in critical constructivism--engaging problematic students in the learning process and building strong relationships with them. These interactions and relationships can have a profound impact on their emotional well-being and learning. Danforth and Smith draw from many academic fields to build this comprehensive resource: History and roots of current issues and dilemmas Theoretical foundation of critical constructivism Teaching practices designed to foster the teacher-student relationship Specific programs addressing conflict, families, inclusive education, and more Filled with rich narrative and directed to teachers working with troubling students each day, this insightful, practical guide will help lead you as you develop helpful, trusting relationships with them.

A collection of essays taking up Margaret Lock's enduring project to question our deeply held assumptions about biology, medicine, and culture.

Are you overwhelmed by unruly students, difficult parents, and never-ending classroom distractions? Are you tired of scavenging and pleading for basic school supplies? Do you wonder if anyone notices or cares how much effort you put into teaching every day? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this book is for you. When Teaching Gets Tough offers practical strategies you can use to make things better right away. Veteran educator Allen Mendler organizes the discussion around four core challenges: * Managing difficult students * Working with unappreciative and irritating adults * Making the best of an imperfect environment * Finding time to take top-notch care of yourself When Teaching Gets Tough is there when you need help to reclaim and sustain your energy and enthusiasm for teaching. Written with a deep understanding of the issues that teachers face every day, the book also includes sections for administrators who want to help teachers stay at the top of their game. Allen Mendler is an educator and school psychologist and the author of Connecting with Students and co-author of Discipline with Dignity, 3rd edition .

In the updated edition of this important volume, the editors and chapter contributors explore how diverse populations of students experience college differently and encounter group-specific barriers to success. Informed by relevant theories, each chapter focuses on engaging a different student population, including low-income students, Students of Color, international students, students with disabilities, religious minority students, student-athletes, part-time students, adult learners, military-connected students, graduate students, and others. New in this third edition is the inclusion of chapters on Indigenous students, student activists, transracial Asian American adoptee students, justice-involved students, student-parents, first-generation students, and undocumented students. The forward-thinking, practical, anti-deficit-oriented strategies offered throughout the book are based on research and the collected professional wisdom of experienced educators and scholars at a range of postsecondary institutions. Current and future faculty members, higher education administrators, and student affairs educators will undoubtedly find this book complete with fresh ideas to reverse troubling engagement trends among various college student populations.

As every educator knows all too well, teaching can be an incredibly challenging profession. Whether the challenges are rooted in district policies, colleagues’ actions, or student behaviors, the effect on teachers is always the same: frustrating and demoralizing. In The Resilient Teacher, Allen Mendler offers simple but effective strategies for dealing with a variety of thorny situations that most teachers will face in their careers. These strategies will help you to * Communicate tactfully but forthrightly with administrators, colleagues, and students whose actions interfere with your ability to do your job properly. * Confidently and convincingly express your thoughts and expectations to all stakeholders. * Increase your influence with coworkers, students, and parents. All teachers face roadblocks in their jobs that can keep them from doing what’s best for students. In these pages, you will find the solutions you need to resolve common problems quickly and neatly--and to bounce back stronger than ever.

With a focus on fostering democratic, equitable education for young people, Ginsberg and Glenn’s engaging text showcases a wide variety of innovative, critical classroom approaches that extend beyond traditional literary theories commonly used in K-12 and higher education classrooms and provides opportunities to explore young adult (YA) texts in new and essential ways. The chapters pair YA texts with critical practices and perspectives for culturally affirming and sustaining teaching and include resources, suggested titles, and classroom strategies. Following a consistent structure, each chapter provides foundational background on a key critical approach, applies the approach to a focal YA text, and connects the approach to classroom strategies designed to encourage students to think deeply and critically about texts, themselves, and the world. Offering a wealth of innovative pedagogical tools, this comprehensive volume offers opportunities for students and their teachers to explore key and emerging topics, including culture, (dis)ability, ethnicity, gender, immigration, race, sexual orientation, and social class.

Create a plan to connect with every family! There’s no doubt that family engagement makes a world of difference for teachers and students—but connecting with parents of various ethnic, socioeconomic, or cultural backgrounds can be challenging for educators. Calvalyn Day’s groundbreaking book offers clear instructions for building strong relationships, beginning effective dialogues, strategizing, and monitoring progress. Through the author’s perspective as a parent, counselor, and advisor to families at risk, readers will discover A step-by-step approach to family engagement developed for K-12 educators, including teachers, counselors, administrators and others Complete how-to’s for creating and carrying out a family engagement plan based on the author’s Vision, Plan, Action model Tools including a Parent Meeting Agenda, a Parent Empathy Map, an Educator Needs Assessment, and more Whether you work at a small rural school, in a large urban district, or anywhere in between, this invaluable book offers wisdom—and smart strategies—that will transform the experience for your students and their families, and lead to sustainable success. "Authentically Engaging Families is a wonderful guide for all those interested in engaging parents in the educational process in a variety of essential and creative ways." Nina Orellana, MTSS Coordinator Palm Bay Academy Charter School "This book presents a much-needed illustration of why educators MUST improve family engagement and how educators can put these evidence-based approaches into practice." Denise Michelle Voelker, Coordinator of Education and Training Programs University of Florida

The Keeping Out of Trouble programme will enable secondary schools to provide interventions targeted at students who are, or are at risk of, committing criminal offences. By developing the students' awareness of victims, the consequences of their actions and sensitive issues as well as by encouraging students to engage in self-reflection, students will develop the strategies, knowledge and understanding to support themselves in making informed choices about their behaviour and future actions. This essential new resource is based on a programme that was developed by staff in the Youth Offending Team and The Hillingdon Pupil Referral Unit, who recognised that students needed more support. The programme fits in with the Every Child Matters agenda, tackling the 'Be Healthy' 'Stay Safe' 'Enjoy & Achieve' and 'Making a Positive Contribution' aims. The Keeping Out of Trouble programme consists of an initial tutorial session, followed by 16 group sessions and a final self-evaluation and target setting session. These strands of support aim to meet the following objectives: To enable students to develop consequential thinking To encourage the development of victim awareness To develop an understanding of restorative work and ways that they can engage in this kind of work To enable students to develop an awareness of their own feelings and the ability to label, identify and express these feelings in a safe way To further develop personal insight, gaining knowledge of strengths and weaknesses and the ability to take structured criticism and feedback To encourage the development of confidence and self-assurance To encourage the development of self-reflection skills To develop an awareness of the consequences of their behaviours - both for themselves and others To further develop a sense of responsibility and locus of control, that is, to have internal control To encourage students to further develop and appreciate the perspectives of others, that is, empathy To encourage students to develop a range of strategies to pre-empt and avoid anti-social and offending behaviours To encourage facilitators and students to cooperate as joint problem-solvers, engaging in wide ranging discussions around key issues The programme is aimed at: All young people, especially those who have demonstrated anti-social or criminal behaviour A group of young people of a similar age Young people who have not been identified as prolific offenders