COLLABORATING WITH TEACHERS TO IMPROVE THE ACADEMIC, BEHAVIORAL, AND SOCIAL SUCCESS OF STUDENTS OF COLOR ATTENDING URBAN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Academic, behavioral, and social success in school strongly promotes positive developmental outcomes (Pettit, 2011). Unfortunately, many students have are at risk for developing significant social, behavioral, and/or emotional problems, to which schools are often inadequately prepared to effectively respond and intervene. Students with poor social and behavioral functioning are at significant risk for continued behavioral challenges, low academic achievement, school dropout, and compromised economic outcomes (Bradshaw, 2008). This pattern is no more evident than with minority students and those from impoverished neighborhoods and/or low income households, as these students are at the greatest risk of experiencing social-emotional and academic problems that negatively impact their long-term development (Guyer et al., 2009).

Although much is known about successful classroom management strategies, many teachers report inadequate training in effective methods for helping students with social, emotional, and behavioral problems in the classroom (Reinke et al., 2011). This gap in teacher training is particularly concerning given that teachers report 16-30% of students in their classrooms pose ongoing problems in terms of social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties (Raver & Knitzer, 2002). When teachers spend a significant amount of time ineffectively dealing with challenging classroom behaviors, their ability to deliver quality academic instruction is compromised. High levels of disruptive behavior in the classroom negatively impact teacher job satisfaction (Clunies-Ross et al., 2008), while increasing stress (Greene et al., 2002) and the likelihood of burnout (Fernet et al., 2011). Under-performing schools in high-poverty areas have the highest rates of teacher turnover and attrition (Simon, 2013), and this educational instability often leads to poorer student performance (Terry & Kritsonis, 2008). However, high teacher turnover in urban schools can be reduced through appropriate teacher training and professional development programs that address the area teachers find most challenging: managing student behavior. Providing teachers with high quality training in behavior management skills can result in wide-ranging positive effects, including fewer disciplinary and special education referrals, increased student academic achievement, and an enhanced school climate of respect (Polirstok & Gottlieb, 2006).

The proposed presentation will describe findings from our Promoting Healthy Development through Effective Practices program that focuses on promoting social, emotional, and behavioral skills among students as well as improving the classroom environment by synergistically targeting interventions toward second grade students and their teachers. Analyses included pre- and post-intervention results for standardized measures of child behavior and social skills. Participants included 103 total students (44 male, 59 female) from three public elementary schools in a large urban city in the United States. Results indicate that students’ social competence and classroom behaviors significantly improved over time. Teachers strongly agreed that the intervention was effective and feasible for classroom-wide use. Audience members will learn about collaborating with teachers in the delivery of socio-emotional learning programs and implications for further practice, policy, and evaluation will be discussed.