Discusses peer mediation, a method by which school children can resolve their own disputes. Explains that any kind of student can be a mediator and that mediation can help students develop communication skills. Offers two hypothetical cases for mediation. Suggests establishing mediation programs in schools. (SG)

Minor disagreements can quickly escalate when a child feels threatened with losing face or fears retaliation. Peer-mediation programs can help students refocus their energies while learning communication skills they can use in other situations. The benefits of an Oregon elementary school's peer-mediation program are discussed. (MLH)

Describes development and implementation stages of a peer mediation program at an Illinois middle school. A key principle in the project was student ownership. It was important to let the mediators take disputants through a clearly defined process to arrive at a settlement. Despite time management problems, the program has been a success. (10…

This case study of peer mediation at one urban high school examines who benefits and how they benefit. Data from observations of peer mediator training, mediation sessions, interviews, and school records indicate that though peer mediation is designed to resolve conflicts in school, it is the mediators themselves who benefit most from the…

Examined the effectiveness of peer medication in an inner city elementary school. Trained students mediated 206 conflicts, most of which were relationship problems involving physical and verbal aggression. Before mediation, students' conflict strategies included physical force and verbal intimidation. Mediation most commonly resulted in an…

Examines the efficacy of peer mediation as an alternative to traditional school discipline in middle schools. Discusses the role of social validity in the use of peer mediation, and examines student attitudes toward this strategy based on student interviews. Considers factors in the design of peer mediation programs. (JPB)

Examines the effectiveness of a peer mediation program in which 6th-8th grade students (N=30) were trained to serve as mediators for peers in conflict. Mediators' responses to written tests indicated increased knowledge of mediation skills after training. Results reveal that 32 of 34 mediations resulted in satisfactory conflict resolution and that…

A study examining student incident-referral data trends at four Palm Beach County high schools shows that the school participating in Peace Education Foundation's Win Win! Program experienced downward referral rates, compared to control schools. Discussing conflict resolution within the school culture fostered better anger management or diplomatic…

Purpose: This study aims to provide substantive data on the effectiveness of the total-student-body approach to school-based conflict resolution training. The authors investigated the effectiveness of the Peacemakers (D. W. Johnson & Johnson, 1995) program, a total-student-body conflict training program taught bilingually to all students in a…

When a program is approved for state/federal subsidy in the field of career and technical education, there is always a record on file with information about the program in the state education department. These records are for program approval, funding, status reports, or final reports. In the big picture of programs in the field of education,…

This study evaluated the effectiveness of Resilient Peer Treatment (RPT). This is a peer-mediated, classroom-based intervention for socially withdrawn, maltreated preschool children. It examined whether the RPT impact generalized from the treatment setting to larger classroom context. Eighty-two maltreated and nonmaltreated, socially withdrawn…

Peace education is a key for establishing and maintaining a consensual peace. Creating an effective peace education program involves five steps. First, a public education system must be established with compulsory attendance; all children and youth should attend so that students from the previously conflicting groups interact and have the…

Peer mediation with young children is a relatively novel approach aimed at teaching young children how to mediate to their peers. The main benefits of peer mediation are in developing children's mediation teaching style and cognitive modifiability. The peer mediation developed recently is based on Vygotsky's sociocultural and Feuerstein's…

Although many people have been trained to teach, few have received instructions on group leadership skills. Suggestions for helping group facilitators to become effective group leaders are discussed in this book. In order to address the concerns of readers who may be new to peer helping, chapter 1 covers basic issues. Experienced teachers can…

Socially competent children have been found to be effective negotiators, typically selecting more adaptive, non-physical strategies for resolving conflicts with peers. To explore this association, background information involving research with children's social strategies is presented. The research is part of a larger study concerning school-based…