In lives of high school students,
there are lots of factors that affect academic success or failure:
their work habits, the support of their parents, peer pressure,
the quality of the school. But there is one critical ingredient
that has more to do with the heart than the mind.

“If I didn’t wanna do my homework, I wasn’t
gonna do it. I didn’t care what anybody thought of me, I
didn’t care if I got bad grades.”

16-year-old Tiffany Harris used to be a troublemaker. But she
turned herself around and became a good student. How? The answer
is a teacher… named Dee Blassie.

“Tiffany is a wonderful student,” says Blassie, “but
I have to tell you, she is challenging.”

Tiffany explains how they bonded. “She was, like, another
adult, and she would push anything aside if I needed to talk whether
it was a meeting that could affect her job, she’d still talk
to me. So I could tell she really cared.”

“And I will go the extra mile to set them up for success,” says
Blassie.

In a new study from the University of Chicago, high school students
were much less likely to abuse drugs or be sexually active if they
had one teacher who cared about them…

Carol Drummond, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist explains that, “Not
wanting to disappoint that powerful adult, can often override peer
pressure to do things that they might ordinarily do.“

She says the equation is a simple one and it applies to both parents
and teachers: “Students tend to rise to the occasion when
they believe that adults in their lives believe in them.”

Dee Blassie helped Tiffany with her homework, watched her cheerleading,
and called her at home. And now…

“Now she’s talking college. She sees a future for
herself,” says her stepfather Vincent Donnell.

Her mother, Gwen Donnell says, “She didn’t connect
with anybody. Not until Dee Blassie came along.”

“I’m just so proud of her,” says Blassie, “and
I adore her. If she asks me for anything I’ll be there for
her.”

Dr. Drummond says there are alternatives when a troubled teenager
is not able to find a caring teacher at school. She advises parents
to help their kids find other role models within the community
in the form of coaches, tutors or mentors.

One of the most intractable problems faced by U.S. educators is
the problem of disruptive and/or illegal behavior in the classroom
and on the school grounds. Traditional responses to these types of
student behavioral problems, particularly in light of the current
atmosphere of “zero tolerance” in many school districts,
have been to expel and/or incarcerate chronic adolescent offenders.
However, a number of school districts are evaluating alternative
programs for troubled students that attempt to deal with behavioral
problems while trying to keep the teens in school and at home. One
example of an alternative program is the Student Transition And Recovery
(STAR) program.

The program, which originated in Texas in 1993, is a discipline
program for chronically disruptive youths that gives parents
and legal system representatives an alternative to out-of-school
suspension and/or incarceration. The STAR program was designed
to help children and adolescents identified as “at risk” for
disciplinary and legal problems to stay at home and in their
home school district. In general, the goals of the program
are to teach and reinforce concepts of personal responsibility,
self-respect, and respect for others while helping them achieve
educational success.

As stated by directors of the program, specific goals of
STAR include:

• Improving the student’s GPA by one letter grade
• Improving the student’s attendance by 40 percent
• Decreasing the student’s incidence of disruptive
  behavior by 40 percent
• Reducing the incidence of parent-child conflict
• Improving parents’ capabilities to fulfill their
  roles
• Decreasing the incidence of juvenile crime in the community
• Decreasing tardiness, absenteeism and expulsions

The Kansas National Education Association (KNEA) encourages
parents and teachers to work together to promote positive discipline
at home and in the classroom. They maintain that physical punishment
and unjustified rewards are detrimental to promoting discipline
but that praising good behavior and correcting misbehavior are
important aspects of building a child’s self-discipline.
The experts at KNEA encourage parents to take the following steps:

• Encourage your child’s respect for authority.
• Create an atmosphere of trust. Let your child know he/she
  can turn to you.
• Be firm but not dominating. Children should be able to express
  their views.
• Share the problems that cause your child distress.
• Examine your own attitudes toward authority and discipline.
  Are they clear? Firm? Consistent? Most importantly, are they
  fair?
• Watch for signs that your child is “turned off” to
  you, to school, to valuable friends, etc.
• Help your child understand the need for personal precautions
  to avoid danger spots in school and with friends.
• Allow your child to experience the results of his/her actions
  and to take responsibility for what he/she says and does.
• If your child gets into trouble in school, get all the facts
  before reacting, and get the teacher’s point of view. Visit the
  school and talk to the teacher.
• Remember that children do not feel comfortable with more responsibility
  than they can handle and often wish their parents would take
  over. The responsibility of discipline starts with parents.
• Discipline + Love = Growing Together. Discipline starts with
  communication – telling your child what you need, listening
  to their needs and developing fair rules together.
• Keep cool. Don’t lose your temper. Children need to know that
  you’re in control.
• Don’t give your child a mixed message by behaving in one manner
  and asking him/her to behave in another.
• Be strict but consistent. Children like the security of strong
  support.
• Be a parent. Don’t try to dress, act or talk like another
  child.
• Be a guide. Let your child know about your beliefs and encourage
  his/her beliefs.
• Impress on your child the importance of not repeating wrong
  behavior. Stealing, lying, cheating and being cruel all hurt
  other people in ways we would never want to be hurt ourselves.
• Punish no more than the misbehavior warrants – and always
  do it with love, not anger.
• Be honest. Be truthful and straightforward. Be generous with
  sincere praise. Even criticism is more easily accepted when it’s
  sprinkled with praise.
• Have fun together. When parents and children share fun time,
  few serious discipline problems arise.

STAR Programs
Kansas National Education
Association

Your child’s wellbeing is one of your biggest
concerns, so deciding on a daycare for your child is an important decision.
Consider the following statistics regarding child care …

• Only one in seven child care centers or family daycare providers
  (FDCs) is rated as high-quality, according to the National Center
  for Early Childhood Work Force.
• Parents of very young children usually pay more for child care,
  and may take up to six months to find suitable care.
• Research has
  shown that child care providers participating in a “high-
  or moderate-intensity” support group are likely to improve the
  quality of child care they provide

If you are considering placing your child in a daycare facility,
experts at Child Care Aware recommend five main steps in making your selection:

• Start Early – Start looking as far in advance as you can.
  No matter what type of care you are considering – a child care
  center or care in someone else’s home – finding the
  right child care option can take some time.
• Make a Call – Begin your search by calling your local experts – your
  child care resource and referral (CCR&R) center ( call 1-800-424-2246
  to find the CCR&R center in your area). CCR&Rs can give you
  the facts about child care, and a list of child care options in your
  area that may meet your needs. In addition, make sure to ask your
  CCR&R these things:
• What are the licensing requirements in my area?
• How can I get information about complaints and licensing violations?
• Are there any child care financial assistance programs that
  my family qualifies for?
• Visit and Ask Questions – Make sure you visit the
  child care options you are considering. Find out about these key
  indicators of quality:
• Adult to Child Ratio : Ask how many children there are for each
  adult. The fewer the children for each adult, the better for
  your child. You want your child to get plenty of attention. The
  younger your child, the more important this is. Babies need an
  adult to child ratio of no more than 1:4 (one adult for four infants),
  while four-year-olds can do well with a ratio of 1:10 (one adult
  for ten children).
• Group Size : Find out how many children are in the group. The
  smaller the group, the better. Imagine a group of 25 two-year-olds
  with five adults, compared to a group of 10 with two adults.
  Both groups have the same adult to child ratio. Which would be
  calmer and safer? Which would be more like a family?
• Caregiver Qualifications : Ask about the caregivers’ training
  and education. Caregivers with degrees and/or special training
  in working with children will be better able to help your
  child learn. Are the caregivers involved in activities to improve
  their skills? Do they attend classes and workshops?
• Turnover : Check how long caregivers have been at the center
  or providing care in their homes. It’s best if child stay with
  the same caregiver at least a year. Caregivers who come and
  go make it hard on your child. Getting used to new caregivers takes
  time and energy that could be spent on learning new things.
• Accreditation : Find out if the child care provider has been
  accredited by a national organization. Providers that are accredited
  have met voluntary standards for child care that are higher
  than most state licensing requirements. The National Association
  for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and The National Association
  for Family Child Care (NAFCC) are the two largest organizations
  that accredit child care programs.
• Make a Choice – Think about what you saw at each
  visit, and make the best choice for your child and family.
• Stay Involved – The work isn’t over when you find good care
  for your child. You and your child’s caregiver are partners
  now. Here are some ways to be involved:
• Have parent-caregiver meetings regularly, and ask questions.
• Offer to volunteer time when needed, like participating in clean
  up days, fixing broken toys, etc.
• Be there for your child’s birthday party.
• Visit your child at child care and read a book aloud.
• Join in
  special events like field trips, Career Day, Black History
  Month or other holidays.