This video lecture by Dennis Kenney begins with his review of the research on the prevalence of crime in America's schools, along with a critique of the methodologies used in this research; this is followed by a description of a structured problem-solving approach to school disorder used in 11th grade classes in a Charlotte (North Carolina) high school.
After reporting on research findings regarding the prevalence of crime and the fear of crime in the Nation's schools, Kenney advises that the methodologies used in such research have flaws that make the accuracy of the findings questionable. Nonetheless, he advises that school crime and disorder is sufficiently prevalent to require structured responses by school administrators, staff, and students. The response Kenney describes was based on the rationale that if youth become involved in attempting to counter crime and disorder in their schools, then student behavior is likely to change for the better. Under this program, teachers were trained to guide students in identifying and prioritizing school problems and then assisting them in selecting and implementing policies to address the identified problems. After selecting a school problem to address, each class of students researched the problem and then discussed various ways of addressing the problem. After choosing a strategy, the students then confronted the obstacles and tasks involved in its implementation. Kenney describes how a class addressed one problem: fighting and disorder in the lunch room. Evaluation findings show that after instituting the problem- solving classes, student behavior and attitudes improved. The students whose behavior improved the most were those in a "transition" status, i.e., prior to the program they were not the best-behaved students, but neither were they deeply involved in antisocial peer groups and behavior. The students who changed the least were those whose behavior was exemplary prior to the program and those students who were heavily committed to a deviant lifestyle with peers who shared deviant values. Questions and answers from the audience are included in the video.