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Toward Better and Safer Schools - A School Leader's Guide to Delinquency Prevention

NCJ Number
94262
Author(s)
A G Cuervo; J Lees; R Lacey
Date Published
1984
Length
226 pages
Annotation
Strategies for school delinquency prevention outlined in this handbook emphasize sound disciplinary policies and practices that improve the school climate by involving disruptive students in constructive activities rather than by alienating them.
Abstract
Part I presents practical information and an action plan for implementing school improvement and delinquency prevention measures. A discussion of broad policy issues considers the nature and extent of juvenile crime, its effects on schools, the implications of legal mandates, and disciplinary measures. This section also reviews several approaches to school-based delinquency prevention and discusses how research findings about delinquency can be incorporated into prevention programs. It details a six-step process that any school can follow for improvement: choosing a focus for change, assessing a school's strengths and weaknesses, setting goals and objectives, developing an action plan, implementing strategies, and evaluating programs. Part II is a compendium of more than 45 successful programs currently being implemented in public schools across the country, arranged in the following categories: school organization, instructional techniques, curricula, student involvement, school-family relationships, and school-community relationships. An extensive recource section provides annotated bibliographies, a list of relevant theme periodicals and congressional hearings, media aids, sources of technical assistance, a directory of data bases and clearinghouses, and development resources. Supplementary materials are appended, including standards for students from the George Washington Preparatory High School in Los Angeles and the Students Against Drunk Driving Contract for Life.