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Following
are the data from eight of the many schools that have experienced
success when using the Responsible Thinking Process (RTP).
Lincoln Academy for Boys in Toledo, Ohio
RTP and state
achievement tests
Lincoln Academy is an all boys'
school in the central city of Toledo, Ohio, and is part of the
Toledo Public School system. It is the only all boys public school
in Ohio. There are 180 students, from kindergarten to sixth grade.
It has 98% free and reduced lunch count. Sue Smith is the assistant
principal, and Vicki Creekmore is the Responsible Thinking Classroom
(RTC) teacher. Mrs. Creekmore is also an RTP Trainer and is the RTP
contact person for Ohio.
The staff received accredited
training in Responsible Thinking Process (RTP) during the summer of
2004 and began to use RTP at the academy in the September. In
2004-2005, the 4th and 6th graders took the proficiency
tests and the 3rd graders took all achievement tests. The
State of Ohio changed to achievement tests at all levels in 2005.
Below shows the percentage of students scoring proficient or higher.
|
RTP & State achievement tests |
2004-2005 |
2005-2006 |
|
3rd
Grade Reading |
41.9 |
56 |
|
3rd
Grade Math |
22.6 |
68 |
|
|
|
4th Grade Reading |
50 |
65 |
|
4th
Grade Math |
31.3 |
70 |
|
|
|
5th Grade Reading |
39.3 |
66.6 |
|
5th
Grade Math |
No testing |
57.2 |
|
|
|
6th
Grade Reading |
12.9 |
47 |
|
6th Grade Math
|
6.5 |
47.1 |
.................................................................................
RTP and Improved Behavior
Prior to RTP, in the 2003/2004
school year, they had 39 suspensions and two expulsions. They began
to use RTP in the fall of 2004. During the 2004/2005 school year
they had one suspension and no expulsions. ( See chart below.
)
|
RTP & school
discipline |
2003-2004 |
2004-2205 |
|
Suspensions |
39 |
1 |
|
Expulsions |
2 |
zero |
Here are five of the many comments from the
staff:
Janet White, our school's union representative reported that
the district union president reported that she had not had one
complaint this year since Mr. Roberts, our principal, and
Responsible Thinking Process have been at Lincoln Academy.
Mrs. Kahn, a Special Education teacher: "It works!! They are really
thinking about their choices."
Jody Crowl, 4th grade teacher, "I had my students write letters to
their parents about their homework assignments. I noticed I had so
many students talk about being responsible for their work. I see
them thinking this way because of RTP and from learning how to write
and use plans in the RTC."
From Vicki Creekmore, RTC teacher, came this: A 6th grader had a
hard time adjusting to the process at the beginning of the year. He
is now setting goals for himself and trying hard to be more
responsible. He walked into RTC the other day and said, "I know, I
know, I have messed up this time." A year ago he would have been
blaming everybody else for what went wrong and now he is taking the
responsibility for his bad choices.
Sue Smith, assistant principal, says: "This school year has been a
new experience. I have observed students accepting the
responsibility for their behavior, setting goals, making plans, and
successfully changing their behavior. I have been amazed at the
honesty of our students when asked the RTP questions. As a former
special education teacher, I believed that we had to teach the
students appropriate behaviors and I was constantly teaching them
the same thing, over and over. When asking the questions, I have
discovered that the students know the rules, and are willing to
learn a better way of getting what they want without disrupting.
RTP has been a win-win program for all the stakeholders of our
school. Teachers have more time for the important task of teaching.
Parents are happy to know their son will be in school everyday,
learning skills that will help them be more successful in school.
Community members feel that our students are becoming more
responsible members of their community. The students are feeling a
sense of pride in the realization that they are in control of the
situations that they are in, both in school and the neighborhood. As
a school leader, I am thrilled to have the school performing in such
an orderly and effective manner."
..............................................................................................................
Togiak School in
Togiak, Alaska
Togiak School is a rural
Alaska K-12 public school with a student population of 240 students,
and a free and reduced lunch count at 100%. The principal is David
Wick. Togiak is one of eight regional schools in the Southwest
Region School District, with district offices in Dillingham, Alaska.
The Responsible Thinking
Process (RTP) was implemented in August, 2005, with a two-day
training by Ed Ford. This was followed up with a weekly class for
college credit offered by Jack Foster, an RTP trainer who also
doubles as the school district superintendent.
The following
statistics show the success of the Responsible Thinking Process
at Togiak. The data under the 05/06 school year represents the
disruptive behaviors within the school during its first year of
the implementation of RTP. The data under the 04/05 school year
represents the year-end summary the school was at the year
before the use of the RTP training. The comparison shows a
remarkable decrease in all sorts of disruptions after the start
of RTP training.
|
Disruption |
04/05 entire school year |
05/06 entire school year |
|
Assaults |
14 |
4 |
|
Disorderly conduct
|
64 |
5 |
|
Fighting |
14 |
2 |
|
Harassment |
3 |
None |
|
Insubordination |
60 |
10 |
|
Profanity |
45 |
34 |
|
Threats |
9 |
6 |
|
Truancy |
5 |
1 |
|
Vandalism |
3 |
None |
Following are
six of the many comments from the staff of Togiak School
Mary Pipal, Assistant
Principal: “RTP has made a difference in the overall school
environment. The halls and classrooms are quieter. There are fewer
disruptions during the transition periods. The atmosphere seems
calmer and students seem to be more focused on learning.”
Kathy Hutson, Middle School Language Arts teacher: “At the beginning
of the year students were loud, disrespectful, and not following the
rules. It was very difficult to get their attention and to keep them
on task. The teachers kept asking the RTP questions. At first we had
some angry resistance, but the students finally realized the RTP was
not going away. It was exhausting to keep constantly following the
RTP guidelines. Now, the halls are quiet and students are on task.
Everyone seems happier. I see more smiles. I have a good working
relationship with most of my students. There is still room for
improvement, but it is so much better than the first week of school.
Now I can’t bear to think about teaching without RTP.
Martin Hutchison, High School Science teacher: “ When a student
decides they need to be the center of attention, the RTP allows the
teacher to quickly deal with that student and then get on with
teaching those students who want to learn.”
Patricia Wick, Middle School Math teacher: “I have seen a lot of
changes in my classroom at all three grade levels (6,7, 8) thanks to
the RTP. Across the board, grades have increased dramatically.
During the first quarter there were a lot of frequent flyers being
referred to the Responsible Thinking Classroom (RTC) who did not
makeup the work they missed in my class. In second quarter, those
students made a goal of not causing disruptions that would cause
them to be sent to the RTC. The look on their faces when they
received their high marks for second quarter was priceless.
Overhearing their remarks about not going to the RTC and about doing
their homework showed me that RTP is working. Another RTP benefit is
that students are taking much more interest in facilitating their
own learning in class and are asking more math related questions. I
have even had students asking for MORE math work!”
Susan Alexie, 3-4 grade teacher: RTP has given me back control of
teaching opportunities and more control of the atmosphere for
educational opportunities for my students. I even stopped one day
and tried to recall the last time I went home with a migraine at the
end of the working day and I could not recall such a thing
this year. I still do have wooly days with mustangs, but they are
controllable this year.”
Sam Gosuk, Special Education teacher: “Since learning RTP, students
are more on task. Students who have had disrupting behaviors are
calmer now. Students now know exactly what will happen if they
disrupt. Our classes are more structured. With the RTP expectations,
our class is quieter and calmer. The use of RTP is making a
difference in our class.”
..............................................................................................................
Lincoln
Elementary School in Westland, Michigan
Lincoln Elementary School
is part of Wayne-Westland Community Schools in Westland, Michigan.
Jennifer Munson is the principal. They are a K-5 school with 300
students and a free and reduced rate of 72%. They began using RTP in
September 2004 and during the 2004-2005 school year, they had 14
suspensions for the total year, which was down 84% from the prior
nine year yearly suspension rate average.
..............................................................................................................
M. D. Fox Elementary School, Hartford, CT
In September 2004, M. D. Fox Elementary School in Hartford,
Connecticut, following accredited training, initiated the
Responsible Thinking Process. The school is an urban school with a
population of 900 students, and a free and reduced lunch count at
95%. The principal is Fred DeJesus and the social worker is Kathy
Bedula. Mrs. Bedula is an RTP Associate and is the RTP contact
person for Connecticut. The school's suspension rate is down 42%
after the first three months as compared to the prior year.
Teachers were asked after the first three months in a questionnaire
the following: Has RTP made a difference in your classroom? The
following are five of their comments.
"It has made students stop and think. It provides a calm way to
handle disruptions."
"Disruptions stop very quickly when questioning is used."
"After asking the questions, I find that the behavior doesn't occur
again which is wonderful. I think the best thing is that students
are asked to be accountable for their behavior."
"Students need to be dealt with in a calm manner and must be made to
think about their behavior. RTP does this quite well."
"It makes students think before they act. They are more responsible
with their choices. It has even worked great at home with my kids!
..............................................................................................................
Evart High School
Evart High
School is located in rural north central Michigan. The high school
has 400 students. The prinicpal is Al Kullman. The school has a
special education population around 20-25% range and a free and
reduced lunch count exceeding 50%. The school began using RTP in the
fall of 1998. Since then, all three of the Evart public schools have
been RTP accredited and are well worth visiting.
At the high school, since the 1999-2000 school year, out
of school suspensions have dropped 51.9%. Out of school suspensions for
disrespect toward staff members has dropped 82.3%. The number of students
suspended for fighting has decreased 44.4% and other incidences that would
result in suspension from school such as drugs, alcohol and tobacco have
declined 87.5%. Students suspended for skipping school has declined 45.4%.
..............................................................................................................
Breckenridge Middle School
Breckenridge Middle School is located in the middle of
lower Michigan. Of the 250 students, special ed accounts for 10% and 33%
of the students are on free or reduced lunch. Sheila Pilmore is the
principal. Since the school implemented RTP in February, 2000, there has
been a 65% drop in fights and a 65% drop in gross disrespect.
..............................................................................................................
Sahuaro Elementary School
Sahuaro School is part of the Washington Elementary School
District in Phoenix, Arizona and serves a population of approximately 680
preschool through 6th grade students. Forty-four percent of Sahuaro
students qualify for free/reduced lunch. Dave Anderson is Sahuaro's
principal. The following appeared in the school's newsletter and reflects
an analysis of data gathered over the three-year history of RTP
implementation at Sahuaro.
..............................................................................................................
Is RTP working at Sahuaro School ?
Analysis of the data shows a 70 % decrease in student
fights over the last 3 years. Other violent behaviors such as
"reckless play" and "hurting other students" are down
40% and 61% respectively. The number of incidents of "disrespect to
staff" is down by 77% from the 1999-2000 school year.
Since RTP
began, "theft by students" has decreased by 40% and incidents
involving "student profanity" have decreased by 71%. On the
other hand, the number of "chill out" passes used by students
has increased over the last 3 years by 266%. "Chill out" passes
are used by students who feel upset and want to go to the RTC to calm down
before they do something that gets them in trouble.
This shows that
students are learning to take charge of their actions by making good
decisions when they find themselves in a problem situation. This is what RTP is all about.
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This last set
of statistics was presented to members of the American Educational
Research Association during their annual meeting in San Francisco in
April, 1995. |
Presentation to the American Educational Research Association
In the fall of
1993, I was asked by the administrators of Clarendon Elementary
School in Phoenix, Arizona, to use their school as a model for a
discipline program I had developed based on perceptual control
theory. Clarendon School consists of seven fourth, fifth, and sixth
grades and is in a multi-cultural, inner-city area. Once the staff
had given a strong commitment and received adequate training, the
program was initiated on January 24, 1994.
The basic principle
of PCT explains that all humans are designed as self-regulating
systems. With this understanding, children should be treated as
systems whose behavior is their means of trying to control what
matters to them. Self direction and responsibility are developed by
asking them specific questions which request them to review the
consequences of what they’ve done and whether they want to respect
the rights of others and remain where they are or to leave. If they
continue to disrupt, they are sent to the responsible thinking
classroom (RTC). They remain there until they decide to return to
wherever they were disrupting. Prior to leaving the RTC, they have
to make a plan on how they will deal with the same or similar
problem the next time in occurs. If they are disruptive in the
responsible thinking classroom, they are sent home. When they are
ready to return to school and follow the rules, they must first meet
with an administrator accompanied by a parent or guaradian. The
administrator checks on their commitment. Prior to returning to
class, they must first return to the RTC to make a plan on how they
are going to get what they want in school without violating the
rights of others.
This program is explained further in my books, Discipline for Home
and School, Fundamentals and Discipline For Home And School, Books
One and Two, all of which can be found on the order form which is
found at the bottom, right hand side of the web site front page. For
more information on this program, write RTP, Inc., 10209 N. 56th
St., Scottsdale, Arizona 85253, call 480-991-4860, or email me at -
edford@responsiblethinking.com
Phone 480-991-4860.
The following statistics reflect the
success of this program:
Table 1. Acts Deemed “Serious
Acts of Misconduct”
| |
8/93–3/94 |
8/94–3/95 |
% Decrease |
| Physical Assaults |
98 |
37 |
62 |
| Weapons |
16 |
0 |
100 |
| Fighting |
85 |
34 |
60 |
| Theft |
30 |
22 |
27 |
Table 2. Demographics
|
Current
|
At
Implementation |
|
Ethnic Breakdown 1994–95
February 1995 |
Ethnic Breakdown 1993–94
January 1994 |
|
Ethnic Group Clarendon |
Ethnic Group Clarendon |
|
|
# |
% |
|
# |
% |
|
Caucasian / White
|
288 |
47.52 |
Caucasian / White
|
283 |
52.21 |
|
Pacific Islander/ Asian |
31 |
5.11 |
Pacific Islander/Asian
|
22 |
3.87 |
|
Hispanic |
180 |
29.70 |
Hispanic |
145 |
26.76 |
|
African American
|
39 |
6.45 |
African American
|
40 |
7.38 |
|
Native American |
68 |
11.22 |
Native American |
53 |
9.77 |
|
TOTAL |
606 |
|
TOTAL |
542 |
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Percentage of students currently living at or below
poverty level: 65.5%
Presented by Edward E. Ford, M.S.W., to the American Educational
Research Association
at their annual conference on April 20, 1995, in San Francisco.
Presentation to the AERA 207
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