Conflict Mediators Program Evaluation

 

Highlights of the Final Evaluation Report
of Global Learning's
Newark Conflict Resolution Program

by Dr. Michael Knight
Kean College of New Jersey
June 1996

   

 

Back to
Conflict Mediators
Program

 

 

 

 

 

Global Learning has successfully established the Conflict Mediators Program as a self-sufficient program at both Malcolm X Shabazz High School and Miller Street Elementary School, Newark, New Jersey, with widespread support from the students, parents, faculty and staff. In the third and final year of the project, the trained staff and student mediators successfully conducted the training of additional student mediators. Also, mediators trained in elementary school have continued as mediators in high school. This project was funded by the Prudential Foundation and First Fidelity Bank, who were both interested in an objective assessment of the impact of the program on the schools. The following highlights are quoted from the external evaluator's third year, and final, report.
  • "...the consistent response to surveys and questionnaires regarding the quality of training yielded results of either 'good' or 'excellent'. This finding held true for professional staff, para-professionals, and students."
  • "Peer mediators have helped other students resolve conflicts."
  • "Students who have served as peer mediators have developed a set of broadly applicable skills and their self-esteem has been enhanced through this effort."
  • "The training of a team to act as co-trainers of students in each school has been completed."
  • "There is a high degree of involvement and commitment to the program by the students, teachers, para-professionals, and administrators who have been participants."
  • "The success of the program is demonstrable through the increased number of mediations and the declining number of suspensions in both Miller Street School and Malcolm X Shabazz High School."

Malcolm X Shabazz High School

  • Results of surveys, focus groups and interviews of 40 mediators, 11 faculty, and 114 students:
  • "Examples of positive outcomes included the following:
    • reduction of violence,
    • increase of student maturity,
    • getting people to talk out their problems,
    • reducing physical contacts,
    • students have alternatives to fighting,
    • reduces suspension,
    • development of leadership skills,
    • empowerment of students,
    • enhanced listening and planning skills, and
    • the increased status of the peer mediators."
  • In four focus groups with mediators throughout the school year: "...the students were well prepared and eager to engage in the mediation process....There were numerous examples of mediators using mediation skills to avoid or defuse conflicts that they personally experienced. The increased number of mediations provided abundant positive and no negative outcomes. Student mediators continue to strongly recommend continuation and expansion of the program."
  • "Over 90% of the professional staff and over 95% of the students [surveyed] recommended continuation of the program and adoption by other schools."

Miller Street School

  • "Every professional staff member and every peer mediator [surveyed] recommended continuation of the program and adoption by other schools."
  • "The open-ended questions at the end of the survey (of 16 professional staff, 16 mediators and 22 students who had been disputants in a mediated conflict) yielded no examples of negative outcomes of the program while examples of positive outcomes included the following:
    • avoiding fights,
    • less fighting,
    • fewer conflicts,
    • greater responsibility,
    • learning leadership skills,
    • learning positive responses,
    • fewer repeat conflicts,
    • develops communication skills,
    • enhances self-esteem,
    • fewer suspensions,
    • monitoring of their behavior,
    • developed organizational skills,
    • learned 'active listening', brainstorming, and problem solving skills."
  • "A significant number of teachers reported that the grades of the mediators had improved substantially."
Back to The Conflict Mediators Program

The full 26 page evaluation report is available from Global Learning for $5.
Global Learning, Inc., 22 Mary Ann Drive, Brick, NJ 08723
 globallearningnj@comcast.net
 tel: (732) 281-8929
Back to Global Learning