At Florence Griffith Joyner Elementary School, students walk past a makeshift memorial on the sidewalk where a 16-year-old boy was fatally shot. This tragic event has had a significant impact on the students, with some experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The reality of violence and gang activity in their neighborhood weighs heavily on these children, affecting their behavior and engagement in the classroom. Recognizing the need for support, Joyner Elementary and other schools in Watts have implemented alternative disciplinary approaches that focus on teaching students how to communicate and resolve conflicts.
To prioritize these efforts, the Los Angeles and other districts in California have incorporated school climate as a measure in their local accountability system. This includes assessing whether students feel safe both emotionally and physically by conducting surveys with parents, staff, and students. Starting from the 2016-17 school year, these measures, along with suspension rates and students’ social and emotional skills, will account for 40 percent of a school’s score on an index developed by the districts. This shift in accountability models aims to highlight the importance of addressing barriers to learning before focusing on test scores.
At Joyner Elementary, the staff has established clear behavior expectations and utilizes restorative circles to build support and trust in classrooms. This involves students sitting in a circle and engaging in activities such as breathing exercises, sharing experiences that have made others happy or hurt, and discussing ways to rectify any negative impact they may have caused. These circles create a safe space for students to talk about their lives and experiences, facilitating meaningful conversations.
While some may view these discussions as trivial, students believe that sharing common experiences helps them open up about more challenging topics. For example, during a conversation about where they like to play, a student revealed her fear of going outside due to gangs in her neighborhood alley. Overall, these efforts to create a supportive and connected school environment aim to address the trauma students bring with them and promote their well-being.
Your assignment is to completely rephrase the text using more appropriate language and incorporating natural phrasing. The rewritten text should be unique and presented in English. The original text to rephrase is as follows:
Original text: "Our task is to rewrite the entire text in better words and make it unique with natural language. All output shall be in English."
