Date of Conferral

2016

Degree

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

School

Education

Advisor

Timothy Lafferty

Abstract

In response to high profile violent incidents and crimes, many schools have developed plans that address school discipline to create a school climate and culture wherein everyone is valued and treated with respect. The problem that prompted this study is teachers are struggling with effectively implementation prevention program. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of teachers about school violence prevention programs. Guided by Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory, this study examined the connection among school violence, environment, discipline and prevention programs; and it explored approaches to creating safe communities in schools. The research questions focused on teachers' perceptions of the implemented strategies, of the barriers to program success, and of supervising roles of high school administrators. The 9 participants were Grade 9-12 urban school teachers who had 3 to 5 years of full time teaching experience and who had 2 to 3 years of work experience at the targeted high school. This qualitative case study described and analyzed data from individual interviews, self-reported observations, and researcher observations. Emergent themes were identified from the data through open coding and findings were developed and validated. The key results were that teachers support a uniform program and security officers help reduce school violence; that program implementation can be strengthened by increased funding, community support and professional development. Implications for social change are that educators, parents, students and community members must work collaboratively to create a safe school environment and a culture of problem solving and resolution.

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