in Education, a positive school climate is “an
environment that reflects a commitment to
meeting and developing the academic, so-
cial and emotional needs of every student”
(2013).
The benefits of a positive school climate
have been well documented and include
improved feelings of safety (physical, social,
and emotional), increased engagement by
teachers and students, educators modeling,
and attitudes that support the benefits of
learning and a growth mindset. These ben-
efits lay the foundation for a culture of con-
tinual improvement. In addition, a positive
school climate has been shown to impact the
frequency of student substance abuse and
psychiatric problems, as well as less aggres-
sive behavior, including harassment (Thapa,
Cohen, Guffey, Higgins-D’Alessandro,
2013). These benefits support the compre-
hensive nature of school climate and the en-
tire learning environment.
The climate of a school is often described
as what people feel when they enter an in-
stitution. To gain an understanding of this
“feel,” consider a school with a toxic cli-
mate—schools that lack systems and have
a prevalent culture of dysfunction. No one
wants to be there, the school is in disarray,
students lack resources, some personnel
are unfriendly and students aren’t meet-
ing learning goals. Conversely, one school
climate has a sense of belonging, with sys-
tems in place to ensure successful learning
for all students. Culture is the heartbeat of
a school, and with each beat, it’s spreading
health or toxicity.
Dimensions of School Climate
When using School Climate as a compre-
hensive approach to school improvement,
it is important to identify the four dimen-
sions of School Climate: safety, teaching and
learning, interpersonal relationships, and
the institutional environment.
In considering school safety, the first
thing that often comes to mind is school vio-
lence. However, school violence doesn’t just
happen. There are issues and circumstances
that serve as precursors to the violence.
Often, perpetrators of violence have been
victims of bullying or have a chronic history
of non-compliant behavior or trauma.
“Rethinking Effective Bully and Violence
Healthy interpersonal
relationships between
staff, students,
administration, and
community provide an
optimal foundation for
teaching and learning.”
Prevention Efforts: Promoting Healthy
School Climates, Positive Youth Develop-
ment, and Preventing Bully-Victim-By-
stander Behavior” states that targeted bully-
ing programs are marginally helpful in the
absence of a positive school climate. These
combined efforts of continual school climate
improvement and bullying prevention pro-
mote positive sustained school climates fos-
tering responsible, engaging, flourishing and
democratically informed school communities.
Tips to bolster safety:
• Create a solid leadership team, includ-
ing students, to guide school climate im-
provement work using a continuous im-
provement approach.
• Build an environment of respect, em-
pathy and kindness by modeling behaviors
throughout the day.
• Engage in dialogue about race, gender,
religion, sexual orientation and other iden-
tity issues in order to build a bridge between
differences.
• Address bullying and all forms of intol-
erance swiftly and provide support as well as
guidance to all individuals involved.
• Examine and update school policies, pro-
cedures, and practices to guarantee they are
equitable and student friendly on a yearly basis.
A major component of school safety is
having a solid foundation in interpersonal
relationships. School connectedness alludes
to a students’ feelings of being a part of their
school, that the adults at school care about
them as an individual, and that their learn-
ing matters (Osher, Spier, Kendziora & Cai,
2009). Interpersonal relationships are a key el-
ement in student connectedness with a school.
Students who are connected have close
relationships with people at school and in-
f luential relationships with adults. Inter-
personal relationship skills increase healthy
relationships between staff and students,
student and student interactions, and build
a climate for the effective support students
need to be successful. Fostering relation-
ships between students and teachers is an
important step in achieving their academic,
social, and emotional needs, which also pro-
motes a positive school climate.
Tips for building interpersonal rela-
tionships:
• Practice “coffee cup diplomacy,” making
community a priority. Spend every chance
you get mingling among students and staff
and get to know them on a personal level.
• Support staff with effective classroom
management and teaching methods to build
a positive learning environment.
• Provide professional development and
support for all staff (facility managers, lunch
room personnel, para-professionals, teachers
and all support staff.
• Develop trusting and caring relation-
ships to promote open communication.
• Practice unconditional positive regard.
Let people know they are appreciated and ca-
pable of great things without using their per-
formance as a means of approval/acceptance.
Healthy interpersonal relationships be-
tween staff, students, administration, and
the community provide an optimal foun-
dation for teaching and learning. Powerful
teaching reflects a variety of instructional
strategies designed to engage students and
support high academic achievement. High
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