Lawyers and Students Engaged In Resolution

April 2000

SUSPENSIONS ... EXPULSIONS ... DETENTIONS ... DISMISSALS.  These are traditional methods of discipline which do not necessarily resolve student conflict.  There are, however, effective alternatives.  One alternative is to establish a peer mediation program that helps teach students to resolve their own conflicts in a positive way.

Students can become effective mediators because they understand their peers, make the process age-appropriate, empower their peers and command their respect, and normalize the conflict resolution process.  Mediators are taught to handle a clearly defined, formal process.  They identify the conflict, facilitate communication, encourage disputants to explore a variety of possible solutions, and draft written agreements when a resolution is reached.  The mediators do not tell the disputants what to do or coerce them into an agreement. 

Peer mediation is often offered by the school principal as an alternative to a traditional discipline system. It is even being used more often as a way for teachers to work through conflicts with individual students regarding behavior, school performance, or attendance.

Research shows that peer mediation programs are effective¨ in improving the climate of schools by helping to develop constructive social and conflict behavior in children at all educational levels.  In so doing, it decreases personal conflict and aggressiveness, while it increases pro-social values, perspective taking and conflict competence.  In addition, peer mediation programs can significantly improve school climate by making a significant and sustained impact on teacher and staff perceptions of school climate in all educational levels.  Teachers and staff who have been surveyed on their attitudes toward such programs indicate that they encouraged development of a productive learning environment, promoted high standards and created supportive and positive climates.

THE L.A.S.E.R. Project

One such program is the L.A.S.E.R. (Lawyers and Students Engaged in Resolution) Project.  It is a cooperative effort of the Washington Office of the Attorney General, the Washington State Bar Association, and the Office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction. The L.A.S.E.R. Project followed 1994 legislation directing these agencies to offer a program of conflict mediation training for schools and community groups.

Legislative authorization – 1994 Legislative Session: RCW 28A.300.280  “The Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) and the office of the Attorney General in cooperation with the Washington State Bar Association shall develop a volunteer-based conflict resolution and mediation program for use in community groups such as neighborhood organizations and schools.  The program shall use lawyers to train students who in turn become trainers and mediators for their peers in conflict resolution.”  

Project implementation  

The L.A.S.E.R. program pairs teams of lawyers (3-4 per school) familiar with mediation techniques and strategies with schools to train students as peer mediators.  Lawyers make a two-year commitment to the program, which involves providing the 12-hour training at the start of every school year, then coming to the school on a regular basis for additional mediation training.  Coincidentally, the lawyers act as positive role models for the student mediators. 

The school recruits the students who will be peer mediators.  L.A.S.E.R. recommends using an approach which draws students from all peer groups at the school.  Some schools, however, use the program as a leadership elective for high performing students.

The 12-hour training can be scheduled in a variety of ways, for example two 6-hour segments over consecutive days; one 8-hour day followed by a 4-hour segment; or three 4-hour segments.  The assigned school counselors can  decide how best to schedule this training.  L.A.S.E.R. uses training materials developed initially by Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory that mixes lecture with “doing together” activities to keep students engaged.

Student peer mediation training usually occurs early in the school year - often by mid-October - although some schools schedule this training at the end of the school year, preparing peer mediators for the following year.  During the Fall of the following year, a brief refresher training can be scheduled.

L.A.S.E.R. recommends that a school first recruit an implementation team of parent volunteers, teachers, and school staff.  The school’s L.A.S.E.R. team will work out which disputes will be referred to the student peer mediators. 

Counselors and/or teachers are encouraged to participate in the training and become the school partner(s) to the L.A.S.E.R. team at that school.  L.A.S.E.R. recommends that the teacher or counselor who will coordinate the program attend the full 12-hour student peer mediation training; other interested staff are invited to participate if they wish. 

It is critical for the school to assign one person, or a team, who will take responsibility for the daily functions of a peer mediation program.  Functions include authorizing and arranging mediations, collecting forms, and tracking mediation data.  Mediations are scheduled differently in each school - some in a scheduled open period, some at lunch, some in elective hours, some after school, some during class periods.

Monthly meetings are a key feature to the ongoing support provided by the L.A.S.E.R. project.  These meetings can be scheduled and structured as best fits the needs of the students, the school and the L.A.S.E.R. team, during the free hour, after school, during the lunch hour, or during a specified class time if the peer mediation program is part of an enrichment class.

Project costs  

Because L.A.S.E.R. lawyers volunteer for this program, costs for the schools are nominal.  The 12-hour training is provided by trained lawyers at no cost to the school and is done at a time that is convenient to both parties in a location provided by the school.  The primary cost that a school may bear is for copying the L.A.S.E.R. training guide materials and providing a notebook with this material to each of the student peer mediators, with an additional copy for the teacher or counselor that will have supervisory responsibility for the program.  The monthly visits from L.A.S.E.R. lawyers for additional mediation training for peer mediators or legal education instruction for history or other classes are additional duties of our volunteer.  At this time the Office of the Attorney General provides L.A.S.E.R. a part-time, salaried administrative coordinator to initiate programs with the schools and recruit attorney-volunteers.

Who are the lawyers?

The volunteer lawyers in the L.A.S.E.R. project come from public and private practice, and from small, medium and large firms.  They may be parents of children in the schools.  Many lawyers who volunteer for L.A.S.E.R. say they do so because they want to find a way to provide service to their communities, and their field of law is not conducive to pro bono work.  L.A.S.E.R. first asks the school to identify any parents who are also lawyers.  L.A.S.E.R. then contacts them to solicit their interest in participating.  Alternatively, L.A.S.E.R. has recruited lawyers at Bar luncheons, through the state Bar Association’s ADR Section, and by word of mouth.  L.A.S.E.R. has successfully qualified the training for Continuing Legal Education credit, providing a small incentive to the volunteer for their hours of assistance to the schools and communities.  

L.A.S.E.R. Project evaluation

·        L.A.S.E.R. started in 1994 with 10 volunteers and 2 schools.  To date, L.A.S.E.R. has to provided training in 30 schools in four counties across the state to initiate peer mediation programs.

·        As of March 2000, L.A.S.E.R. had provided training for ninety-five volunteer lawyers with more awaiting training.

·        An estimated 750 students have been trained as mediators since program inception.

·        L.A.S.E.R. has trained four schools since October 1999, and there are three more awaiting training – through word of mouth promotion only.

Teachers tell us that they appreciate the “new energy” provided by the L.A.S.E.R. volunteer lawyers to get a student peer mediation program up and running.  They value the skills and training resources lawyers bring.  Teachers remark that the time and effort expended by the volunteer lawyers in the schools evidence their deep interest and concern for schools in their community.

Teachers report that students are excited to have lawyers teach them mediation skills.  It gives real-world perspective and added importance to the activities the students undertake as peer mediators.  Students working with these lawyers can explore the possibilities of careers as lawyers, judges, and professional mediators.  Bringing L.A.S.E.R. volunteers who are also parents and community members into schools strengthens schools by expanding support to staff, increasing the numbers of caring adults involved with students, and developing powerful advocates for schools.

Summary

What the L.A.S.E.R. Project does for students

·        Promotes understanding that conflict is a natural and normal part of life and that mediation is a better response to conflict than violence.

·        Helps students work together despite individual differences.

·        Promotes a positive school climate.

·        Reduces suspensions and expulsions by providing alternative methods of resolving conflict.

·        Improves communication skills.

·        Help students learn to solve their own problems.

·        Develops an awareness of give and take as a positive means of resolving conflict.

·        Provides exposure to legal professionals to gain an awareness of the law and the work of lawyers.

What the L.A.S.E.R. PROJECT does for schools

·        Provides free training by legal professionals trained in mediation techniques.

·        Offers ongoing mentoring and training at times and in segments that work best for the school, at no cost to the school.

·        Makes an ongoing connection for schools to adults from the community. 

·        Provides new resources to support staff efforts, and helps develop powerful allies for the school among the L.A.S.E.R. lawyer team members.

·        Enables school to career enrichment opportunities for peer mediators, as student peer mediators interact with lawyers to discuss career options in the legal profession: attorney, judge, parole office, police, social worker, etc.

·        Ensures long term (two-year) commitment of caring adults from the community as mentors for the student mediators.

·        Provides working professional lawyers who can, if appropriate, address history, social studies or other classes on issues of the rule of law, Bill of Rights, the Constitution, and other legal education topics.

W  hat the L.A.S.E.R. PROJECT does for lawyers

·        Allows lawyers to impart their training and skill in negotiation, conflict analysis, perspective-taking, active listening and cooperative problem-solving to students

·        Gives lawyers who are also parents a valuable role in their child’s school

·        Gives lawyers who are community members an opportunity to work one-on-one in one of the nation’s most important institutions – the schools

·        Lets lawyers interact with students who may be considering a career in the law

·        Provides an adjunct to LRE activities undertaken by most state bar associations

·        Gives lawyers CLE credit for their participation.

File: LASER ABA 4-00