“Children at risk”: School based prevention program

Often violence against women prevention efforts in schools focus on educating children. Yet, there may be more impact by training teachers to address the issues in their daily interactions with students.

In the recent Journal of Prevention and Intervention in the Community, among the several articles about violence prevention programs, one article describes a program in Dallas, TX to train teachers and school about the impact on domestic violence on children.

The full citation and abstract from SafetyLit follows the jump.

“Children at risk”: development, implementation, and effectiveness of a school-based violence intervention and prevention program.

Walker SL, Smith DJ Journal of Prevention and Intervention in the Community 2009; 37(4): 316-25.

Click here for the link or for the DOI:

(Copyright © 2009, Taylor and Francis Group)

Violence impacts the lives of children on a daily basis. In their communities, they witness drive-by shootings, drug deals, and violence in their schools while many endure abuse, neglect, and violent behavior in their homes. Because the traumatizing impact of such exposure disrupts a child’s ability to concentrate and learn, the Dallas Independent School District (ISD) sought content expertise to develop a training vehicle for school district professionals. The program aimed to raise the awareness of educators to problems related to domestic violence and the myriad of circumstances at home and in the community that lead to exposure to violence. Approximately 15,000 faculty and staff of Dallas ISD were educated in the identification, intervention, and prevention of exposure to violence. Referrals and inquiries related to abuse have increased (approximately 70%) while the city of Dallas has witnessed a drop in the number of domestic violence and child abuse offenses.