Speaker
Description
Bullying prevention remains a central issue for K-12 schools. One approach to facilitate bullying prevention programming is to provide teachers with targeted professional development programming to increase self-efficacy, knowledge, and skills. The current study explores the distal effects an interactive teacher professional development for bullying prevention with a specific emphasis on youth with disabilities (Project DIAL) on student outcomes. Specifically, this study explored the pre/post reports of bullying involvement among youth with disabilities (i.e., with an Individualized Education Plan [IEP]) and youth identified as gifted and talented (i.e., with an Education Plan [EP]) whose teachers either received or did not receive the DIAL PD. The results indicated that students with a disability whose teachers completed the DIAL PD self-reported decreased bullying behaviors and increased prosocial behavior. Conversely, students with an EP whose teachers completed the DIAL PD, self-reported contradictory outcomes. While unexpected, this finding should be considered with caution. Specifically, the intervention (DIAL PD) the participants in this study received did not include information relating to students who are gifted, hence why the findings may be a result of natural fluctuations self-reporting at the beginning and the end of the school year for youth with EPs. Most importantly, this study clearly outlines the need for targeted and interactive professional development that is grounded in evidence-based practices for youth who are most at-risk for bullying involvement, including youth with disabilities. Furthermore, these professional development approaches should extend to other subgroups of youth, including those who identify as gifted and/or talented.
Keywords
Bullying Prevention
Professional Development
Special Education
| Please indicate what type of scientific contribution it is | Quantitative method study |
|---|---|
| Please also indicate what kind of contribution it is: | Scientific |
