|
Peer Mediation at Silver Lake Middle School
A goal at Silver Lake Middle
School is to help our students to feel safe and happy. Conflicts will
arise as they do everywhere in life. The peer mediation program has been
developed to help our students resolve everyday conflicts. The program was
developed in 1994 and has been successful in resolving hundreds of situations
since then.
Peer mediation is a way of
helping people solve conflicts by enabling them to talk to each other. It
involves students trained to listen to those in conflict and help them resolve
their problems peacefully. The people in conflict are called disputants.
The goal of mediation is to
help those in conflict reach their own agreement which will be mutually
satisfying. We call that a win/win situation.
Mediation is always voluntary and confidential. Mediators take an oath of
confidentiality. Once a conflict is referred to the adviser, Mrs. Baker, she
meets with those involved asking if they would like to try mediation. Both
parties must agree. Mediation is then set up during the school day where
disputants meet with a pair of trained peer mediators to talk about the issues
and, hopefully, come to a resolution. If they come to an agreement, it is
written down and both parties and mediators sign it.
Any kind
of a dispute can be mediated. We have helped to resolve issues such as rumors,
lying, fighting, bullying teasing, boyfriend/
Girlfriend issues. We do not
mediate issues involving drugs or violence.
Mediations have been referred to us by
Students in
Conflict
Other students
Administrators
Guidance
Teachers
Parents
Even the Police Department
The 12
seventh and eighth grade mediators go through a one week summer training to
learn the skills necessary to actively listen and problem solve in order to help
resolve conflicts. The program begins on the first day of school.
Mediators meet each morning in room 365 with Mrs. Baker, the adviser, to set up
mediations.
|