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San Francisco Schools Find Just Talking Helps Troubled Students

From left: Betty Momjian, head counselor Pete Babnis, and social worker Ben Kauffman discuss shcool discipline. Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Examiner.

Cheers to the San Francisco Examiner for this article about a program aimed at reducing the number of children suspended or expelled from school.

Using the “restorative practices” approach, schools ask troubled youth what is causing them to act out. For instance, one child who was twice suspended from school said one class made him feel dumb. So he was moved to another class and is performing well.

Not surprisingly, social worker Ben Kauffman is involved in the program.

“It’s people talking to each other; that’s all it is,” said Pete Babnis, head counselor at Herbert Hoover Middle School. “This gives voice to the person that’s been hurt as well.”

To learn more about how social workers help children get a better education, visit the National Association of Social Workers’ Schools and Communities Web page by clicking here.

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1 Comment

  1. “Just talking” has always been my philosophy. Troubled kids usually don’t have someone that will sit down and just listen to them. Personally, when I’m bothered by something and just want to vent, I want someone to sit down and listen to me. You just have to put yourself in other people’s shoes. What’s the word for that again? Oh yeah. Empathy.

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