MACAULAY  HONORS  CUNY  

QUEENS  COLLEGE      

Helping  to  Minimize  Stress  in  NYC  Public  Schools  

Students  and  teachers  in  today’s  school  environment  experience  high  stress  levels.  From  our  observations  high-­‐stakes  testing5,  limited  opportunities  to  socialize,  lack  of  individual  attention  and  extra  help  from  teachers,  and  pressure  to  meet  standards  all  contribute  to  the  stress.  Stress  levels  impede  student’s  academic  achievement.    

Previous  research  has  shown:  

• Bloomberg’s  high-­‐stakes  testing  emphasis  created  the  need  to  devote  classroom  time  to  test-­‐prep  skills  and  limits  the  curriculum  to  

We  need  your  help  to  raise  awareness!    Join  our  social  media  campaign  by  sharing  a  stressful  or  supportive  school  experience  with  the  hashtag  #LessOnTheStress  or  email  us  at  lessonthestress@gmail.com.  

BRIEFING  PAPER  

• High-­‐stakes  testing  pressures  both  students  and  teachers  who  depend  on  test  results  for  advancing  to  the  next  grade  and  maintaining  their  jobs,  respectively  2  

• High  anxiety  and  stress  levels  lead  to  lower  retention  rates  and  lower  grades3  

• Happiness  in  schools  has  been  shown  to  lead  to  better  grades4  

 The  school  environment  needs  to  change  to  better  alleviate  the  stress.  The  voices  of  students  and  teachers  need  to  be  heard  since  they  are  directly  involved  and  impacted  by  school  policy  and  environment.  

Source: Getty Images

Andreea Arama, Cindy Flores, Eugena McCrann

2 Lorem Ipsum

 “Though I had good English teachers, I just couldn't seem to get the writing right and just gave up on it. Having Mr. Paccione changed all of that… His was a class like I'd never had before.” – Rebecca Wojnis, Macaulay Honors College ‘15 “At my university we have spring fling right before finals which is a great way to relax right before it gets crazy.” – Gabriela Acobo, Binghamton University ‘16

“In high school my junior and senior year. I took a class called stagecraft where we got to work on the shows for my school. It was my favorite part about going to school and I miss it the most.” – Malena Kovalevsky,

After  conducting  our  research,  we  created  a  social  media  campaign  aimed  at  getting  students,  parents,  or  teachers  to  share  their  experiences  about  stress  in  the  school  environment.  These  are  trends  we  noticed:  

• Students  believe  having  good  relationships  with  faculty,  teachers,  and  peers  is  one  of  the  best  ways  to  relieve  stress6.  

• School  resources  that  can  aid  in  hard  processes,  like  college  applications,  help  students  deal  with  stress.  

• Extracurriculars  help  students  relieve  stress  by  allowing  them  to  meet  new  people  and  pursue  their  interests.  

• “Stress-­‐Busters”  such  as  playing  with  puppies,  free  massages,  and  other  fun  school  events  scheduled  before  finals  help  alleviate  stress.    

Social  Media  Campaign  Findings  

The  NYC  School  Survey  

Source: Anthony Delmundo/New York Daily News

3 3

The  NYC  School  Survey  given  by  the  NYC  Department  of  Education  to  parents,  teachers,  and  students  is  used  to  assess  the  learning  environment  in  NYC  public  schools  and  find  ways  to  improve  it.  The  survey  focuses  on  4  key  areas:  academic  expectations,  communication,  engagement,  and  safety  and  respect.7        

We  think  the  survey’s  aim  is  great,  but  upon  visually  analyzing  the  survey  data,  we  found  several  factors  that  we  feel  should  be  improved.  For  example,  response  to  the  survey  is  not  mandatory.  Last  year,  only  66%  of  the  NYC  school  community  returned  them.7  Furthermore,  parents  may  not  be  able  to  accurately  answer  all  questions  unless  their  child  tells  them  everything  that  happens  at  school.  While  looking  through  the  questions,  we  did  not  find  any  that  asked  about  stress  levels  experienced  by  teachers  and  students.  Additionally,  there  is  no  place  on  the  survey  where  one  could  provide    open  suggestions  as  to  how  to  improve  the  learning  environment.    

 

 

See  Appendix  for  our  suggestions  for  possible  

revised  NYC  School  Survey  Questions.  

1

Dennis  M.  Walcott,  Chancellor    

2

Source: NYC Dept. of Ed.

Source: NYC Dept. of Ed.

1 http://www.villagevoice.com/2010-01-12/news/are-high-stakes-tests-harming-nyc-schools/ 2Duffy et al, (2009). No Child Left Behind: Values and Research Issues in High-Stakes Assessments. Counseling and Values. 53 (1), 53-66. 3College Student Retention: Formula for Student Success edited by Alan Seidman, p. 223 4http://www.news-leader.com/article/20130913/COLUMNISTS31/309130008/David-Hough?nclick_check=1

5 High Stakes Testing –means scores are used to determine punishments (such as sanctions, funding reductions negative publicity), accolades (awards, public celebration, positive publicity), advancement (grade advancement for students) or compensation (salary increases or bonuses for teachers) http://edglossary.org/high-stakes-testing/ 6 Stress – a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances. http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/stress 7NYC Department of Education

Proposal  for  Reform  

In  light  of  this  information  gathered  from  background  research,  the  NYC  School  Survey,  and  our  #LessOnTheStress  social  media  campaign,  we  propose  a  change  in  the  NYC  school  survey  questions.  The  questions  should  better  address  the  stress  levels  of  students  and  teachers  and  allow  open  suggestions  to  be  made  about  improvements  to  the  learning  environment.  Furthermore,  the  survey  should  assess  the  relationship  and  degree  of  disclosure  between  school  faculty  and  parents,  as  well  as  parents  and  their  children.  Only  by  assessing  the  degree  of  communication  between  these  parties  can  we  measure  the  accuracy  of  the  survey  results.  In  addition,  while  it  would  be  ideal  to  make  the  survey  mandatory,  like  the  lunch  forms  and  blue  cards  given  out  to  students  at  the  beginning  of  the  year  are,  some  sort  of  compensation  such  as  prizes  to  schools  that  complete  the  most  surveys  could  be  given  out.  This  could  help  motivate  parents  and  students  to  fill  out  the  questionnaire  thus,  ensuring  the  best  representation  of  school  environments  across  the  NYC  public  school  system.  The  survey  results  could  then  be  used  to  directly  create  a  learning  environment  that  best  serves  the  students’  and  teachers’  needs.              

Source: modified from

Lighttruth on Flickr

 

APPENDIX  

 Questions  students  can  answer  that  assess  stress  levels  based  on  a  1-­‐10  scale    I  feel  stress  taking  before  taking  a  test  or  standardized  exams  such  as  the  SAT,  ACT,  Regents,  etc.      I  feel  my  teachers  provide  me  with  encouragement  and  motivation  that  alleviate  my  stress  before  taking  a  test  or  standardized  exam.    I  find  myself  feeling  stressed  out  during  school  because  of  social  or  non-­‐academic  issues.      Out  of  the  following  choices  which  would  you  believe  causes  you  the  most  stress?  You  may  select  more  than  one.    a)  grades  b)  social  interactions  c)  personal  or  other  problems  d)  other:  (note  here)    Based  on  your  answer  above,  on  a  scale  of  1-­‐10  how  well  do  your  teachers  or  school  faculty  alleviate  the  stress  caused  by  this  issue?    On  a  scale  of  1-­‐10,  how  well  do  your  parents  alleviate  the  stress  caused  by  this  issue?    

   Questions  parents  can  answer  about  their  children  based  on  a  1-­‐10  scale      My  child  informs  me  of  any  issue  occurring  at  school  that  is  causing  them  stress.    My  child  informs  me  when  he  feels  like  he  is  falling  behind  on  schoolwork.      How  often  do  you  have  a  one  on  one  chat  with  your  child  about  any  school  related  issues?    a)  daily  b)  weekly  c)  monthly  d)  hardly  ever  e)  never      My  child  lets  me  know  when  he  feels  his  teacher  is  not  providing  him  with  the  proper  attention  needed  to  grasp  the  material  in  question    My  child  informs  me  of  any  non  academic,  social  issue  that  is  interfering  with  their  ability  to  feel  comfortable  at  school      

 Questions  parents  can  answer  about  their  child’s  teachers  on  a  scale  of  1-­‐10    My  child’s  teacher  informs  me  of  any  issue  my  child  is  having  that  prevents  them  from  engaging  in  class  (prior  to  parent  teacher  conferences)      I  have  met  my  child’s  teacher  at  least  once  (excluding  parent  teacher  conferences)  and  I  have  a  good  idea  of  how  well  they  know  my  child.    My  child’s  teacher  provides  us  with  information  about  important  upcoming  exams  and/or  standardized  tests  to  make  sure  we  are  aware  of  our  child’s  level  of  preparation.