Abstract

Very little empirical data exists on the topic of civility in schools, although much theory and philosophy are proffered in the literature. Literature on moral education and character education also informs the study of civility. Many of the philosophical theories mention education as a way of increasing civility in society. Some schools have attempted to implement various civility interventions and research supports the use of similar interventions to teach social skills; however, none have systematically collected data for these interventions to evaluate their effectiveness for teaching civility. The present research systematically gathered data on perceptions of civility and incivility in schools by surveying the alumni of a school of education using a web-based questionnaire. Results revealed that participants perceived that students' civil behaviors occurred more frequently than uncivil behaviors. However, participants also indicated a need to increase civility and decrease incivility in schools. They gave suggestions to accomplish this goal including direct instruction, school professionals modeling civil behavior, incorporating the ideology of positive behavior support, and setting rules and expectations.

Degree

EdS

College and Department

David O. McKay School of Education; Counseling Psychology and Special Education

Rights

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