“Calvin,” a student a Cleveland Quality Middle School, was referred to the Behavior Intervention Program last school year because his out-of-control behavior was leading to poor grades and attendance, as well as threatening the safety of other students.  Prior to the referral, Calvin had been sent to the Assistant Principal's office almost 40 times for bullying, fighting, disrupting class, and defying teachers.  Because he was getting kicked out of class and suspended from school routinely, Calvin fell far behind on his schoolwork.

During the first meeting with Calvin, he said that his home life was difficult.  His dad abandoned the family several years ago.  Calvin's mom refused to discuss why his dad left.  Calvin shed a lot of tears about his departure.  In an attempt to "harden" Calvin up, his older brother taught Calvin how to fight (typically by beating Cavin up) and how to repress his feelings.  Calvin looks up to his older brother and took the "advice" and "lessons" to heart.  This is why Calvin was acting out in school and bullying and fighting with the other students.

Calvin met three times a week with our counselor for the rest of the year to talk about how things were going at school and at home, and to talk about how to cope with and solve problems without resorting to violence.  It was clear that Calvin was an incredibly bright, good-natured kid who wanted to turn things around.  We worked with him to set goals for avoiding confrontations with other students and bringing up his grades.  While Calvin showed some improvement in his behavior, grades and disposition towards the end of the school year, we continued to work with Calvin through summer school and the next fall to make sure that he followed through.

Calvin is doing incredibly well this year.  He has only been sent out of class a couple of times for fairly minor incidents and has not been suspended.  Calvin's eighth-grade teachers say that he pays attention in class, follows directions, and gets along well with the other students.  He is now resolving disagreements with other students through talking and by involving other adults.  Calvin is no longer, in his own words, "thinking with his fist."  Because he is not getting kicked out of class, he has brought his grades way up.  Calvin's most recent report card was filled with only "As" and "Bs".  More impressively, Calvin now says that he likes coming to school. 

Return to Behavior Intervention