1.Educators frequently find themselves in the position of resolving conflicts that erupt between students, including those that involve violence. In “Twenty characteristics of an effective conflict response team,” Okungu, Mullins, Lechtenberger, et al (2017) note that the majority of public schools in America experience violent incidents, and that educational leaders and administrators need evidence-based policies and practices in place to better respond to minimize or mitigate conflict. Based on prior literature, the conflict resolution strategies educators can adopt include defining desired outcomes, trusting in the process, and identifying guiding principles.Many of the twenty suggestions offered in this article overlap with one another, and thus can be distilled into a more simplified framework that educational leaders and administrators can use to manage conflict in their schools. Violence is often the end result or final phase of a conflict, meaning that educators who are more tuned into the precursors of violence and able to recognize warning signs may in a much better position of preventing violence from occurring. Granted, the solutions embedded in this document may not apply to the mass murder incidents that have been taking place in the country, but they can still help educators take responsibility for noticing warning signs and taking action accordingly.

I can apply the information in this article to my own conflict resolution strategies. If I am entrusted with the ability to revise an organization’s conflict resolution policy, I would certainly...

While win-win situations are ideal, leaders also need to keep the guiding principles in mind when mediating conflict. Moreover, it is important to train teachers and students in how to recognize conflict and how to play a better role in resolving it.
2. In “The effects of conflict resolution education on conflict resolution skills, social competence, and aggression in Turkish elementary school students,” Akgun & Araz (2013) conduct original research on elementary students, introducing a mediation training program to improve their conflict resolution skills. The desired outcomes of the program also included measurable decreases in violence and aggression in the school. The experimental group included 327 students, and the authors also used a small but significant control group. The research design used a pre-test and a post-test to assess learning. Some of the core components of mediation were found to be empathy, anger management, and “social problem solving,” which may be critical in the educational setting (p. 30).

Students and educators alike need mediation training. Mediation skills are specific, and require astute development of emotional intelligence. It is important to teach these skills systematically. The reason why this study focuses on students is to show how mediation training can…