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Violence and bullying against teachers in school is an acute worldwide problem that negatively affects teachers and students alike. However, although many previous studies have addressed the way students handle school violence, very little is known about violence against teachers and teachers' utilization of schools' support systems for contending with this violence. The main aim of the current study was to investigate students' violence against teachers and teachers' willingness to seek help, differentiating between novice and veteran teachers and their willingness to seek help from both school management and teacher colleagues. Based on a sample of 166 (86.7% female) teachers (Mean age = 44.49; SD = 9.92), the findings revealed that novice teachers were at greater risk than were veteran teachers, as they suffered more violence than did their veteran counterparts. However, although there was a generally negative association between the extent of the violence and the willingness to seek help, veteran teachers were less willing than novice teachers to seek help as the level of violence increases. Findings point to the negative psychosocial costs of help-seeking for teachers and the need to provide support for both novice and veteran teachers so that they can better handle violent events.

This study examines the role of adolescents-parents/teachers/peers relationships as explanatory variables of cyberbullying and problematic Internet-use (PIU) pre-and during COVID-19 pandemic. Questionnaires were delivered to 348 adolescents ages 13 to 18 years (M = 15.05) at two time-points, provided a rare opportunity for assessment the pandemic effect. A significant increase was found in Internet-usage and PIU from pre-pandemic to during the pandemic-lockdown, although no change was found in cyber-perpetrating/victimization, but a decrease in cyber-witnessing. An increase was found in adolescents-teachers/peers relationships, while adolescent-parent relationships remained unchanged and strong. Intensive Internet-use was a positive explanatory variable for stronger teachers/peers relationships. When adolescent-peer relationships were stronger, the cyber-perpetrating/victimization were lower. Also, reinforcements in adolescents-teachers relationships during the lockdown may have influenced the decrease in cyberbullying.

One of the negative consequences of bullying in schools is its adverse effect on students' sense of safety. Previous studies yielded mixed results and a nonlinear relationship between bullying and students' sense of safety and pointed to the need for revealing possible mediating and moderating factors in order to better understand this victimization-fear paradox. The main aim of the current study was to examine the moderating effect of school climate, suggesting that bullying may have a smaller effect on the sense of safety in a positive school climate than in a negative one. The association between different forms (direct, observed) of school bullying and the sense of safety was also investigated with reference to three indicators of safety (risk assessment, fear, avoidance). The sample included 1213 students in sixth (35.5%), eighth (38.3%), and tenth (26.2%) grades. The findings show that school climate moderates the association between victimization and the sense of safety and that a negative relationship exists between bullying and students' sense of safety in schools characterized by a negative school climate, but not in schools characterized by a positive school climate. The findings point to the importance of the school context in understanding the effect of bullying and specifically the association between bullying and the sense of safety.

School rabbi-teachers are responsible for both the religious education and the daily classroom routines of their pupils. There are many conflicts that arise from the tension between these dual roles and although rabbi-teachers face such conflicts in school daily, they are not adequately trained to deal with them. The aim of the present study was to examine the contribution of a new simulation-based learning professional development methodology towards improving rabbi-teachers' perceived ability and skills for conflict management. Using an experimental research design, 68 school rabbis were divided into an experimental group (N = 31), which participated in the simulation workshop, and a control group (N = 37). The findings indicated that the rabbis who participated in the workshop reported an improved perception of the conflict resolution skills and tools at their disposal while showing no improvement in their perception of their general ability to deal with conflict. The unique role of school rabbi-teachers and the need for specific training in conflict management are discussed.

The effect of a combined counselor-teacher role upon students' willingness to seek help for bullying was studied. Using a field experimental design, 152 paired samples (62 boys, 90 girls) of high school students (mean age 15.75 years, SD = 0.67) participated in the study. In each pair, the counselor served as a teacher and counselor for one student, and as a counselor only for the other. The findings demonstrate that when counselors serve as teachers, they form more positive relationships with students, they are more available to them, and students are more willing to seek help from them.

The aim of the study was to investigate the mediating effect of school safety and school connectedness on the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and posttraumatic growth (PTG) among boys and girls facing terror. A cross-sectional research design using a nationwide random sample of 609 (54% girls) 9th (25%), 10th (26%), 11th (24%), and 12th graders (24%) from state-run Jewish schools in Israel was used. The participants responded to questionnaires on PTSD and PTG, exposure to terror, school safety, and school connectedness. The findings revealed that feeling safe in school is related to fewer PTSD symptoms, but at the same time to less PTG. Contrary to the research hypothesis, school connectedness was related to more PTSD symptoms, but also to higher PTG. The mediating effects of school safety and school connectedness were related to student gender, because school connectedness mediated the effect of exposure to terror only among boys. The findings also contribute to the theoretical discussion on the connection between PTSD and PTG and reveal that school experiences play an important role in explaining students' resilience when facing terror. Nonetheless, it seems that school cannot be regarded as a monolithic experience, as the same aspects of school experience interact differently with PTG and PTSD. For some students, a positive school experience is related to greater risk for PTSD symptoms instead of serving as a protective factor. The findings stress the challenge facing schools in supporting students who face terror.

Background: While extensive research has been done on high-school dropouts' adjustment, there is little data on dropouts from closed religious communities. Objective: This study examines the contribution of personal and social resources to the adjustment of high school dropouts in Ultraorthodox Jewish communities in Israel. Method: Using a randomized design, the research population included 261 Ultraorthodox Jewish male youths, ages 14-21 (M = 17, SD = 1.71), who were at different stages of the dropout process. Structural equation modeling was used to explore the direct and indirect effects between the various stages of the dropout process, social and personal resources, and adjustment. Results: Students in high school or in a program for high school dropouts showed higher levels of loneliness and lower levels of involvement and representation in the peer group than did dropouts. However, higher levels of personal and social resources were found among students than among dropouts. Furthermore, sense of community was found to be a protective factor for positive adjustment only for students, while for dropouts it seemed to constitute a risk factor. Conclusions: The findings expose the highly complex situation of at-risk youths in the Ultraorthodox Jewish community. Efforts to keep them in the community's educational frameworks seem to create pressure and put these youths at risk. At the same time, the poor resources of youths who do not stay in the community's educational frameworks may lower their positive adjustment. Implications for promoting positive adjustment are discussed.

Early detection of severe violence is a significant challenge for many schools. Three studies were conducted on samples of 6th, 8th, and 10th graders (12-16 years old). The first study, based on paired reports of teachers and students (n = 130), showed that a high percentage of both victims and perpetrators of severe violence are not identified by teachers but are known to students. The second and third studies were based on qualitative (n = 30) and quantitative methods (n = 524) and revealed the factors that explain students' willingness to report or seek help from their teachers. The findings highlight the role of victims as a source of information regarding perpetrators and suggest a new perspective for early identification of severe violence in schools.

Focusing on the unique social characteristics of closed communities, the current study examined the predictors of high-school dropout among Ultraorthodox Jewish youth, focusing on background variables [i.e., individual’s age, family’s religious group affiliation, and other high-school dropout(s) in family]; social resources (i.e., self-esteem and mastery); and parental conditional regard (PCR) and societal conditional regard (SCR), with reference to both positive regard and negative regard. The study was conducted in Israel with the participation of 261 Ultraorthodox Jewish males, ages 14–21 (M = 17, SD = 1.17), who were at different stages in the dropout process. Path analysis modeling indicated that being a member of a newly religious family, or of a family in which another member had already dropped out of school, was a predictor of dropout. Surprisingly, personal resources were not found to be a predictor of dropout, whereas parental conditional regard and societal conditional negative regard (SCNR) were found to be the most significant predictors. Findings highlight the unique predictors of high-school dropout among youth from the Ultraorthodox Jewish community, and the role of PCR and SCR in this process.

An attempt was made in the present study to identify mothers' and caregivers' teaching (mediation) behaviour in relation to toddlers' social behaviour. Participants were 103 toddlers, two- to four-year olds, their mothers, and 28 caregivers at 16 public daycare centres in Israel. Two observations were carried out, one in toddlers' homes and the other in the daycare centres. Research findings indicate that mothers' and caregivers' social mediation behaviour "encouraging" and "regulating behaviour" were related to more prosocial behaviour and to less aggressive behaviour of toddlers. Especially, interesting findings were noted regarding effects of incompatible mediation on children's social behaviour. It was found that when mothers or caregivers exhibited more mediation that was unmatched or unsynchronised with their child's behaviour (i.e. "unspecified encouragement"), their children exhibited more aggressive and less prosocial behaviour.

The relation between students' social goals and their willingness to seek help for school violence was examined. Four hundred and sixty-two students from sixth, eighth, and tenth grades responded to vignettes used to assess willingness to seek help from teachers and friends for dealing with relational and physical violence. Intimacy goals enhanced the willingness to seek help from friends and social status goals suppressed the willingness to seek help from teachers. Sex and grade differences were also found, and are discussed with reference to the negative psychological costs of seeking help in school. (Contains 2 tables.)

The role of motivation to participate in peace encounters was examined against the popular claim that such programs mainly benefit those who already espouse peace-movement ideas. The self-determination theory served as the theoretical framework for the study. Jewish and Arab high-school students (N = 330) were randomly assigned to research and control groups based on their motivation to participate in peace encounters. The findings revealed that those who benefited most and whose social relationships were significantly enhanced by participation in the program were participants who were extrinsically motivated. Those who were amotivated gained nothing but did not deteriorate, whereas their counterparts in the control group deteriorated. Those who were intrinsically motivated did not gain much from their participation but did not deteriorate, even without the encounters (in the control group). Theoretical and pedagogical implications of the findings are discussed. (Contains 3 tables and 1 figure.)

Despite increased interest in studying school violence, much less attention has been given to examining students' fear of experiencing this violence. A better understanding is important, because fear of victimization can generate negative academic consequences for the individual student and larger school environment. To explore students' fear, our study takes a cross-national approach and compares the United States and Israel. Previous victimization experience is universally associated with fear at school. With regard to other correlates, greater similarities are found between U.S. and Israeli-Jewish students than for either group with Israeli-Arab students. Our study also examines students' fear while traveling to school. Here, similarities are found among all students. Girls and students victimized at school report being fearful more often while traveling to school than boys and students who were not victimized. Explanations for our findings are discussed as well as possible implications for future policy and research. (Contains 4 tables and 7 notes.)

Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to examine the efficiency of SMS based cell-phone vocabulary learning as compared to email vocabulary delivery and snail mail vocabulary delivery at the university level. Design/methodology/approach: A total of 241 first year university students studied English vocabulary in their mandatory English foundation course. Students were divided into three groups: study via cell-phone based SMS messages, via email messages and via snail mail delivery. Vocabulary lists were delivered weekly to students via the three delivery strategies during course. Students in the three groups were tested on English vocabulary and responded to a questionnaire that examined their attitudes toward flexibility of the learning strategy; user friendliness of the learning strategy; learner control of the learning process, learner motivation; and learner autonomy. Findings: Results of the study indicate that there were no significant differences for achievement attained by the three groups on the vocabulary test. However, there were significant differences on students' attitudes toward flexibility of learning; user friendliness of the learning strategy; learner control of the learning process, learner motivation; and learner autonomy. The students who received SMS messages had most positive attitudes on all five factors, followed by attitudes of students who received email messages, who were followed by attitudes of students who received vocabulary via snail mail. Practical implications: It appears that SMS based vocabulary delivery is perceived as more effective than email delivery which is felt to be more efficient than snail mail learning. Results of the study indicate the potential for university vocabulary learning via cell-phone based SMS messaging. Originality/value: This paper indicates the value of SMS messaging for vocabulary learning at the university level. (Contains 2 tables.)

The authors describe practitioners' professional development, the challenges and dilemmas that they confront, and the support they receive in their work. They focus on examples of supervision sessions and describe typical dilemmas and solutions that come up during these sessions. These examples reflect four main themes that were identified as receiving much attention from practitioners over the years: boundaries and role definitions; relationships with students, teachers, and parents; extent of responsibility; and professional questions. Finally, the authors present an interview with a RALLY supervisor that illustrates typical dilemmas and conflicts that practitioners face during their work. (Contains 1 figure and 2 notes.)

In regions of intractable conflicts, daily circumstances and overall reality allow very narrow opportunities to bring members of conflict groups together in order to modify their social relationships. Internet-based communications were the backbone of a three-month program designed to address the Jewish-Arab conflict between Israeli Jewish youth and Arab youth to enable students to discuss issues such as equality, democracy, tolerance, and peace. This afterschool program, known as "Feeling Close from a Distance" is based mainly on Internet interaction between the groups, but also includes face-to-face meetings at both the start and the end of the program and guided group discussions for each side separately. This program was designed for tenth-grade Israeli Jewish and Arab students from four schools (two Jewish and two Arab) and took place after the end of school day three times a week for three months. The virtual world of the Internet provides the base for a meaningful interaction while affording a sufficient feeling of safety for personal disclosure and intergroup contact. Using school facilities, and especially computers and Internet infrastructure, enabled all students to participate. As an afterschool program, such intergroup interaction received much attention and support, and students who were not part of it showed interest and were curious about it. Such community support in peace encounters plays an important role in the success of any peace program and enhances the discussion of peace among all students in the school. (Contains 14 notes.)

Compares two introductory statistics courses at Bar-Ilan University (Israel), one offered as an Internet-based course and one as a traditional lecture-based course. Highlights include expectations of students; student satisfaction at the end of the course; students' self-confidence in the Internet course; and cost effectiveness. (Author/LRW)

Describes how Internet-based group communication was used as the major strategy to promote the societal values of understanding, equality, tolerance, and peace between Jewish and Bedouin Arab high school students in Israel. Discusses changes in student attitudes and considers the prognosis for long-term change and cooperation between the two groups. (Author/LRW)