Rockwood Middle Schools Launch Peer Mediation Training Program for Student Leaders

On a recent Tuesday, two students were having a disagreement in a classroom at Rockwood South Middle.

One student's feelings were hurt because he heard that the other said he was bad at football and should quit the team. The other was frustrated because he was just joking around when he said it, and he felt like the first student shouldn’t take it so seriously. After two of their fellow students took them through a conflict mediation process, both sides came to a satisfactory way to move forward together. 

Luckily for all involved, the disagreement was not real. It was an exercise as part of a six-hour training session with the nine eighth-graders in the school’s peer mediation group.

This school year, Rockwood middle schools are partnering with St. Louis-based nonprofit PreventEd to launch peer mediation groups of student leaders at each school who are trained to help facilitate problem-solving processes for peers in conflict.

Ashley Dietrich, eighth-grade counselor at Rockwood South, said she was very encouraged by the results of her students’ recent training session.

“The students were really engaged, and I believe by the end they understood the importance of their roles when it comes to being a peer mediator,” she said. “The students took the training seriously and understand that they were picked for a reason. I also hope that they understand that this group can do a lot good with the skills that they learned.”

Dietrich and grade-level assistant principal Nicholas Morgan collaborated to select Rockwood South’s group of mediators, seeking students who were strong leaders, respectful, positive role models and trustworthy.

Levi and Avery, two of the eighth-graders selected for the group, said they are grateful for the opportunity.

“The fact that I was selected out of all of the eighth-grade students made me feel important,” Avery said. “I want to be able to help solve problems so they don’t become a big issue.”

Led by PreventEd facilitators Libby Brim and Emma Wilson, the training session at Rockwood South equipped students with tactics for hearing both sides of an argument, de-escalating when necessary and helping the aggrieved parties come to a solution.

Then, the students got the chance to try out their new knowledge on each other.

“I enjoyed practicing the mediations and being able to work through the conflicts,” Levi said. “I want to be able to help others resolve conflicts but also learn skills through the meditation.”

The goal for the PreventEd training at all Rockwood middle schools is to teach students skills such as active listening, asking questions, being empathetic and respecting others’ opinions and feelings.

“With these skills, the mediators will be able to really help their peers and be role models and leaders for other students to also take on a leadership role like this in the future,” Dietrich said. “I hope this program will benefit all students at South by modeling how to help resolve a conflict in a respectful and appropriate way. Also, I want this program to show to all students that they can ‘Make a Difference’ by having the opportunity to be a peer mediator and a role model in the building for not only students in their own grade but all of the students here at Rockwood South.”