Planning and Organizing a Social Norms Project

1. Planning and Organizing a Social Norms Project

2. Introduction • This presentation is designed to assist you in starting and continuing a social norms project • The presentation is meant to be used in conjunction with the NJDOE’s Social Norms Tool Kit to aid in survey administration and project implementation • Please refer to the manual in the Tool Kit for more specific ideas pertaining to these subjects • A copy of the Social Norms Tool Kit was mailed to each chief school administrator in school districts with schools serving grades 5-12, in January 2011, and also is available at

3. Purpose • Review Chapters 3 and 4 in the manual in the Social Norms Tool Kit, which includes information on the following topics: • Obtaining support and buy-in • Surveying students • Expenses/Budget • Implementation • Success • Participants will understand the basics of starting and operating a social norms project

4. Understanding Social Norms Actual Perceived Is defined by Perkins (2003) as a proactive prevention program that communicates “the truth about peer norms in terms of what the majority of students actually think and do, all on the basis of credible data drawn from the student population that is the target.” (p.11). Misperception Misperception “The gap between ‘perceived’ and ‘actual.’”(Berkowitz, 2004, p. 5). Social Norms

5. The Theory • Perception vs. Reality • Our behavior is strongly influenced by how we think others act • Our perceptions are often inaccurate • i.e. , We remember the one person at the party who was highly intoxicated, rather than the others who were drinking moderately • Social Comparison Theory: We continuously compare ourselves with others in our social group. If discrepancies exist, we become motivated to reduce the discrepancy, thus bringing behavior back into congruence (Festinger 1957)

6. Obtaining Support • Who • School District Board of Education members • School staff • [e.g., counselors, student assistance coordinators (SACs),administrators, teachers, safe schools resource officers (SROs)] • Parents and community members • [e.g., businesses, Municipal Alliance Committees (MACs)] • Students • How • Social Norms Overview PowerPoint (included in Social Norms Project Tool Kit) • Formal and informal conversations • E.g., network with other schools that have used the social norms approach

7. Supportive Online Resources • Online resources • Hobart and William Smith Colleges Alcohol Education Project • http://alcohol.hws.edu/ • Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention (HEC) • www.edc.org/hec/socialnorms. • National Social Norms Resource Center • www.socialnorms.org. • MOST of Us • www.mostofus.org.

8. School Planning Team • Members can include: • School staff (e.g., school counselors, SACs, administrators, teachers, Child Study Team members, supervisors of curriculum and instruction) • Parents • Community members (e.g., MAC members, local business owners) • Students • Recruit members at school and community events • Have a table of materials or flyers ready to hand out describing the program and the planning team • Parent Teacher Association (PTA) meetings, community action group meetings – inquire about interests • These events also can be used as a venue to discuss the school norms (e.g., movie nights, school plays, community days)

9. Responsibilities of the School Planning Team • Obtaining “Buy-in” • Planning survey administration • Paper, electronic or commercial online service • When to survey • Planning the media campaign • Coordinating with existing programs

10. Active Parental Consent for Student Surveys • N.J.S.A. 18A: 36-34 • All schools must receive written parental consent for student surveys that reveal personal information (e.g., mental or physical problems, illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating and demeaning behavior) • Parents/guardians must “opt-in” for students to survey because consent is not implied • Methods to Distribute Active Consent Forms • Email to parents • Events, such as Back to School Nights or Parent Teacher Conferences • Media, such as school district Web sites or local TV stations

11. Active Parental Consent (cont.) • Methods of Distribution to Students • Beginning-of-the-year packets • Weekly folders/envelopes • Homework assignment – signed form • Tying the return of the form to some task or activity has been the most successful way to improve the return rate; however, it is important for success to be based solely on returning the form, not on obtaining permission to survey • The form indicates either whether a student does or does not have permission to survey • Make it a contest! Who can return the form first? • Pizza party or breakfast party for the homeroom that brings in the most consents • First three students to turn in the form receive a small prize

12. Student Surveys • Four versions of surveys are included in the tool kit • Paper surveys • High School – Short* • High School – Long • Middle School – Short* • Middle School – Long • *These surveys are also available as Excel electronic versions on the CD in the Social Norms Tool Kit and Online at

13. Surveying – Paper Survey • Students are handed a printed survey that asks them the survey questions • Students can use the survey to mark their answers directly on the form with an “X,” or the school can supply an electronic scanning form, if available • Remind students of the following: • This is not a test; there are no right or wrong answers • Choose the closest answer if there is not one that exactly fits your beliefs • No names should appear on any paper • Complete the survey in silence

14. Surveying – Paper Survey • Provide a large envelope for students to place their completed surveys and/or electronic scanning forms to keep the survey anonymous • When all surveys have been completed, the designated individual must manually count each response to each question • When the count of all the student responses is completed and tallied, use the CD (i.e., Excel file) to open the folder called “Paper Survey Analysis”

15. Analyzing – Paper Survey • Select the form that applies to the survey administered (ex. “High School Long Survey Analysis”) • Enter the count of the student responses for the corresponding questions under the title “Number of Students” • The column to the far right, titled “Percentages,” will automatically calculate the student response percentages, or the percent of students that answered a question in a specific way (see example on next slide). • The social norms messages are made using these percentages.

17. Preparing to Survey– Electronic Survey • Designate a survey expert in your school to assist with electronic survey administration • Use Excel 2003 or higher (macros enabled), Windows XP or higher • Create a separate user account to be used for surveying, if possible • Address security concerns • Possible concerns could be leaving the survey “unattended” on a commonly shared desktop and the possibility that students may enter data inappropriately (i.e. , without permission)

18. Preparing to Survey – Electronic Survey • Load the Excel file onto each computer the students will be using • Select the survey you will be using (ex. “High School Survey”) and copy it to the desktop using a “drag-and-drop” method • Eject the CD (if using it) • Right click on the mouse to “re-name” the survey on each computer

19. Preparing to Survey- Electronic Survey • Open the re-named survey file that is saved to the local computer • Click on the “security warning” that will appear on each computer once the survey is opened to enable macros (see next slides)

20. Macros

21. Macros

22. Administering the Survey – Electronic Survey • Students enter to survey • If a separate user account was created, have it pre-logged • Review the directions for surveying with the students • Students should select “agree” and “start survey.” Click “finished” to save the student data (see next slide)

23. Click Agree

24. Administering the Survey – Electronic Survey • One student cannot see how another student has answered the survey questions • Each time a new student prepares to take the survey, close the file, reopen the file, and enable macros • There is no limit to the number of students that can take the survey on a specific computer • When the survey is complete, be sure to close the survey and logoff the computer

25. Saving Student Data • Open a master Excel spreadsheet to review student data • All data must be combined to determine overall percentages • This file can be saved on an administrator’s computer or at a networked location • Open the survey on each student-used computer • Press “administrative options” • The default password is “CASA” • Hit enter • All student responses are visible (with no identifiers)

26. Student Answers

27. Saving Student Data • To change the administrative options password on the master Excel sheet, select “configuration” • Type a new password where “CASA” appears • Save, close, and reopen

28. Administrative Password

29. Analyzing Student Data • For each computer used by students for survey administration, copy the student data onto a USB drive, a network location, or an email file • All of the student survey files are to be combined into one master file • Consider printing the “report” page for each computer, for ease of viewing (see next slide)

30. Report Page

31. Analyzing Student Data • Multiple student responses for each survey item are collected as a result of survey administration • Ex. 10 students answered “true” to a specific question and 10 answered “false” • The number of responses must be added together • Ex. 20 computers were used to survey, on each computer 10 students said “true” and 10 said “false.” After adding, there will be 200 “true” and 200 “false” answers to be transferred to the master file.

32. Analyzing Student Data • Return to the master Excel sheet • Open the file and select “agree, “ and then select “administrative options” • Remember changed passwords! By default, the password is “CASA” • Type the combined student data into the count column on the master file • This is the 200 “true” and 200 “false” answers from the previous slide!

33. Analyzing Student Data • The percentages will be automatically tabulated in the last column of the spreadsheet titled “percentage” • These percentages are to be used to make the social norms messages • Save the master file with all the student data, for example, as “Social Norms_2010,” for easy identification

34. Expenses • Surveying • Poster Printing • Prizes for obtaining active parent consent or games and events conducted as part of the social norms campaign • Higher cost items could include, for example, drawstring backpacks, t-shirts, or lanyards • Low or no cost items could include , for example, journals, sketchbooks made from extra posters, extra credit, or jump-to-the-front-of-the-line passes

35. Potential Funding Sources • Review possible sources of funding for the Social Norms Project • School budgets • Municipal Alliance Committees • Local businesses or community groups

36. Components of the Social Norms Tool Kit • Everything needed to conduct a school-based social norms campaign is included in the Social Norms Tool Kit (on the CD and in the manual) or at the following Web location: • In January 2011, a copy of the Tool Kit was disseminated, at no cost, to each chief school administrator of a district serving middle and high school grades • Tool Kit contents (no charge) • School Planning Team Contact Sheet • School Planning Team Meeting Minutes • Marketing Outline • School Information Data Sheet • Parental Consent Forms (middle and high school) • Press Release (middle and high school) • PowerPoints (surveying and overview) • Poster templates

37. Components of the Social Norms Tool Kit (cont.) • Paper surveys • High School – Short* • High School – Long • Middle School – Short* • Middle School – Long *These surveys are also available as Excel electronic versions on the CD or at

38. Components of the Social Norms Tool Kit (cont.) • Calendar – Monthly reminder calendar for use in planning events for the project • Survey Analysis Sheet for Paper Surveys • Documents • School Planning Team Members • Meeting minutes • Data Sheet • Consents • Press Releases • PowerPoint Presentations • Poster Templates

39. Items Not in Tool Kit, Typically Supported by Local Funds • The following cost items are not included in the Social Norms Tool Kit, and must be locally secured • Posters with local student data • Prizes

40. Developing Social Norms Messages • Create the messages from survey results • Cite survey sources on posters • Include the social norms project logo or other program logo • Create one that is school specific or use one from another program • E.g., In one middle school, a logo had been designed to use in their character education program. The same logo was used on all social norms posters. • Use the planning committee for ideas! • Where, when, and how the messages/campaign will be executed

41. Variety in Message Delivery • Reach students using various forms of media • “Seven different times in seven different ways” • Audio Examples • Using social norms messages on the morning announcements or school radio stations • Video Examples • Using social norms messages on the local community or school TV station or on screen savers on computers in labs or in the library • Print Examples • Posters, food tray liners, bottom of tests

42. Variety in Message Delivery (cont.) • Deliver messages to the PARENTS, too! • Post social norms messages on school Web site • Advertise social norms messages on local TV stations • Share social norms messages on automated phone blasts (e.g., Connect-Ed) • Print school norms on materials (e.g., school newsletters, report cards, progress reports) • Deliver messages to the COMMUNITY, too! • Request permission to hang posters in storefronts • Include community members on school planning team • Ask member for innovative ideas

43. Contests • Why contests? • Competitive but friendly in nature, contests are used to challenge students knowledge and understanding of the norms • Radio Contest – “Call the Homeroom” • A homeroom is called via phone or PA system during morning announcements. If the homeroom class can provide the correct answer and send a representative to the main office to provide their answer, the homeroom wins a prize (e.g., pencils for everyone in the class, pizza party for the class) • Design Contest • Students design a logo for the social norms campaign, design a t-shirt using the social norms campaign as a theme, or design a poster to use in the social norms campaign

44. Games • The use of games is an engaging strategy for spreading the word about the norms and encouraging students to learn and understand them. They are often less time-consuming than contests. • Word searches • Find words related to the project (e.g., bullying, friends, alcohol, marijuana) • Examples are in the manual and can be found via Web searches • Relate the word search to the norms • Students submit their completed word searches for a small prize • Crossword puzzles • Put the norms on the bottom of the page and have the clues relate to the norms and campaign • Also available for creation via Web searches

45. Include the School’s Social Norms into Academic Courses • Math • Convert the social norms survey data into bar graphs for making positive social norms messages • English/Language Arts • Write essays on bullying or ATOD use • Possible topics: • How to assure another student that the norms are true? • What do you recommend the school do to prevent bullying or ATOD use? • How can the school staff more effectively relay the social norms messages to students? • Older students in a business class could create a marketing plan

46. Events • Carnival Event • Norms recited by a student to a designated person (counselor or teacher) • Reciting 1-3 norms = one hand stamp • Reciting 4 norms = two hand stamps • Students play a carnival game and answer a question about ATOD • If a student provides a correct answer, he or she receives tickets based on the difficulty of the question • Students with two hand stamps receive double the tickets • Students with tickets are permitted to participate in a carnival activity (e.g., snow cone making, necklace making, face painting, dunk tank with faculty volunteers)

47. Pass-the-norm • Students form lines similar to a relay race • Instead of passing a baton for the next student to continue the race, the student must recite a norm loud enough for a teacher to hear and approve. If the norm is incorrect, the student may not proceed in the game until a correct norm is recited. • Good for recess on during inclement weather or physical education classes

48. Other activities Create a bean bag or football toss game • Students must answer a norm to have a chance to throw a small football through the hole • Winner receives a small prize • Can be done during an assembly as a campaign “kick-off “ • Can also be done during non-instructional time

49. Other activities (cont.) Spin Wheel Activity • Each color can represent a topic related to the school and its social norms (e.g., red could be about ATOD policy, blue could be about alcohol, green could be about tobacco) • Students spin the wheel and answer a question based on the color where the wheel stops • Winner gets a small prize

50. Other Activities (cont.) Flamingo/Mascot Parade • Purchase or have donated numerous pink plastic flamingoes or items that represent the school’s mascot • Students and staff decorate the flamingoes, using social norms messages as the focus of the design • Flamingoes are returned to a designated person who will display them • Students and staff vote on the most creatively designed flamingo, and the winner receives a prize