Cause Of School Violence In The United States

Violence Prevention, Reduction, and Elimination Measures to be taken by Law Enforcement and/or School Officials in a Typical School

Violence in society is increasing dramatically and not only is it out in the streets, but it’s in the school systems as well. However, school violence has been becoming more and more of a problem all over the nation in the past several years. School violence needs to stop because no one should be afraid to go to school without feeling like it’ll be their last day.

The starting point of violence takes place in communities and at home--not at school. Youth take what they hear and see at home and in their communities to school. The environment in some communities and households are positive and the presences of protective factors outweigh the high risk factors. However, there are communities and households where there is a lack of informal social control and high risk factors exist more than protective factors--, which affect youth in a negative manner.

Since the establishment of public education in the United States, schools have provided a sense of security and belonging to their students. Although sitting through lectures and doing homework may not be the most exciting thing in the world, students will always have a lunch to eat, a roof over their head, and a supportive teacher or counselor that they can talk to. Despite the “safe” environment and presence of authoritative figures on school campuses, trouble always finds a way to break out. Simple misbehaving and occasional fights are a common occurrence on most school campuses, however a new breed of troublesome and violent students has hatched. The

Schools are no longer a safe havens for furthering knowledge; instead violence is occurring at alarming rates. Common occurrences in schools include: physical altercations, severe property damage, and bullying behaviors. According to “ThefutureofChidren.org,” youth violence in schools costs the public 158 billion dollars each year. In this decade, that rate of children inflicting violence on other children and teachers is staggering. Today’s teachers are being trained on gun safety, school lobbies are being installed with bullet proof glass, and counselors hold

“Violence is one of the most urgent issues facing our nation’s schools. All over the country, Americans are asking why some young people open fire, apparently randomly, killing or wounding other

These principals were asked to list what they considered serious or moderate problems in their schools. The most frequently cited problems at all levels were the less violent behaviors such as tardiness (40%), absenteeism (25%), and physical conflicts between students (21%). The NCES report found that violent crimes occurred at an annual rate of only 53 per 100,000 students. The critical incidents that are typically the focus of school safety debates were reported to be at least "a moderate problem”: drug use (9%), gangs (5%), possession of weapons (2%), and physical abuse of teachers (2%). The continued use of this of this policy is mainly due to the perception of violence in schools continually being exacerbated by extended media coverage when isolated events of school violence occur according to Martinez

From physical, mental and sexual abuse to theft and vandalism to murder, violent acts in American schools continue to be a growing problem. In a 2011 survey of high school-aged youth, 12 percent reported being in a physical fight on school property in a 12-month period (NCIPC, 2012). Between 2011 and 2013, this increased to 25 percent (Child Trends Data Bank, 2014b). In

School violence can be prevented by parents, communities, teachers, and even classmates can help reduce violence and improve the overall school environment, Also, education and consequences must occur in the home by parents and educators to effectively help reduce school and youth violence. This strategy stands in contrast to use prevention strategies, such as metal detectors and other security measures to help determine benefits and evidence that may offer knowledge and experience in preventing school violence that can enhance approaches to end school

¨School violence refers to criminal acts committed at educational institutions such as elementary, middle, and high schools as well as colleges and universities” (¨School¨ 1). A recent school violence happened on December 14, 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut, at Sandy Hook Elementary School. On that day, “twenty-year-old Adam Lanza Adam was armed with a variety of weapons, including two handguns and an assault rifle (“Guns” 17). With those firearms, he killed his mother, six adult staff members, and twenty first-graders (17). When school violences such as Sandy

School violence is the act that threatens and alters the school environment with harmful consequences on students and educators’ wellbeing and impact students in a negative way (Reininghaus, Castro, & Frisancho, 2013). It is obvious now than ever that we lives in a world where the safety and security of individuals are in question, especially that of school students where safety against school shootings remain everyone’s major concern. The terror of Virginia Tech mass murder in 2007 and Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012 traumatized the nation. As of the time when Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting took place, the massacre was considered the second-deadliest school shooting in the United States when Adam Lanza, a Twenty-year-old carried armory of hundreds of rounds of deadly ammo, that was enough to kill nearly every students in the school (Lee, 2013). Thus, the causes of this growing problem of school violence are: Bullying, psychiatric drugs and access to weapon.

The word violence is defined as, “an intense, turbulent or furious and often destructive action, force or exertion of physical strength so as to injure or abuse” (Webster 1316). Associating that term with the safety of our children within a public school setting will bring about an immediate reaction to discover what is root of the problem and what, as a society, can we do to prevent this behavior in the future. Violence in public schools is a growing concern for parents, teachers, faculty and the students themselves; therefore, becoming aware of a child’s temperament and aggressive conduct is vital in the prevention of violent behavior in the public school system.

  Conflict and differences of opinion exist in every healthy organization. Americans need to try to take control of today's youth and the violence that is and has been developing in this country for many years.  Although violence will never be extinct, there are many different ways to reduce violence.  Each school and student population has different ways of dealing with and helping to curb the need for violence in schools.

The problem we are facing today with violence in our schools is a major concern with communities all over the world. School violence wears many faces. It can be gang activity, locker thefts, bully and intimidation, gun use, or anything that products a victim. Violence is perpetrated against students, teachers, and staff and ranges from intentional vengeance to accidental killings and bystanders. Can violence in our schools be reduced? If so what do we need to do to reduce it? Is the lack of discipline in our schools to blame for the rise in violence? Are the movies, TV, and video games to blame for the violence in our schools? These are some of the questions that our peers, parents, and

Physical violence has also increased due to the ease of access to weapons. There have been an increased number of student attacked with guns, knives and other forms of weapons. These types of attacks have been highlighted in events such as the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary where 27 individuals were killed and 2 injured; Virginia Tech College, where 32 individuals were killed and 17 injured; and Columbine High school, where 13 individuals were killed and 21 injured. Whether the violence begins at home, exposure to violent television or violent music, there is no doubt that each has contributed to an increase in violent behavior in our school systems which leads to physical violence (http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/16/us/20-deadliest-mass-shootings-in-u-s-history-fast-facts/index.html).