Likely Victims of School Violence

MOST LIKELY VICTIMS OF SCHOOL VIOLENCE

 

Victims of violence in schools cover the spectrum. For example, 900 teachers are threatened, and over 2,000 students and nearly 40 teachers are physically attacked on school grounds every hour of each school day each year, according the Keith Geiger, president of the National Education Association. The Department of Justice asserts that every day in the U.S. 100,000 youngsters carry guns to school and 40 youngsters are injured or killed by guns (Stone, 1994).

 

Students

Younger students (grades 6-10) are much more likely to be victims of violence than are senior high school students (The American Teacher, 1993; U.S. Department of Education, 1993c; U.S. Department of Justice, 1991). The Department of Justice reported that students whose families moved frequently and students from racial or ethnic groups that are minorities within the school are more likely to be physically assaulted. Students who wear expensive or fashionable clothing or jewelry, or who bring cameras, cassette players, beepers, and other electronic devices to school, are more likely to be victims of property crime.

 

Teachers

Students are not the only victims of violence in school. Although the majority of teachers believe that they are unlikely to be victims of violence in and around school, the opposite is true. Most teachers feel safe in their schools during the day, but after school hours many teachers, especially those in urban areas, do not. Women and younger, less experienced teachers are targets, but they are not the primary victims of violence among school staff. Teachers who are considered to be strict, and who insist that students adhere to rigorous academic and behavioral standards, are most at risk of being victimized. Thirty-eight percent of teachers and 57 percent of students rank strict teachers as more at risk of victimization than any other members of the teaching staff (The American Teacher, 1993). This perception could have a chilling effect on school districts that are attempting to reform education and restructure their schools.

If teachers fear that they will be targets of students' physical or verbal abuse, they will be less willing to insist that all students meet new, more rigorous standards. This is particularly so if teachers do not believe that school administrators can or will provide a safe environment where performance standards can be met. Also, teachers will be unwilling to intervene in certain situations, especially altercations between students, if they do not believe the parents, school officials, or the community will support their efforts. Teachers are not only concerned about being victimized, they are also concerned about being sued if they intervene in student fights or acts of violence. They also may not intervene aggressively because of fear of being accused of child abuse.