SECTION II – VIOLENCE AND SCHOOLS: SEPARATING MYTH FROM FACT
Previous | Table of Contents | Next
For school personnel, ordinary, day-to-day stresses can be compounded by exaggerated fears of violence in schools, fueled by misperceptions of schools as dangerous places for children.
Compared to violence in other settings, school violence is actually relatively rare. In the combined 1992 and 1993 calendar years, 7,357 young people ages five through nineteen were murdered in communities across our nation. Of those, 63 – or less than one percent (1%) — were murdered at school. [13]
Statistics on School Violence
Two recent governmental reports indicate that schools are, in fact, among the safest places for our nation’s children and youth. The third Annual Report on School Safety (2000) [14] and the Indicators of School Crime and Safety 2000 [15] report show that overall, violence and crime in our nation’s schools have declined in recent years. Highlights from the Annual Report on School Safety provide data on the safety of students in our schools:
- For students 12-18 years old, overall school crime (including theft, rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault and simple assault) decreased by nearly one-third (1/3), from 144 crimes per 1,000 students in 1992 to 101 crimes per 1,000 students in 1998.
- Compared to a high of 49 deaths reported in 1995-96, 34 violent deaths were reported in 1998-99.
- Fewer students are carrying weapons or engaging in physical fights. In 1998-99, 3,523 students were expelled for bringing a firearm to school, down from 5,724 students expelled in 1996-97.
- The percentage of students reporting the presence of gangs at school dropped from 29 percent in 1995 to 17 percent in 1999.
- Students are less likely to be victims of violent crimes while at school than when they are away from school. However, many students still feel unsafe at school—especially students belonging to racial and ethnic minority groups. A larger percentage of black and Hispanic students than whites fear attacks.
- For some types of violence, however, rates have neither decreased nor increased. The percentage of 9-12th grade students threatened or injured with a weapon on school property remained constant – at about 7-8% — for each year between 1993 and 1997. Rates for 9-12th graders who reported involvement in physical fights during that same period also remained unchanged at about 15% each year.
While the school rampages that occurred in communities such as Littleton, Colorado, Springfield, Oregon, and Paducah, Kentucky were truly horrific, such high-profile school killings are extremely uncommon.
Many suggest that news coverage by the media creates the impression that school violence is pervasive and that this creates unnecessary fear and stress among school personnel. In the days, weeks, and even months that followed the tragedy at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado in April 1999, national news coverage of the tragedy stimulated a concern about copycat activities. Local reporters interviewed school officials in their area concerning possible copycat attacks. As such, news coverage itself generated an additional source of stress for school personnel across the nation. [See NEA Crisis Communications Guide and Toolkit, Vol. IV – Hands-On Assistance — Tools for Educators – Tool 23: For the Media: Avoiding Copycat Threats]
Violence Against Teachers: Are Schools Safe Places to Work?
|
Students are not the only ones who are victims of crime at school. Teachers in school can also be the targets of violence and theft. In addition to the personal toll such violence takes on teachers, those who worry about their safety may have difficulty teaching and may leave the profession altogether. Information on the number of crimes against teachers at school can help show how severe and widespread the problem is. – Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2000 |
Although the statistics show that schools are safe, teachers and other school personnel do have genuine reason for some degree of concern. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, while student-on-student violence has decreased in recent years, threats of violence directed at teachers have increased. To put the incidence of violence against teachers into context, the following chart illustrates the relative risks faced by teachers compared to other categories of workers:
[click the graph for a larger view. Use your browser’s “back” button to return to this page]
NIOSH has identified factors associated with an increased risk of workplace assault. Of those that pertain to working in schools, risk factors for assault include:
- working in community-based settings;
- having contact with the public;
- working alone or in small numbers – i.e., in a classroom, a teacher may be the only adult present throughout most of the day; and,
- working in high-crime areas (depending on where a school is located).
Over a five-year period, between 1994 and 1998, violent crimes (i.e., rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated and simple assault) against teachers occurred at a rate of 83 per 1,000 teachers per year. The highest rate occurred among middle/junior high school teachers, followed by senior high and elementary school teachers, respectively. The actual crime rates reported were:
- 60 violent crimes per 1,000 middle/junior high school teachers
- 38 violent crimes per 1,000 senior high school teachers
- 18 violent crimes per 1,000 elementary school teachers.
Statistics on Violence Directed at Teachers
- During the 1993-94 school year, 12% of all elementary and secondary school teachers were threatened with injury by a student and 4% were physically attacked.
- More than twice as often, male teachers were victims of violent crime as were female teachers, with 53 violent crimes per 1,000 for male teachers and 25 violent crimes per 1,000 for female teachers.
- The prevalence of teacher victimization by students did not vary according to teachers’ racial or ethnic backgrounds.
- Teachers in urban schools were more likely to be victims of violent crimes than were teachers in rural and suburban schools, with 40 violent crimes per 1,000 for teachers in urban schools and 24 violent crimes per 1,000 for teachers in either rural or suburban schools.
- Secondary school teachers were more likely to have been threatened by a student from their school, whereas elementary school teachers were more likely to have been attacked by a student.
Developmental differences (i.e., physical, mental, emotional and social developmental differences) between elementary and secondary school-age children and youth probably account for differences in reports between elementary and secondary school teachers.
School Practices/Policies Related to Safety
Given the statistics and our concerns of about school safety, what is being done to make schools safe for students and staff? Across the country, schools report taking the following measures:
- 94% had zero tolerance policies for firearms and 91% had zero tolerance policies for weapons other than firearms
- 96% required visitors to sign in before entering the building
- 80% prohibited students from leaving the campus (e.g., for lunch)
- 53% controlled access to the school building and 24% controlled access to school grounds
- 4% performed random metal detector checks and 1% performed daily metal detector checks
- 78% had no police or law enforcement representatives assigned to their school; 12% had police or other law enforcement at school on an as needed basis; 6% had police or other law enforcement assigned for 30 hours or more per week; 3% had police or other law enforcement at school 1 to 9 hours per week; and, 1% had police or other law enforcement at school 10 to 29 hours per week.
 |
 |
 |
| Introduction
Section I – Stress 101: A Primer on Stress for School Employees Section II – Violence and Schools: Separating Myth from Fact Section III – Reducing Violence-Related Stress in Schools |
Home |