School Security: Safe but Subtle

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. Although violence is the most exaggerated form of abuse within schools today, bullying is seen on an everyday basis. Bullying can be defined in many ways but there are three major types of child aggression.

It is necessary that more action take place and that more training take place in order for schools to be safer, and in the event where violence does occur, the staff of the school is equipped to stop it before it gets out of hand. There is no time like now to keep the children and our schools safe from predators and especially from school violence. “Violence is the act of purposefully hurting someone. … One in twelve high schoolers is threatened or injured with a weapon each year” (Trump, 2005). When is it necessary to start taking more action in the prevention of school violence?

Increasing Student Achievement through Preventing School Violence Introduction School violence is any type of violence, whether it is a simple threat on another student or a school shooting, that happens in the school environment. Student achievement is the efforts made by the student to work hard in the classroom. The purpose of this research paper is to examine how school violence impacts student achievement. It would seem that school violence would have a negative impact on student achievement. If this is the case then we need to do what we can to prevent violence in schools.

In the case study Aggressive Behavior it identifies that over 40 students lost their lives from 1996 to the wake of the new millennium to shootings in schools with a significant number suffering from weapon related injuries on school grounds (Leary, Kowalski, Smith & Phillips, 2003). Although a reduc... ... middle of paper ... ... School violence in context: Culture, neighborhood, family, school, and gender. London: Oxford University Press. Leary, M. R., Kowalski, R. M., Smith, L., & Phillips, S. (2003). Teasing, rejection, and violence: Case studies of the school shootings.

Retrieved October 4, 2001 from Academic Search/EBSCO database. (1999) School protective services. Retrieved November 7, 2001, from http://www.schoolprotectiveservices.com (2001, May 30) School safety lessons learned: urban districts report progress. Sept 12, 2001, from http://www.edweek.com/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=38security.h20 (2000). Violence.

Along with regulating student behavior, more security issues need to be addressed in order to maintain a safe school. For example, more schools have now been upgraded with better computer systems for the staff and students. Students now have computers in every classroom and better equipment for their specific classes. This new equipment is very costly and it is a long process for the school district to obtain. School security measures need to be taken to avoid the theft or damage of these new, expensive technologies.

ERIC Review, 7(1),12-14. Retrieved August 15, 2010, from http: //ericcass.uncg.edu/virtuallib/bullying/1036.html Kaiser, B., & Rasminsky, J. S. (2003). Challenging behavior in young children: Understanding, preventing, and responding effectively. Boston: Pearson. National Resource Center for Safe Schools.

Hricko, M. (1998). Internet plagiarism: Strategies to deter academic misconduct. Retrieved October 28, 2001 from the Mid-South Instructional Technology Conference Web site: http://www.mtsu.edu/~itconf/proceed98/mhricko.html Kleiner, C., Lord, M. & Faber, L. (1999, November 22). The great term-paper buying caper. U.S. News & World Report, 127 (20), 63.

In an ideal world, you would like to prevent all school crime and ensure the safety of students and each staff member. There are so many things outside the control of the school administrator that such a task is almost impossible. To predict the potentially disruptive behavior of students, a staff member, or the intruder who comes to your campus is unrealistic, but being armed with the knowledge that this could happen to you could can lead to do several things to prepare for a crisis, avoid a crisis, and preclude successive crises. Restoring our schools to tranquil and safe places of learning requires a great commitment. It involves placing school safety at the top of the educational agenda.

As a society, how should we respond to the violence taking place in schools? How do we respond to the traumatic events of the twentieth century, where a series of school shootings lead by students at 12 different schools planned and carried out violent shootings that resulted in the deaths of several students and teachers at each school? These events alone have come from the United States, in fact from Washington, Alaska, Mississippi, Kentucky, Arkansas, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Oregon, Virginia, Colorado, Georgia, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Michigan, Florida, and California (Daniels 2011). In July 1998, President Bill Clinton said that this series of school shootings had "seared the heart of America." Our society feels impotent and concerned and most of all aware that this is a situation that needs immediate attention.