School Violence and Its Sociological Impact - Essay Example

30 July Social Issue: School Violence and its Sociological Impact What is school violence? According to Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2011) it is a subset of a broader public health problem namely, youth violence. Youth violence is behaviour by a youth aged between 10-24 years inflicted intentionally by use of force or power on another person / group or community which causes physical or psychological harm. If such behaviour is witnessed on a school property, on the way to / from school, during a school sponsored event or on the way to/ from that event it is termed as school violence. Centre for the Prevention of School Violence, North Carolina Department of juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention explain school violence as: School violence is any behaviour that violates school’s educational mission or climate of respect or jeopardizes the intent of the school to be free of aggression against persons or property, drugs, weapons, disruptions and disorder (2002). Signs that should ring an alarm / risk behaviours School violence are found to be linked with a number of behaviours and activities such as formation of gangs, threatening teachers or causing injury to them, students carrying weapons, physical fights, drug abuse or illegal consumption of alcohol, students being threatened or injured on school property, sexual assaults, robbery, bullying or cyber-bullying (verbal, mental or physical), vandalizing school property and skipping or dropping out of school. Facts about School Violence Key findings issued by a federal government report (2002) as well as facts given by CDC (2008-2010) say that such violent incidents are well planned and are rarely sudden or done upon impulse. Other people are aware of the idea / attack plan but fail to act upon the information prior to the incident and most attackers show behavioural indication (journal entries, threatening notes, verbal abuse / threats) prior to attack. Mostly attackers have access to weapons, have felt bullied or maltreated by others, have difficulty coping with a loss or failure, or have considered or attempted suicide. Most of the incidents have taken places around or at transition times such as lunch breaks or at the end or start of school. National level data source indicates that large middle and high schools are at more risk of serious violence, moreover, urban schools for minorities also report a high indication of an unlikely incident as compared to rural or suburban schools. Steps towards prevention of School Violence Prevention should start at the facility i.e. the school by providing students with a healthy and safe environment to learn and engage in harmless extracurricular activities. Security system should be fool proof without giving students the image of a prison, with guards, counsellors, security cameras and metal detectors. Teachers and school staff (administration) should be trained and educated to detect and identify problems in a student or within a circumstance. Parents should be encouraged to get involved and groom their children during their crucial years. Acceptance & tolerance is the key to providing prevention to school violence, live and let live policy should be adopted and hammered into students instead of harnessing categorizations and distinctions, be it ethnic, personality, activities or preferences. Various education and support programs should be design with key physiologists to use theories and techniques to enhance tolerance, acceptance and involvement of a student and increase their compassion for life and society. School Violence and its Sociological Impact School violence negatively affects the students all over the world. It is not only violation of the rights of a child but acts as a significant barrier in achieving various international goals for improving communities and human life such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by United Nations and Education for all (EFA) objectives by UNESCO. This impacts the education (attendance, attainment and performance), physical & psychological health and emotional well-being of the child, family, community as well as the economy. Studies pertaining to school violence done by various psychologists and counsellors indicate that impact of school violence is far exceeding than the impact of war (Johnson, Andrews), be it over the witness or victim or families. Each life is altered emotionally, physically and psychologically. One can never forget such an event with flash backs and reliving of the experience even if closure has been reached. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder & Acute Stress Disorder, depression and many psychological handicaps are at high risk of being found in a victim. School violence of the category sexual abuse poses various hazards including spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STIs), early or un-wanted pregnancy, psychological fear and disgust for offending gender to mention a few. Usually victim is left too traumatized or ashamed to return to school vicinity, hence cases of drop outs / transfers increases or in extreme cases results in homicide or suicide scarring a family forever. School dropout means less educated adults which results in depressed future earnings resulting in people opting for low paid jobs and influx of skilled foreign workers hence affecting the economy with reduced earnings (Pereznieto, Harper, Clench & Coarasa 7). Person affected becomes extremely fragile emotionally. Some have physical injuries that take years to heal along with emotional therapy. Some are left permanently disabled. Students surviving an attack or offence take time to return to studies or to the environment which brings back bad memories, hence their studies are affected / delayed. Some opt for private studies and leave public institutions. Their performance suffers as the environment they go to is unsafe. A trauma this severe can also lead to the person becoming de-ranged and violent him/herself. In many cases the offenders are the victims of school violence of less magnitude. Students bullied, harassed or outcaste by peers. They have been traumatized and abused so much that they foster the feeling of revenge and give in to their criminal impulses to gain power over the people who once abused them (Estefania Estevez, Teresa I. Jimenez et al.79-115). In long term a person affected passes on the impact to his / her immediate family and future relations. The impact can be lack of trust, fear of going out, fear of people and places, lack of sharing and disclosure with close relations etc. This affects the entire nucleus of the family and its well being. Students being made victim of school violence based on their sexual orientation, religion, race, physical attribute or disability, cast or colour get effected not to their own extent but their communities are also effected and harbour negatives feelings and injuries from the attack be it physical or psychological. Communities affected by such trauma are marked by that bad event in history for life (Guerra, Huesmann and Spindler 1561 – 1576). Some people and communities turn on the negative happening as a challenge to excel and improve their future lives. Such incidents bring communities closer as they offer support to the affected families, raise funds for therapies and rebuilding, groups are formed for emotional support, anniversaries are held to mark the trauma and pray for peace and forgiveness. They become closer and seek peace through indulgence in religion, friendships, studies and communal services. Some learn the lesson and importance of forgiveness and letting go to move on with their lives. School Violence and Theories Travis Hirsch’s (1969) Social Control Theory is widely accepted and utilized to investigate and explain misbehavior at schools. It assumes that felony is a resultant of weakening or breaking of social bonds. In other words offenders will not exist if they have a strong connection with community, school, family or friends (Pittaro 1-12). His theory is discussed here in the context of an extreme form of school violence i.e. ‘school shootings’. Travis Hirsch is his book Causes of Delinquency (1969) introduced attachment, commitment, involvement and belief as four elements of the social bond. Amongst the 4 elements he gave utmost importance to attachment as it develops the compassion and empathy towards others. The offender lacks the sensitivity and sympathy for others be it their teachers, close friends, children, regardless of the gender hence offender get numb and carry out the offense without any feeling of doing wrong or violence he is inflicting upon his/her victim, families, community and even his/her own family (when they find out about offender’s actions). Commitment is the second element Travis discusses which an offender lacks since mostly they do not think or apprehend beyond the delinquent act they are about to perform. Hence they do not commit to any long term or even short term social commitments such as studies, career or even family. Shooter develops the approach of kill or be killed (as have been witnessed in the school shootouts). Involvement is another element that is absent from the offenders characteristics. If a person is involved in usual extracurricular activities i.e. in sports or even studies, a healthy and happy relationship (with family or friends) then he/she will have no time or desire to get involved in a felony. This element might have worked other ways with offenders being involved in planning and seeking negative information to encourage or help them plan their offense. However if they had been involved in positive and acceptable activities they would not have had the need to give in to their criminal indulgence. Last element by Travis is that of belief in laws prevalent in a society, culture or school and social rules, basic difference between good and bad and religious beliefs (not taking into account extremism done on the basis of religion). If an individual supports these believes he / she is less likely to indulge in criminal activities. Most of the school shooters carried out the offence in revenge and showed no remorse in ending innocent lives along the way, showing no respect of the communal or religious values and beliefs (Weatherby, Strachila and McMahon). Looking at this theory from today’s perspective, it has been highly criticized and challenged due to its failure in incorporating all types of criminals. Travis had based his theory in times when social institutions were being challenged by drugs, civil right movements and rock culture. Hence he blamed the felony to the breakdown of institution of family, religion and education. Conclusion For everyone’s wellbeing and increased quality of life, the society needs to device societal norms and solutions that reduce the likelihood of school violence for the safety of their children as well as the community. This can be done through increased involvement of families and counseling provided at school or home. Programs such as violence prevention aiming to educate and spread awareness about the forms of offences and their penalty should be provided to both kids and parents. Security programs and threat assessment policies should be introduced in schools with proper surveillance and active participation of school bodies and community. Schools should encourage creating an environment that fosters embracing diversity, multi-ethnicity and acceptance to prevent violent streaks and opposition from finding roots. Works Cited Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC. Understanding School Violence: Fact Sheet. Web. 30 July 20l1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC. Violence prevention. Youth Violence. Web. 30 July 20l1. Estevez, Estefania, Jimenez, Teresa I. and Musitu, Gonzalo. “Violence and Victimization at School in Adolescence”. School Psychology. Ed. Molina, David H. Spain: Nova Science Publishers, 2008. 79-115. Print. Guerra, Nancy G, Huesmann, L. Rowell and Spindler Anja. “Community violence Exposure, social Cognition and Aggression Among urban Elementary School Children”. Child Development 74.5 (2003): 1561 – 1576. Print. Johnson, Andrews. “Impact of school shootings called worse than that of war”. Tribune Review, 5 October 2006. Web. 30 July 2011. North Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Just what is “School Violence”? Web. 28 July, 2011. Pereznieto P., Harper C., Clench B. & Coarasa J. The Economic Impact of School violence. UK: Plan International, 2010. Print. Pittaro, Michael L. “School Violence and Social Control Theory: An Evaluation of the Columbine Massacre”. International Justice of Criminal Justice Sciences. 2.1 (2007). 1-12. Web. 30 July 2011. < http://cjsjournal.brinkster.net/pittaro.html> US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC. Trends in the prevalence of behaviours that Contribute to Violence on School Property. 1991 – 2009. Web. 30 July 2011. Weatherby, George Ann, Strachila, Sara and McMahon, Bridget. “School Shootings: The Deadly Result of Teasing & Ostracism”. Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice Research & Education. 2.1 (2010). 1-14. Print. Read More