These are both extreme examples, of course, but violence in smaller doses still occurs in schools around the country. The Centers for Disease Control report that about 828,000 students each year are victims of non-fatal victimization while on school property, which is about 32 victims per 1,000 students. In schools where violence statistics are even higher, it can be difficult to focus on academics — and keep students, teachers and administrators safe.
As with many problems in K-12 schools, thinking ahead and putting preventative policies in place can make a difference in the amount of violence experienced. Here are five of the most important ways to turn the tide on school violence:
1. Develop Crisis Prevention Plans. Schools should have a crisis plan in place as a means for ensuring the safety of students. Typically, a crisis plan will address a zero-tolerance policy with regards to weapons. If a student is carrying a weapon into school, that student is automatically expelled. Some plans may require students to wear uniforms and implement security measures, including metal detectors and visitor sign-in. More stringent plans require law enforcement officials, such as police, to be present at the school. These plans are important to maintaining a base-level of safety and making students feel comfortable in their school environments.
2. Develop School-Wide Violence Prevention Policies. Schools, particularly principals, can ensure that teachers, staff and parents within the school have common goals and that everyone is committed to reaching those goals. They can also ensure that the school is run in a fair, firm, and consistent manner; and that high expectations for performance and behavior exist for all students. Implementation of a curriculum that teaches and promotes the values of kindness, honesty, integrity and respect for fellow students, and everyone else would also lend itself to deterring violence. Schools should also develop security measures that ensure weapons and unwanted individuals are kept out of the school and off school grounds, making the school neutral territory for all who attend.