Violence in Schools - Why?

[August1991]

Why are schools in Canada places of violence? There's intimidation, bullying. People get beaten and killed, girls raped. Occasionally, someone enters with a gun and kills randomly. (Does any of this happen in shopping malls?) Fifty years ago, schools were not places of such violence - reported or unreported.

If you can read French, La Presse has a report on this:

La violence à l'école, non seulement ça existe, mais ça empire. parfois, c'est physique. mais la violence psychologique est tout aussi pernicieuse et peut laisser d'importantes séquelles. dans les prochains jours, la ministre de l'éducation, michelle courchesne, présentera un plan d'action pour contrer ce type de comportement à l'école. Ce document est fort attendu par les intervenants scolaires, qui, comme l'a constaté la presse, sont aux prises tous les jours avec des élèves de plus en plus durs.

As usual, the government (politicians), teachers and bureaucrats will initiate campaigns to sensitize students (raise their awareness) and encourage them to be less violent. To what effect?

Is this an urban phenomenon? Do rural schools suffer the same? Anticipating MikeDavid and Argus, is the problem due to immigration?

Edited November 25, 2007 by August1991

[Muddy]

When teachers became union members first before their calling as educaters is one reason. The next is that teachers no longer have tools to discipline. The majority of Kids going to school are pretty decent young people. But the system is set up to protect the minority of thugs ,thieves and gang members. Not the good decent Kids trying to get educated. I am surprised that Kids who don`t belong to the gangs have the courage to go to school at times. If a thug beats on them and a complaint is made ,the thug and victim will be brought before the Principal. A stren warnung will be given to both. Stay away from each other because it takes two to have a fight. The bully walks out laughing. The victim sees no justice or protection.

[buffycat]

This happens because we live in a society where violence is glorified through media. People's natural abhorence to violence has been numbed. No one hardly notices the blood and guts all over the tv/movies etc.

It's normal.

It's sad.

It's the way it is.

[trex]

This happens because we live in a society where violence is glorified through media. People's natural abhorence to violence has been numbed. No one hardly notices the blood and guts all over the tv/movies etc.

It's normal.

It's sad.

It's the way it is.

I agree it is very sad. Kids are vulnerable to external stimulus and can't easily differentiate between whats real and whats "entertainment", if you can call it that.

Its not just in media fantasy, but in reality too in which we respond to problems with violence, show it on the tv news, and sing praises of it at our national games, at sports events showing the military in their fatigues, pounding home messages of "support the troops". Other things, like Don Cherry's style of "Rock 'em Sock 'em hockey" (the so-called New NHL) sends messages that its ok to use violent force to win at any cost, and to hell with the rules of fair play. This is mass indoctrination towards accepting violence as a successful way of life.

When young people come to the realization that our society is propped up on these falsehoods, that hypocritical authority figures can change laws and treaties as they see fit, for the concentration of their power, and that they are just meat for the grinder, some lose all hope and faith. Some will snap.

Yet only a small percentage of people are truly violent. We tend to hear about the bad news much more than the thousands of selfless acts that also take place daily. Thats the nature of the beast.

[Muddy]

In the ,what some would call the bad old days of family structure ,Mom ,Dad and the kids , where teachers,the postman, were trusted members of society and who told you your kids were acting up they were believed without question,where comedians like Red ,Jack along with Burns and Allen did not have to use swear words, where violence was in the form of b movies starring Roy,Gene and Hoppy,we did not have the problems of today. But we were set free from the conservative constraints by socialism that came about in the sixtys. If it feels good it must be OK types. Well we reap what we sow. We have changed society. Having children no longer means responsibility. Marriage breakdowns soon as the lust wears a little thin. Have sex,have an abortion without a thought. Hell you didn`t know who`s kid it was any way.We find excuses for perpatraters of violent crime. We have a revolving door legal system. We no longer have a justice system. It is a legal system now thanks to the Charter of Rights. Everyone has rights now ,unless your a victim. I watched a show today about the plight of teachers being attacked by students. Why do we see more of this? Because there are no consequences. Thats why.

I have watched a lot over my years. Societal change is a good thing as long as we don`t lose sight of the fact that we have all these rights ,but they also should be taught that to fully enjoy these rights that we must accept our societal responsibilitys. It is this last that we neglect to teach our children.

i don`t like the violence on TV but it will not make a good kid go bad. There has to be more to it. Broken homes, a hand full of siblings all with different Fathers. A welfare system that becomes a way of life. Again thats a right. My siblings and I grew up poor and went to bed some nights hungry. But we never became criminals. We were taught right from wrong. We were led by example.

[Moxie]

This happens because we live in a society where violence is glorified through media. People's natural abhorence to violence has been numbed. No one hardly notices the blood and guts all over the tv/movies etc.

It's normal.

It's sad.

It's the way it is.

I concur Buffycat, I also believe that teachers don't take bullying seriously enough. I had a nephew who was was a victim of two bullies. I arranged many meetings with the school to stop him from getting beaten up daily. Alas the school's final solution: Release him from school an hour early so he could out run the bullies. Finally out of desperation I placed him in a Martial Arts class, six months later and a brown belt the bullies stopped bothering him.

Children today are not thought that there are"Consequences" for their actions, how many times does one witness a parent telling a child "You do that again you'll be sorry". What happens to the child, nothing or a time out in front of the TV. The generation under 20 believe the world revolves around them, they are a generation raised to believe it's all about "Me". Things are only going to get worse.

[fellowtraveller]

Violence in Schools - Why?,

For the same reason we have wars: despite the veneer of 'civilization', we are a violent, dominating species of animal. That attitude helped get us to the top of the food chain, and helps keep us there.

[ScottSA]

This happens because we live in a society where violence is glorified through media. People's natural abhorence to violence has been numbed. No one hardly notices the blood and guts all over the tv/movies etc.

It's normal.

It's sad.

It's the way it is.

What world do you think we come from? "Natural abhorence to violence?" It's a split second in history since we stopped, temporarly, celebrating violence as a good. If anything, the violence in schools is a result of social engineering attempting to stop the violence instead of moderate it, as they used to do with boxing gloves. Drive a natural instinct underground and it'll pop up worse than ever, where you least expect it.

[kengs333]

I concur Buffycat, I also believe that teachers don't take bullying seriously enough. I had a nephew who was was a victim of two bullies. I arranged many meetings with the school to stop him from getting beaten up daily. Alas the school's final solution: Release him from school an hour early so he could out run the bullies. Finally out of desperation I placed him in a Martial Arts class, six months later and a brown belt the bullies stopped bothering him.

Children today are not thought that there are"Consequences" for their actions, how many times does one witness a parent telling a child "You do that again you'll be sorry". What happens to the child, nothing or a time out in front of the TV. The generation under 20 believe the world revolves around them, they are a generation raised to believe it's all about "Me". Things are only going to get worse.

Everyone under 20 for the last 50 years has believed that "the world revolves around them". Moreover, I don't think that there has been a generation of school children that hasn't engaged in youthful rebelious acts. But in a strongly Christian society these acts of rebellion were usually tame or subtle. In our post-war society, the behaviour of children is driven by influences from media. Moreover, the phenomena of universal education is relatively recent, so what we have with our modern educational system is a relatively unique situation in human history. One of the problems is that the structure of schooling predates this "unique situation" and changes are only really being made in the content of the education. The whole consept of what a physical school is has to be changed in order to adapt to current changes in society brought on by technology, etc. Also, if you have a society where the traditional means of self-regulation--Christianity--is institutionally under assault and therefore erroding, and nothing suitable is replacing it (of course, there is nothing that can) then what you get is children who are no longer feel there are true consequences for their actions, they revert back to "natural instincts" in how they interact with other people. People who on the one hand deride Christianity, and on the other complain about the breakdown of our society never cease to amaze me.

[marcinmoka]

Why are schools in Canada places of violence? There's intimidation, bullying.

I would argue that this has always happened to some extent, but not nearly as reported.

As per the frequency, scope and 'recreational' violence? I wish I had some valid data, although (and all the + 30 ladies correct me if I'm wrong), violence amongst female populations seems to be hitting unprecedented highs, encroaching into what was once considered normal 'boy-ish' behavior.

As per the causes? Hmmm....many factors at play, such as those mentioned, although I also do suspect a role in the adoption of "progressive" (I would say regressive) ideas in parenting, where notions of punishment are deemed archaic and counter-productive, and parents think even the worst behaviors can be reasoned with. Good luck..

I think Russel Peters had some valid points in this little

.

Edited November 26, 2007 by marcinmoka

[Fain]

Why are schools in Canada places of violence? There's intimidation, bullying. People get beaten and killed, girls raped. Occasionally, someone enters with a gun and kills randomly. (Does any of this happen in shopping malls?) Fifty years ago, schools were not places of such violence - reported or unreported.

If you can read French, La Presse has a report on this:

As usual, the government (politicians), teachers and bureaucrats will initiate campaigns to sensitize students (raise their awareness) and encourage them to be less violent. To what effect?

Is this an urban phenomenon? Do rural schools suffer the same? Anticipating MikeDavid and Argus, is the problem due to immigration?

Not as bad as your making it to be. Most people are safe in Schools..