School violence in small schools

 

Most of the people personally believe that the unfortunate incidences of school violence are confined to urban schools only.  But this is not so! If we make a thorough assessment of school violence taking place in the small schools of rural America then there are various facts that we can easily reveal.  

 

Some of the studies and reports available on the Internet clearly express that small school going children of rural outskirts are equivalently aggressive. It’s regrettable to hear that school management also fail to keep a check on their behavior.  

 

When it comes to addressing the issue then the administrators of these schools can be taken into account and expect a rational reason. It’s imperative that firstly we should have a look on the reports provided by some of the recognized governmental institutes working in the same direction.  In the year 1992, the statistics of National Center for Education reported some of the facts. According to the report, the teachers teaching in small rural schools had identical perceptions and experiences about violence as teachers of the urban high schools. 

 

As per the report of California Department of Education, the assaults in the small schools increased by 16% within the period of four years i.e. from 1989 to 1992. Besides, the incidences of possession of weapons also rose by 28%.     

 

In the same regard, a parenting magazine took a smart move and encouraged the participation of parents of the children going to small schools. According to a poll conducted by this magazine, the parents are more concerned about drug addictions and violence in contrast of the grades or the proficiency of the teaching staff.   It’s strange to believe but more than 68% of the parents listed the violence as their top most concern. 

Private agencies and school administrations are facing lots of difficulties in controlling the violence in the small schools basically because of the privacy issues.  Few of the students who take admissions (or return after some time) to these schools are discharged after prolonged or small time institutional care. There are privacy laws designed in order to protect these students, but sooner or later it jeopardize the security of other students and teaching staff available at the school.  

Here, one can settle for the middle-way.  As some of the rural counties are already doing, a confidentiality agreement is formed in between the school administration and the guardians of the newly admitted or retuning children. As per this agreement, it is mandatory to share or exchange all types of critical information in order to execute careful monitoring of the new child and to hike the level of security for others inside the building.  

One of the really challenging problems faced by the rural school administrations is the shortage of experienced and well-trained teaching staff.   It is a fact that newly graduated teachers with modern outlook can handles such kind of rage in a more precise fashion. Some of the modern teacher education programs also emphasize on the same.