How to Stress the Importance of Avoiding School Violence

When you were growing up, chances are you got the lecture at least two or three times about avoiding getting in a fight and how you were going to school to learn, right? Our parents knew how important it was to get a good education and fighting wasn’t a part of that. So you went to school and stayed out of trouble as best as you could. If you saw a fight brewing, more often than not, you went in the opposite direction because you didn’t even want to be associated with the brouhaha.
 
Today’s children aren’t quite the same as we were growing up. But that doesn’t mean parents shouldn’t still enforce and instill the importance of avoiding school violence. Today’s youth are receiving a wealth of sensory input from television, the Internet, radio and peers. This sensory content is often of a violent nature, particularly television but also in music and other mediums. It is important that parents and school officials offer positive input about the importance of non-violent school participation to counteract the violence that is portray as commonplace in many of these mediums.
 
As a parent, dinner time discussions and family meetings are a great time to emphasize expectations for behavior in school. These are also great times to let your children know that if they are the victim of violence at any time, you are there to help and support them in resolving the problem. Many children who experience violence in school often remark it is not the first time but that they were afraid to speak out or felt that no one would listen or believe them.
 
If your child or teen feels that discussions are too confrontational slip a note into their mail box, send a postcard in the mail, write an email or consider other ways to communicate the message of your expectations as well as your support. Let them know that if they are subjected to violence, you are there to help resolve the issue right away. Check with your child’s school to see what measures are in place to assist children who are subjected to violence. Is there a school counselor or social worker that they can talk to right away?

Perhaps the most important way to help your child avoid school violence is by showing them loving and peaceful solutions to their problems. Try to lead by non-violent example, which is not being a pushover but by using logic and constructive ways to deal with problems that arise. Make sure that you are aware of your child and don’t ignore changes in behavior that may be the first sign that there is some violence taking place at school.