Read this article in the Education News | Published February 2013
When we witness school-aged youth shooting and killing schoolmates, it is a reflection of the widespread use and acceptance of violent means to resolve conflicts in big cities and small towns, and by people of all ages. It’s also evidence that the grownups have yet to figure out how to communicate with our youth, so that we are both aware and responsive to the complexities of their needs, fears, and insecurities.
When a high school student carries a loaded firearm to school and forces a school lockdown, this signals that we have failed to not only provide a safe and secure learning environment, but also shows how inept we have become in our efforts to ensure that students know definitely what is acceptable when it comes to our expectations of them as students and classmates. Indeed, there was a time when every student who entered a school building understood unequivocally that firearms and violence had no place in schools. As adults, parents, and leaders, we’ve seemingly failed to establish home, school, and community environments that reflect the values, standards, and principles that can lead to academic success and life prosperity for all students. Recent acts of school violence prove how far we have to go toward establishing or reinforcing these parameters.
Read rest of this article at Education News