Violence in Our Schools
2008
Crimes in High Schools and Colleges Rising Dramatically
Our daughter is graduating from High School in about 6 weeks and the thought of “my baby” away from home and far away is very frightening at times. Of course, our children will be amongst those who are included in the next 5 year study. I’d like readers to know what I’ve discovered in Government Studies, think things over a bit and by all means discuss this information with our children who are now embarking on a new life as High School and College students. Hopefully you can, at the very least, arm them with information on the many faces of crime that our youth will possibly exposed to across the nation. These are some figures of those who’ve already been victimized and it’s our hope that some parents will see that life in High Schools and Colleges can be hazardous to the uninformed and naive. Forewarned is forearmed as the old saying goes.
In a study put out by the FBI crime is rising in this sector and keeping pace with rising crime rates in all segments of our population as well. I will highlight some but not all of them which are available here – http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/schoolviolence/2007/appendixa.htm
There’s three categories and some figures to illustrate how things have changed over a 5 year span from 2000 to 2004 (what do you expect from a Government report?) That it would be up to date – 2007? This will give you an idea and you can see that it would be even worse than that now.
Just look at the figures doing a steep uphill climb, remembering these are only for crimes perpetrated on High School and College students!
Wow, there’s not much listed that won’t affect our kids. Please sit down with your student and discuss these crimes and make them aware that they must be on their guard against criminal behavior or become another victim.
These are some pretty ugly statistics. We no longer live in a society where high schoolers and college students could just kick back and enjoy the safety and sanctity of Academia. These figures show that violent crime rates in categories of the most violent type are also those in the highest rate of incline.
Good parenting demands that we make our kids aware of these statistics and talk to them about the crimes listed. One way I’ve found that is easy to get your child to sit down and have a great face to face discussion about this material is to – ask them to sit with you for a few minutes. Have a printout of the FBI charts linked above, or whatever works for you and:
1.) Don’t start preaching to them!
2.) Voice your concerns and ask them if they’ll talk with you for a few minutes.
3.) Ask them if this happens in their own schools or those of their friends.
This will usually get your child to become proactive in the conversation and they’ll probably shock some of you by recounting what really goes on around them while they’re at school. Well, it works for me and my kids. I let them tell me rather than doing the “boring lecture from Dad” method. They are much sharper than what some of you would ever believe!
If you see crime or have suspicions about serious crimes that you think merit a “look see” from the Nation’s “Top Cops” then by all means don’t hesitate to report it to the FBI using this form – https://tips.fbi.gov/ Help them take a bite out of crime!
April 20th, 2008 at 8:14 am
And people actually wonder why we homeschool.
Good article, Ronin.
April 22nd, 2008 at 4:00 am
Good point Panday. Crime is so all pervasive it almost looks out of control. I applaud thoughtful and cautious parents for their efforts. My hat is off to our Police Officers who lay their lives out daily and must go home sometimes frustrated but still hoping that they’ve made a difference. They have!
May 9th, 2008 at 8:38 pm
Hello, Scott here, I would like to comment on a myth that many people believe about staying safe in today’s world. (Avoiding bad situations or areas). It would be unwise to believe that just by avoiding certain situations that you cannot become a victim. Most crimes against people happen while their going about their everyday routines like while out jogging or walking in the park, in the parking lot at your local grocery store or shopping mall, using your local ATM machine, School Campus and Even in your own home and Dorms, and car jackings can happen any where. And how uncomfortable would you be if your car broke-down or you get a flat tire in an unfamiliar area? We just never know if or when it could happen to us. Learn methods that you can use to protect yourself in most assault situations. If I were to sum-up in one sentence the best thing you can do to help you avoid many potentially threatening situations, it would be to Always! let me repeat Always! Be Aware Of Your Surroundings!