Violence in schools

Apart from being an important object of study, above all, the problem in focus becomes a social question. In this manner, understanding the expressions of violence constitutes an important first step towards understanding the phenomenon as well as an aid in the search for effective methods of working with the problem in the daily life of the schools. The school and its immediate surroundings stop being protected or preserved places and they become incorporated into the day to day violence of the urban space. This affects the lives and physical, emotional, and psychological integrity of the students, of the technical-pedagogic staff members, and of the parents. This violence cannot help but have a direct impact on the quality of education, the way teachers and students develop their work in the classroom, the school environment, the students" achievements, and the quality of life of their families. This occurs in the violence that becomes concrete in objective ways, from a simple threat to the reality of its occurrence. This study on violence in the schools is developed with a broad range, focusing on the phenomena that describe the situation in the widest reach possible. These phenomena include globalization and social exclusion. This analysis is not limited to violations committed by young students in the scho.ol environment. It includes criminal acts committed by non-members of the school community who perpetuate illicit activities in the schools or in the vicinity. Frequently, the victims are students, teachers, staff members, parents, and relatives. In addition to these objective examples of physical violence, this study emphasizes the symbolic and institutional dimensions of the phenomenon. These correspond to the way the school imposes content that is deprived of meaning and interest on the students and/or the refusal of teachers to provide the students with sufficient explanation of this content. It also includes the teachers" attitudes of depreciation, words and gestures they use that degrade the students. However, these aspects also include the violence that the teachers and the other members of the technical-pedagogic staff experience when they are attacked on the level of their work and their professional identity by the students" disrespect, lack of interest, and indifference. The results of this study indicate that solutions cannot be found in simple measures like building walls and fences, putting up bars, using metal detectors, or employing private security services. The strategies to solve the problem are certainly much farther reaching on a long term basis, and they involve cooperation between parents, schools, communities, and governmental institutions. (Author abstract)