Dangerous encounters: violence in the schools.

• Author: Dalton, Danielle

Reports of violence in schools have become almost common-place. In Littleton, Colorado, two students entered Columbine High School, shot and killed 13 and injured 23 before taking their own lives. On the heels of this incident, a 15-year-old Taber, Alberta boy walked into W.R. Myers High School fatally shooting one student and injuring another. The boy is said to have been the brunt of constant teasing and bullying by classmates.

These and similar accounts contribute to the growing perception that violent youth crime is on the increase and fuel the fear that schools are unsafe places to send our children. Indeed, violence in schools runs the gamut: homicide, assaults causing serious injuries, minor physical confrontations such as pushing, the possession of weapons, and verbal abuse including teasing and sexual and racial harassment. These are legitimate concerns. I am not alone in thinking, however, that their incidence has been largely exaggerated by sensationalist media accounts. These not only create the illusion of violent youth running amok by the high profile coverage of isolated events, but also by the repeated vague (and unsubstantiated) claims that today's youth crime is on the rise. If we read in the newspaper often enough that the sky is falling, we start to cast wary glances upward to make sure the sky is not caving in on us.

The reality is that recent statistics show a decrease in crime. Even in cases where the figures indicate an increase in violent crime, this is likely attributable to higher reporting rates by victims and higher recording and charging rates by police -- both reflective of zero tolerance attitudes and policies. Indeed, some research shows that rates of victimization have remained static.

In spite of this misconception, the objective to make schools safe havens is a laudable one, and schools are taking this mandate seriously. Bullies were once an accepted part of the school pecking order, and victimization a rite of passage, but the debilitating effects of even nonphysical abuse by some students of other students is being recognized.

The Edmonton Public School Board's statistics demonstrate the crackdown on this kind of student behaviour. Student expulsions from schools rose from 1 in 1987-88 to 162 in 1998-99. In 1993-94, 2 of those expulsions were for assault, none for intimidation and harassment and 10 for weapons. In 1998-99, 50 were for assault, 20 for harassment or intimidation, and 61 for weapons...