School Violence Free Essay Sample
It seemed like an average, typical school day. Teenagers were talking to one another as they prepared for their next class, and teachers graded papers.
On such a normal day, no one would have ever suspected that two students were about to start one of the worst, most memorable school shootings. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold shot and killed 13 students, wounding another 24 students and staff in the process before turning their weapons on themselves (“School Violence”). The Columbine Massacre changed countless lives and still does to this day. Unfortunately, this is only one of many ways school violence can occur. Events such as sexual harassment and fights all cause problems daily, each starting from most of the same reasons (bullying, depression, etc.
). For the 2005-06 school year, 77% of 83,000 schools reported at least one incident of school violence. However, teenagers can stop school violence just as easily as starting it. How can they? Teens can stop school violence by preventing bullying, avoiding any form of violence from the media, and staying away from others’ negative influence. One of the main, most important ways teenagers can prevent school violence is by stopping bullying.
Bullying affects teens every day. Bullying does not have to be just physical violence; bullying hurts emotionally, too. In addition, everyone bullies someone in some way daily. Many students taunted Harris and Klebold so much that they used all the rage, all the resentment, all the sadness as revenge. Some people take this harassment so seriously that they commit horrific events onto themselves, such as cutting themselves, starving themselves (if taunted about weight), or suicide.
They could even develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a disorder caused from traumatic events like bullying, school shootings, and more (“Should You Worry About School Violence?”). What should teens do to stop this virus from spreading? Teenagers can do a variety of simple tasks, most of which they already know but take for granted. If watching students bully others, either try to stand up for the victims or tell an adult. Teachers are not just there to grade papers, and they are not there just to shove more knowledge into everyone’s heads; teachers are there to help keep the school safe. To wrap it all together, bullying affects everyone in countless ways, and there are always people around to help prevent it.
Secondly, teens can prevent school violence by avoiding certain types of media. Teenagers are addicted to movies and video games as much as a plant needs water to grow. Movies and video games may be tons of fun, but they are also a terrible poison. Violence in the media has increased drastically in the past few decades, and with more and more media releasing each day, there is no wonder why it has such an impact on teenagers’ lives. Behavioral experts agree that teenagers that are isolated or bullied use fantasies and violence from video games and movies seriously, sometimes trying to act out what they saw (“School Violence”). How can teenagers cease this problem? Simple – do not take what you see from the media to heart (fighting in video games, for example).
All of it is a hoax, or not realistic, and one must never reenact the actions from media in the real world. Does this mean that teens should never watch or play these types of movies or games? Of course not! People can still enjoy video games and movies for their own personal enjoyment. Teens however, should try not to make this sort of violence a part of their daily lives. Teenagers can enjoy movies and video games but should never use these types of media as an influence towards school violence. Lastly, teens can prevent school violence from happening by steering clear of any influence from others.
This influence could sprout from family, friends, or role models. Many people influence the lives of teens, so why should they be violent role models? Pertaining to school shootings, most of the teens get their guns from their family or friends. Kipland Kinkel murdered his parents and then open fired at his high school in Springfield, Oregon. Investigators calculated a total of two students killed and 25 students wounded. The sad fact is that Kinkel’s parents, who were both schoolteachers, had bought him the two guns he used.
Why did his parents give him two guns in the first place? Because there is never any reason for teens to need weapons, teens should discourage the idea of ever wanting one. Other unnecessary items that influence a teen’s life include drugs and alcohol. In most schools, school violence derives from bad influences like drugs. By decreasing bad influences, teens can help stop school violence. Although school violence is a major problem in today’s world, simply preventing things like bullying, avoiding media, and keeping away from bad influences can end it; if teens would stop teasing each other, events like the Columbine Massacre would never have occurred.
If teenagers all over the world would take the time to help each other and themselves, violence in schools would never be a threat to the world anymore. Works Cited N.a. “School Violence.” Current Issues: Macmillian Social Science Library.
Detroit: Gale, 2010. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 26 Sept. 2010. N.
a. “Should You Worry About School Violence?” KidsHealth – the Web’s Most Visited Site about Children’s Health. N.p. Web. 26 Sept.
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