Violence Among Our Youth in Schools

Academic Writing-Research Paper

Empire State College

                                              Violence Among our Youth in Schools

One of the biggest challenges facing our schools today is violence among youth. Although many would argue that our schools are still the safest place for our children, one look at any newspaper, Internet site, or nightly news program will make you think differently. A report released by the National Center for Education Statistics in 2011, “Showed that there were 359,000 incidents of assault and serious violence of students between the ages 12–18” (NCES, 2011c). What is causing our youth today to commit these random acts of violence in our schools? I believe violence in our schools today can be attributed to the decay of the family structure, an increase in gang activity, and violence as viewed in violent video games.         

One factor that is contributing to youth violence today is the decline in the family structure and parental involvement in children’s lives. According to the finding of a study done by the Family Research Council, only 46 percent of kids that live in the U.S. will still be residing with their original parents by the age of 17 (Fagan, 2011). Whether it is a two parent working family or a single mother or father struggling to make ends meet, it comes down to the amount of time there is for family interaction. Research shows that families spend only 8 hours per week together, that is roughly only 35 minutes per day (McCann, 2013). In that amount of time, it is impossible for a parent to have a meaningful conversation with their children, find out how their day went, and ask if they have any problems. Combining this with parents having to work longer hours, results in an even greater strain on communication in the family. Another survey shows that men work an average 45.6 hours per week and women work 45.2 (Jayson, 2013). This leaves little room for any kind of parenting or daily structure in our children’s lives. Years ago it was standard to eat dinner together as a family. Regardless of where you were or who you were with, you were expected to go home and eat. It provided a time for everyone to keep up to date on what was going on at work or school, and also provided a sense of structure and stability.

  Parents also set rules of the house that had to be followed, for example, curfew, or going to school. If the rules were broken, there were consequences and you were punished. You weren’t allowed to go out with friends and were sent to your room. Kids today would look forward to being sent to their rooms as punishment, considering most kid’s rooms today have computer, TV, and the Internet. A study by the University of Michigan Health Systems showed that “71% of children between the ages of 8-18 had TV’S in their rooms” (Boyse, 2010). With parents working longer hours each day, it’s difficult for them to monitor that their children are following the rules. Without supervision children are going to take advantage of the situation and develop the attitude that they can do whatever they want, and no one is going to tell them what to do. This attitude can carry over into school where they have problems getting along with other students.  According to the National Center for Education Statistics, “In 2009, about 31 percent of students of in grades 9-12 reported they had been in physical fight at least one time during the last 12 months anywhere, and 11 percent said they had been in a fight on school property during the previous 12 months” (NCES, 2011b). When provoked, the child could become defensive or argumentative which could lead to fights among classmates.