Discuss the incidence of crime and violence in U.S. public schools. Then discuss the following factors that research has related to violence in schools: biological, cultural, academic, cognitive, and school environment

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Violent crime occurs relatively infrequently in public schools. For example, less than 1 homicide per million students occurred on school grounds, about 8 percent of high school students were threatened or injured with a weapon, 6 percent avoided certain school activities or locations because they feared for their own safety, and 3 percent of teachers were physically attacked.
Research has shown that the following factors are related to violence in schools:
a.Biological factors: Two biological factors that have been implicated in aggression are neurological and hormonal. The neurological factors are an overactive behavioral activation system and an underactive behavioral inhibition system, both of which reside in the frontal lobes of the brain. The hormonal factor is above average levels of testosterone.
b. Cultural influences: Society encourages girls to be cooperative and dependent while boys are encouraged to assert their independence.
c. Academic performance: Boys who have a history of consistent academic failure are more likely than girls to experience frustration and hostility.
d. Interpersonal reasoning and problem-solving skills: Students who exhibit high levels of physical aggression frequently are deficient in means-ends thinking (the ability to achieve one's goals by formulating realistic plans) and alternative solution thinking (the ability to think of different ways to solve interpersonal problems).
e. School environment: Violence may be a natural, albeit unacceptable, response to schools that are too large, impersonal, and competitive; that do not enforce rules fairly or consistently; that use punitive methods to resolve conflict; and that impose an unimaginative, nonmeaningful curriculum on students.