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Teen violence is a growing concern among parents and school authorities. The thing is that teenage violence in schools seem to affect teens from different socioeconomic backgrounds. These days, it's not unusual for teens who come from a seemingly normal family background to suddenly lash out violently at other teens. What makes kids these days violent? What should you do if you find out that your teen has violent tendencies? What should you do if you find out that your teen has become a victim of bullying and violence in school?
Teenage violence can mean a lot of things. While the first thing that may come to mind of parents is school shootings, there are a lot of other things that could potentially constitute teenage violence in schools. There's fights, bullying, gang violence and more. The disturbing thing about this is that 60% of students ranging from 10 to 17 years old have experienced being victims of violence in 2010. However, of these students, less than half report what happened to school authorities or their parents.
What causes teenage violence in schools?
There's really no clear cut answer to that question. Even children from seemingly normal family backgrounds can be violent towards their classmates. However, there are some common causes of violence towards another person. Here are a few of them:
- It's a form of expression - Some people never learned any other way to constructively express their frustration and anger than through violence. Many young people are victims of violence themselves, and however wrong it may be, in their eyes violent people have the upper hand. It's the only language they know how to use in order to express the negative emotions that they have which are getting out of control.
- It's a form of retaliation - Some teens have been a victim of violence and violence is the only way they can think of to retaliate.
- It's a learned behavior - Violent teens may have learned a pattern of violence at home and this pattern went uncorrected for the longest time. It's also possible that they live in an environment where adults use violence to get their way.
- Peer pressure - One of the greatest risk factors of teen violence is hanging around troubled teens. This is why it's important for parents to know who their childrens' friends are.
- Glamorization of violence in the media - There are many songs, movies, TV shows, and video games that glamorize violence. Children who have easy access to this are more likely to be comfortable with the idea of violence.
Warning signs of teenage violence
Parents can't always be around to see how their children conducts themselves, especially in school. It's important to keep an eye out for the warning signs of teenage violence. Here are a few examples of those warning signs:
- Signs of drug or alcohol abuse
- An increasingly alarming pattern of risky behavior
- Bullying younger siblings
- Easily loses temper
- Vandalism that causes significant property damage
- Hurting animals
- Carrying small weapons like knives, blades, etc.
- Talks about hurting other people
If you suspect your child of violence or if you have already received complaints about it, it's important not to brush these off. The best thing to do is to seek professional help and address the issue directly. Help your teen learn other ways to express anger and frustration without resorting to violence. Talk to the school counselor or a therapist about it. Early intervention is very important.
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