School Violence
In the past several years, there have been many instances of violent acts (including murder) occurring throughout the United States. Littleton, Colorado; Springfield, Oregon; Edinboro, Pennsylvania; and West Paducah, Kentucky are just a few of the small towns that have been hit by such a tragic event. Due to the fact that all of these are small towns, students, parents, and communities alike are realizing that no town is really safe. An outbreak of school violence can happen anywhere.

Were any of these children showing warning signs? Are there any factors that parents and teachers should consider when dealing with a “problem child”? What measures should communities take in order to prevent a shooting from happening in the future? In the wake of an increased awareness in school violence, it is essential to determine some factors that can contribute to violent behavior. Why it occurs and how to prevent violence in schools are also factors to consider. There has been a lot of discussion on what the typical “child murderer” is like. There are many stereotypes of kids that would have violent tendencies. In the most recent school shootings, the killers weren’t all drug addicts or loners. Some of them were intelligent, young people. One of the kids was a “straight A” student, yet another had a lot of friends and was active in school activities.

Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the two students who opened fire at Columbine High School were the most discussed throughout the press. Both Harris and Klebold had been involved in a group called the “Trench Coat Mafia.” They were noted as being outcasts, with a lot of other kids in school making fun of them. When interviewed after the violence occurred, many of the students admitted that they didn’t know what drove them to this act of bloodshed. In cases, like several others, the kids try to say that they were insane at the time. The way the this trend is going, it seems that the children that are responsible for these terrible acts, are the ones who aren’t very popular and are made fun of or teased.

It is important to realize that there are some children who simply don’t know how to