NCJ Number
146131
Date Published
1993
Length
194 pages
Annotation
Based on interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,000 third- to twelfth-grade teachers, 1,180 third- to twelfth-grade students, and 100 police department officials, this report presents data on violence in public schools.
Abstract
The survey shows that most public school teachers (77 percent) feel safe when they are in or around school. Students feel less safe than teachers; 50 percent of students feel "very safe" and 40 percent feel only "somewhat safe." Among teachers and students only small pluralities believe violence has increased in the past year. A substantial proportion of students report they witness violent incidents in or around school very often (6 percent) or sometimes (31 percent). Teachers, students, and law enforcement officials agree that most violent incidents occur outside the school building. Most teachers and police officials believe that major factors that contribute to violence in public schools include lack of supervision at home, lack of family involvement in the schools, and exposure to violence in the mass media. Students cite a wider variety of factors that contribute to violence, many related to their peer relations. Twenty-two percent of the students report that their parents give hardly any or not time at all to a discussion of school life and homework. 53 tables