After the Columbine media coverage, the nation became terrified that our schools were no longer safe, even though the facts show they are safer than ever" (2003, p. 14).
This point is also made by Kondrasuk et al. (2005), who note, "More recently the violent events have garnered increased media coverage due to the dramatic nature of the crimes. In this age of instant communications and open dialogue, the media has almost been forced to report deaths and other violent acts in schools. As such, violence in schools has warranted more attention by researchers and the schools themselves" (p. 638). Likewise, Fast (2003) emphasizes that, "While this [Columbine] was the sixth of such school shootings in 18 months, it riveted the attention of the nation because it involved well-to-do suburban children, had the greatest number of victims and because it played out on television" (emphasis added) (Fast, 2003, p. 484).
Responses to High School and College Shootings.
In some cases, the responses to the highly publicized high school and college shootings in recent years have been knee-jerk reactions while other tactics have involved more thoughtful approaches and school districts across the country have implemented numerous security measures designed to improve their ability to keep guns and bombs out of educational institutions. For example, according to Scott (1995), "From elementary school to college, school has become a battleground, primarily in high school and university. Mainly, these conflicts have occurred on four main fronts: the effort to keep schools safe from crime and drugs; efforts to control, shape, or punish different types of student behavior; the school -- media conflict over what the media can cover and publish; and the struggle over what a school can say when it is trying to terminate or has terminated a teacher or staff member" (p. 271).
In response to these high school and college shootings, some of the more common tactics used by school districts to reduce the incidence of violence include those shown in Table 1 and Figure 1 below.
Table 1.
Tactics Used by Schools to Prevent Violence.
Tactic
Percentage
Zero Tolerance program
Conflict resolution programs (e. g. mediation)
Dress code
Community/school clubs
ID badges/labels on people
Security guards
Extra lighting
Personal hall monitors for security
TV monitors for security
Metal detectors
Source: Kondrasuk et al., 2005, p. 638.
Figure 1. Tactics Used by Schools to Prevent Violence.
Source: Based on tabular data in Kondrasuk et al., 2005 at p. 638.
Based on the foregoing, zero tolerance programs for violence and bullying and conflict resolution programs are clearly the front-runners as the responses to these high school and college shootings, but other tactics could include the following initiatives recommended by Winter (2001):
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