Little Things - School Shootings and Teasing
Uploaded by idunno_niecer on May 27, 2002
Introduction- Examples of shootings related to teasing and solutions to problem
I. Change Atmosphere
A. Assailants generally rejected
B. Psychological damage
C. Led to kill tormentors
D. Quotes from others
1) Re: Columbine and its shooters- “at least…took a stand”
2) “…it did take guts”
3) “…Maybe it’ll make people think next time…”
II. Students responsibility
A. Intentions always told to peers
1) Usually detailed
2) Rarely taken seriously or reported
B. Bethel, Alaska story
C. Is it worth risking the lives of the potential victims to protect a reputation?
III. Teachers take responsibility
A. Listen to students
B. Look for signs
C. Don’t ignore “harmless teasing”
D. Great Barrington, Massachusetts
E. Take threats seriously
Conclusion- Advancements are there, but there is a long way to go and everyone needs to step up
Little Things
Sixteen year old Nicholas Elliot of Virginia Beach, Virginia opened fire on his school with a semi automatic pistol in 1987, he said someone had called him a racist name. Fourteen year old James Alan Kearby of Goddard, Kansas killed the principal and three others within his school on January twenty- first of 1985. Afterward he reported that he had been brutally bullied and beaten for years proceeding the shooting. After being teased about his weight twelve year old Nathan Farris of DeKalb, Missouri shot a classmate and then himself on 1987. In 1997 fourteen year old Joseph Todd of Stamps, Arkansas shot two students, he claimed to have been humiliated by teasing. (Dedman: “Bullying, Tormenting Often Led to Revenge in Cases Studied”). This merciless teasing tarnishes the souls and reputations of its victims driving them to kill. Adolescents are victims of more crimes then any other age group in the U.S. (Furlong). Even though our federal, state, and local governments all address this issue with numerous laws and policies, there continues to be three million crimes committed in America’s public schools annually (Yell). Because searches and metal detectors do not appear to be effective, it is time to move away from intervention and start working on prevention. The first major step in the right direction is to change the atmosphere within the school. After this has been accomplished, the next task at hand is to train the students and staff to handle effectively, potentially dangerous situations when one arises. The absolute most critical part of this type of prevention is the “little things.” To stop the teasing and ridicule that occurs in schools is crucial. In other words, we are cutting all this aggression off at the...