School Violence & How it Affects Teachers

School violence does not just affect students, it affects teachers as well. Teachers are on the front lines at their school, so they have a responsibility to make sure the students are safe in addition to providing them with a good education. The teachers are affected by school violence almost as much as students are.

Personal Safety

For those who work in a violent school or even in a school where there are serious troublemakers, they could fear for their own safety on a daily basis. In some cases, an attack, physical or emotional, is made on the teacher causing harm or distress.

Teaching Capabilities

When teachers work in a violent environment, some may be unable to teach to the best of their ability because of being distracted by certain individuals or for the fear of being in the environment itself.

Increased Stress

Being around violence can cause a large amount of stress on the teachers; not only do they fear for their safety but for those of their students and coworkers. Constant worry on top of typical work issues can cause a lot of stress.

Increased Commute

If teachers live in an area where there is a lot of violence in the schools, they may choose to go to a less violent school district to teach due to safety concerns, which could increase their commutes and make the workdays longer.

Strained Relationships

When teachers get severely stressed due to the violence at their jobs, it may affect their relationships outside of work in a negative way. Many teachers take their work home with them, physically and emotionally, which could strain their outside relationships.

References

• safeyouth.org - "School Violence Fact Sheet"
• www.ns.umich.edu - "Teachers in violence-prone school areas may be best deterrent"