Opinion
Education Letter to the Editor

To Make Schools Safe, First Know the Facts

November 07, 2006 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

To the Editor:

Violent crimes in schools are neither widespread nor increasing, contrary to the implications and assertions in Sam Chaltain’s Oct. 25, 2006, Commentary (“To Make Schools Safe, Make All Children Visible”). As the University of Virginia psychology professor Dewey G. Cornell, an expert on violence and school safety, told Newswise last month, “Violence in schools has been declining for over 10 years, and schools are still the safest place for a child to be.”

Mr. Cornell is also quoted in your article “School Shootings in Policy Spotlight” (Oct. 11, 2006) as saying that, even taking into account the 10 worst years of school violence, “the average school can expect [a student to kill someone at school] once every 12,000 years.” Further, a 1999 study jointly produced by the U.S. departments of Education and Justice calculated the odds that a child would die in school by homicide or suicide at no greater than one in 1 million. Other studies have found the odds closer to one in 2 million.

Highly publicized random acts of violence garner our attention. We often overestimate the prevalence of tragic or vivid events because they come to mind so readily. Psychologists call this phenomenon the “availability heuristic.”

The problem is compounded when, in response to a single tragedy, we formulate policies or make laws that disregard the frequency with which events normally occur. Despite the fact that school violence and juvenile crime had been declining for years, for example, many districts adopted draconian measures after the shootings at Colorado’s Columbine High School in 1999. But a post-Columbine report by John Stossel of ABC, critical of media-saturated coverage of that event, noted that both lightning and bathtub accidents account for more deaths of children than do school shootings.

Any attempts to curb school violence should be preceded by first digesting the data about the extent of the problem.

Patrick Mattimore

San Francisco, Calif.

A version of this article appeared in the November 08, 2006 edition of Education Week as To Make Schools Safe, First Know the Facts

Events

Federal Webinar The Trump Budget and Schools: Subscriber Exclusive Quick Hit
EdWeek subscribers, join this 30-minute webinar to find out what the latest federal policy changes mean for K-12 education.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Curriculum Webinar
End Student Boredom: K-12 Publisher's Guide to 70% Engagement Boost
Calling all K-12 Publishers! Student engagement flatlining? Learn how to boost it by up to 70%.
Content provided by KITABOO
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management
Moving the Needle on Attendance: What’s Working NOW
See how family engagement is improving attendance, and how to put it to work in schools.
Content provided by TalkingPoints

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: May 21, 2025
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Quiz What Is the Average Teacher Salary for the 2024-25 School Year? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz Are You Keeping Up With Trump’s Big Changes to K-12 Funding? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz How Is Trump Changing School Discipline Rules? Take This Week’s Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read