Violence in our schools and society has become a serious problem facing all educators. Violence has added to the teacher’s already demanding role as educator and mentor to students. Violence has invaded our daily lives; constantly seen on the news, in schools, sports and dramatized on television shows and movies. Today teachers in all socio-economic areas must deal with violence’s influence on both schools and society regularly. We will look at all types of violence (school, social, domestic, cinema, etc.) that impacts the safety of our students and their ability to have a safe and productive learning environment. Through this course, teachers will gain a greater understanding of how to detect these issues within their students, how to speak to them, and their parents. They will also be able to determine which support staff of the school (psychologists, social workers, guidance counselors, administration) would be most appropriate to approach regarding various issues. Violence in American Schools and Society will use government and think tank studies, scholarly readings, news stories, film clips and movies. This is a vital class for all teachers and support staff. We all need to be better acquainted with the strategies and resources available to best protect our most valuable assets – our students.

Teachers enrolled in this course will..

Know

1. The students will be able to know the important statistics on the different types of violent crimes within American society.
2. How the economy plays a role within violent crimes
3. The impact and rise of date rape amongst teenagers
4. What the huge impact of video games, movies and media are on the violent actions of the youth
5. The team importance of well informed teachers, support staff and administration to proactively handle violent concerns

Understand

1. The importance of local and state agencies that are in place to help you deal with violent situations within your school and society
2. What the importance of a safety crisis plan if an attack or violent situation is occurring to protect the staff and students of your school
3. The true importance of having a strong school climate to prevent violence from occurring through intervention and trust for all students
4. The differences, statistics and extent of hate crimes within the United States
5. The most serious indicators and solutions to help troubled schools
6. How the economic and social environment could increase the amount of violence in our American schools, homes and streets

and Be Able To

1. Determine the most serious problems that are facing our students today and those that could arise in the future
2. Explain the most serious causes and rationale of shooting rampages like that at Virginia Tech and Columbine
3. Understand the new forms of cyber bullying and its impact on our students
4. Describe how violence has impacted the negative actions of sports role models and icons that are continually in the public eye
5. Better informed on the documentation and information of Child Protective Services

Visit www.nyctd.org to learn more and register.