School Violence: Lowering the Statistics

American schools today seem to have a major problem. Violence in and around school buildings is on the rise. As each year progresses more and more students are reported to be involved in some form of conflict; whether it is petty or serious. Yet, these problems are not a concern only to the students, but to the parents and teachers as well. So, why is violence prevalent in our schools; and what can we do to prevent the ones we love from becoming a statistic?
When one hears about episodes of school violence, images of students angrily shouting insults and passionately pummeling each other usually come to mind. Surprisingly, though, school-related antagonism is not always serious. In the year 2000, the Bureau of Justice Statistics and the National Center for Education reported:
"The most prevalent type of youth crime is theft, and the most common types of violence are fist fights, bullying and shoving matches." (School Crime, 2000)
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