Professor advises learning how to see warning signs of violence
One local college professor who has studied the trend of school violence said educational programs that teach people how to spot warning signals typically exhibited by the perpetrators of violent crimes are one way to prevent future incidents of school violence. “This is one topic that rears its ugly head every now and then,” said Dr. Debra Evans-Rhodes, assistant professor of psychology at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, on school violence, which has been making the news for the last several years. “This causes us to revisit an issue we need to keep examining.”
While the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School is still fresh in the minds of many, three more recent school shootings has put a nation on alert and prompted local educational leaders to re-examine school security.
“Many have the feeling that they are not safe at school, while, ironically, schools still are a safe place,” Rhodes said. “When something like this happens, it brings the potential danger for us and our children to our minds and makes us feel unsafe.”
Rhodes and another area college professors stress the need for community residents and school officials to begin recognizing signals warning of a violent crime in school children and people living in their communities and to do something about it.
“Watch for warning signs. Take threats seriously,” recommended Rhodes.
Parents must have open dialogue with their children about concerns, she said.
“If they’re concerned, we need to address it,” Rhodes added.
“We also need to connect and get inside their lives,” she continued, noting the chances to have real conversations with children have diminished with advances in technology and the busyness of everyday life. “Sometimes we have to catch those teachable moments.”
And students, although it is difficult to do at times, should go to a trusted adult figure and let them know of their problems or warning signals that they see in others, said Rhodes.
Rhodes said if there is a true cause for concern, the adult should employ the help of others, including school principals, guidance counselors, law enforcement or parents of the child who is the subject of the concern.
Though to truly prevent any violent school crime, it is crucial that the adult take the concern seriously, Rhodes added.
She said guidance counselors and teachers also play an important role in catching warning signals in students that may lead to violent crime.
Many who commit extreme acts of violence, she said, typically never learn the basic skills of how to motivate oneself, delay gratification, persist against frustration, regulate moods, hope, empathize and control impulses.
West Virginia University associate professor in the school’s Division of Sociology and Anthropology James Nolan said the safety of students will not necessarily be achieved through increased monitoring or security at schools, but through community and school cohesion.
“The community radar needs to be tweaked,” he said. “That’s the thing that will keep people safe: when they know how to help people who are out of sorts.
“People remain dependent on the authorities to keep them safe and they really have a limited ability to do that,” he added.
While security devices convey the appearance of safety, when schools are connected and parents are connected and know how to report a possible warning signal, someone has the potential to do something about a possible violent crime, said Nolan.
“They know how to connect and how to do something,” he said.
He added that children need a trusted adult to talk to about any issues going on in their lives.
Nolan stressed the school kids who are being teased and bullied or have isolated themselves because of anger in particular need attention.
“If the authorities can see this, reach out and help them so they don’t become the next shooter,” said Nolan.
Nolan dispelled the assumption that “kids are born bad,” rather noting that they are angry because of a situation at home or school or something else going on in their lives and they don’t quite have the ability to think the situation through and know what to do.
“If the problem is caught early enough, you may be able to prevent these type of tragedies,” Nolan said.