The first thing we need to change is the general attitude toward children and the environment in which they grow. Too often, adults feel that if they suffered in the world in which they grew up, why should it change for children. I have heard more than one adult express precisely that sentiment. They feel it “didn’t hurt them,” so why bother to change it for future generations. I believe it has hurt them. Just look at the state of the world. I think one of the things we should do when we consider how to change the schools is ask ourselves, “How would we like to have had it for ourselves?”
There are specific things we can do to improve schools. I have seen studies that suggest that smaller schools can help because students are better known by the adults around them. That makes sense to me. Smaller schools responding more effectively to a student’s educational needs using some of the techniques suggested in the last article will help students succeed. Students who succeed in meeting realistic expectations and high educational standards are going to develop valid feelings of self-esteem. When any person has a real reason to live, he or she will not be so inclined to lose that reason to live by participating in a violent act.
I also feel that volunteers in the classrooms and halls of our schools will give more people an opportunity to observe children and perhaps diffuse potentially violent situations before they escalate or provide information to school professionals which will help them intervene in a timely manner. Volunteers directly involved with students in the school system provide exposure to adults in a positive environment as young people prepare to enter the world as adults.
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