Chapter 11: Schools and Delinquency

1. Chapter 11: Schools and Delinquency

2. Trends in U.S. school systems • Nearly 50 million children are enrolled in public schools • More than 1.1 million (2%) children are home-schooled • Massachusetts passed the first compulsory school attendance law in 1852, mandating that all students between the ages of 8 and 14 attend school for a minimum of three months each year

3. Violence at School • School violence is a worldwide problem • Juveniles are 75 times more likely to be murdered away from school than at school • Most victims of school killings are male and are killed with firearms • Most school crime is non-fatal

4. Bullying • Bullying is the use of one’s strength or status to intimidate, injure or humiliate another person of lesser strength or status • Types of bullying include: • Physical bullying: Hitting, kicking, spitting, pushing, or taking personal belongings. • Verbal bullying: Taunting, malicious teasing, name calling, or making threats. • Emotional bullying: Spreading rumors, manipulating social relationships, or engaging in social exclusion, extortion, or intimidation. • Sexual bullying: Harassment and actual abuse.

5. Prevalence of Bullying • 30% of students were involved in bullying either as a bully (13%), a victim (11%), or both (6%). • Bullying has increased in prevalence. • About ten percent of students reported being bullied at school in the last six months • Bullying varies among ethnic/racial group

6. Consequences of Bullying • Bullies and their targets are more likely to engage in violent behavior • Victims of bullying grow up to have more depression and lower self-esteem than other adults • Children who are bullies are more likely to • feel lonely • have trouble making friends, and • do not get along well with classmates • Sometimes they are insecure, embarrass easily, and are fearful of attending school

7. Prevention of Bullying • School programs may reduce bullying • Dan Olweus reduced school bullying in schools in Norway through the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program

8. Teacher Victimization • Some crime victims in schools are teachers • From 2001 to 2005, teachers were the victims of 1.3 million nonfatal crimes and about 48,000 serious violent crimes • Urban teachers were more likely than rural teachers to be victims of violent crimes • Varies from elementary to secondary schools and public and private schools

9. Perceptions of School Violence • The overall risk of school violence has declined but students and their parents report being increasingly apprehensive about their schools • Students are more fearful about being attacked or harmed at school • The rates of drug use and physical fighting are still high in schools

10. Schools, Children and the Law • To control children’s behavior schools put in place rules and regulations • Students who violate school rules are often disciplined through one of the following: • Time outs • Suspension • Expulsion • Corporal punishment

11. Suspension • Goss v. Lopez: students suspended from 10 days or more must receive a hearing • At the hearing they do not have the right to an attorney or the right to cross-examine an confront witnesses • Within 24 hours following a suspension, the principal must provide the parents with a written statement describing the reason why the child was suspended

12. Expulsion • Students have a right to a hearing • Students have the right to know the qualifications of the hearing examiner • Students have the right to appeal the decision to the school superintendent or school board

13. Corporal Punishment • Is the infliction of pain as a penalty for violating a school rule • Baker v. Owen (1975) held that teachers could administer reasonable corporal punishment for disciplinary purposes • Ingraham v. White (1977) The U.S. Supreme Court held that the cruel and unusual punishment clause of the 8th Amendment does not apply to corporal punishment in schools • Garcia v. Miera (1987) held that the extent of the punishment may not be excessive.

14. Corporal Punishment continued • Hall v. Tawney ruled that parents have no right to exempt their children from corporal punishment in public schools • Teachers, principals, coaches and bus drivers physically punish 400,000 students a year; 5,000 are annually beaten so bad they require medical attention • 90% of corporal punishment took place in only ten states • The extent of its use varies between gender and race

15. Searches and Seizures • Thompson v. Carthage School District – School officials may legally search students and their lockers without consent • New Jersey v. TLO – School officials can conduct warrantless searches of individuals at school on the basis of reasonable suspicion • Principals will conduct sweep searches

16. Searches and Seizures continued • Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton – Students participating in school athletic activities must submit upon request to an involuntary drug test (urinalysis) • Independent School District No. 92 of Pottawatamie County v. Earls – A school may require students to submit to a urinalysis for illegal drugs prior to participating in any competitive extracurricular activities

17. Other Important Court Cases • West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette- students free speech rights were violated when required to salute the flag and say the Pledge of Allegiance • Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community- ruled on a students right to free expression • Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier- administrators may regulate the content of student publications in school

18. Explanations of School Delinquency Include: • Loss of teacher authority • Tracking, or the grouping of students into curricular activities • Social reproduction and resistance

19. Preventing School Violence • Zero-tolerance measures • Anti-violence programs by targeting classroom organization, management practices, and instructional strategies • Focus on in-school counseling and behavior modification • Control-oriented programs • Targeted violence in schools • Toby’s “stay-in” v. “drop-out” problem

20. Conclusions • There is a growing concern with school violence, shootings, bullying, and teacher victimization • Different theories have been developed to explain the link between schools and delinquency