Services - Breaking Down School Violence

An Innovative Approach to Family Services.

Repeated assaults on children in schools has fueled renewed conversations about societal violence, albeit in the same compartmentalized fashion. A recent Internet survey on solutions to school based violence included such ideas as breaking down group barriers in the classroom by teaching children early on about the First Amendment and its possible cruel impacts. Does an unrestricted Internet create severe hazards for those without protection -- i.e. children and youth? Are parents able to balance their children’s increased demands for the internet with safety? What about children/youth who spend hours unsupervised intimately connected to the internet, when their parents are at work?

IFS trainings on school violence feature roundtable discussions, using popular film vignettes to spark critical dialogue and inquiry. Conflict resolution has become a buzzword for reducing tensions. While this sort of intervention can be useful in diminishing overt aggression it provides administrators a "quick fix" that doesn't really change the underlying causes of violence and bullying.

Critical questions must be raised: Can the debate around First Amendment help parents to supervise their kids more efficiently? Or, can breaking down barriers of class, culture, immigration, race, and gender in the classroom help reduce school based violence by creating a more embracing and just environment?

If you would like to learn more about working with the Institute for Family Services,
please call us at 732-873-1663 or e-mail us at WeCare4UIFS@aol.com.

Institute for Family Services, 3 Clyde Road, Suite 101, Somerset, NJ 08873