Overview

Since the year 2000, there have been approximately 200 school shootings in the United States. Unfortunately, this is not simply a U.S. problem. In 2017, a 15-year-old Canadian male student committed suicide after shooting two other students and a teacher. During that same year, in Brazil, a private school student fatally shot two classmates and injured four. In 2018, a 13-year-old Russian girl opened fire with a gas pistol and injured seven 7th graders. Hence, school violence is a problem of global concern. The purpose of this proposed text is to address this international problem from a crime and criminal justice perspective. The school shooting at Columbine in 1999 gave politicians and the media the event that they had sought to spotlight the cruel and evil world of teens. Reporters, who did little to explore other incidents in the country related to child abuse, domestic violence, or gang warfare, quickly flocked to Littleton, Colorado to discuss the youth culture of bullying, violent video games, and dressing in black. However, is violence within the school environment really a new problem? The history of school violence follows the pattern of what most would consider the history of education. In 1913, a German teacher shot and killed four students and injured more than 20. In 1923, a headmaster killed two students in New Zealand. In 1925, a Lithuanian student killed two students and a teacher and, in the United States, in 1966, the infamous University of Texas Tower Shooting occurred. All individuals agree that a child attending school should be concerned with the process of learning, not with avoiding victimization and that the school environment should be a safe and secure location for both students and teachers. In addition, and most central to this text, without a safe school environment, students and teachers may be assaulted, injured, or killed. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, current research has shown a decline in the rates of school violence over the past three years; however, the few high-profile cases broadcast repeatedly in the media lead the public to other conclusions. Included in this textbook are definitions related to the types and categories of school violence (including bullying, stalking, and crimes against students that involve the internet), discussions on victims and offenders, and case examples. Also included in this textbook is information on criminal justice system responses to school violence from both a national and international perspective. Finally, this text discussed adult perpetrators of school violence and the explanations for such attacks.

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9781538125359

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Reviews

Lead author McCabe (criminology, Univ. of Lynchburg) has written a reader-friendly text for undergraduates in courses on criminology and criminal justice. She examines violent crimes within educational settings--from kindergarten to universities--as well as the foundational acts that led to these crimes. Taking a broad approach, she considers acts that range from bullying, gang violence, and sexual assault to hazing, cyberstalking, and sexting. Focusing primarily on school shootings, the author's perspective is primarily national, centered on the US. She also includes current research and examples at the international level, looking at Canada, the UK, and Western European countries. In particular, the study uses the massacres at Columbine High School and Virginia Tech in the US and at Dunblane Primary School in Scotland as paradigmatic cases. Each chapter contains special features that include a listing of key words and key acronyms, shaded boxes with case examples, and chapter and discussion questions. This volume adds to the literature on school violence in several key ways, particularly by considering theoretical explanations, risk factors, mental illness, preventive measures, and victim assistance. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All undergraduates and professionals.-- Choice

Lead author McCabe (criminology, Univ. of Lynchburg) has written a reader-friendly text for undergraduates in courses on criminology and criminal justice. She examines violent crimes within educational settings--from kindergarten to universities--as well as the foundational acts that led to these crimes. Taking a broad approach, she considers acts that range from bullying, gang violence, and sexual assault to hazing, cyberstalking, and sexting. Focusing primarily on school shootings, the author's perspective is primarily national, centered on the US. She also includes current research and examples at the international level, looking at Canada, the UK, and Western European countries. In particular, the study uses the massacres at Columbine High School and Virginia Tech in the US and at Dunblane Primary School in Scotland as paradigmatic cases. Each chapter contains special features that include a listing of key words and key acronyms, shaded boxes with case examples, and chapter and discussion questions. This volume adds to the literature on school violence in several key ways, particularly by considering theoretical explanations, risk factors, mental illness, preventive measures, and victim assistance. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All undergraduates and professionals.--CHOICE

Author Information

Kimberly A. McCabe, PhD, is the director of the Center for Community Development and Social Justice and professor of Criminology at Lynchburg College. McCabe has been an expert witness in law enforcement policies and procedures, child abuse, school violence, human trafficking and equity/parity/discrimination of employment in criminal justice and public safety agencies. She has also acted as a consultant to state and local agencies in the United States and the United Kingdom on design, implementation, and evaluation of criminal justice and public safety programs. She has authored many books and articles on child abuse, sex trafficking, and violence, including Protecting Your Children Online: What You Need to Know About Online Threats to Your Children (Rowman & Littlefield, 2017), Sex Trafficking: A Global Perspective (Lexington Books, 2010), and The Trafficking of Persons: National and International Responses (2008).

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