NCJ Number
105715
Journal
Spectrum Volume: 2 Issue: 4 Dated: (Fall 1984) Pages: 35-42
Date Published
1984
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Trends in student and teacher victimization in schools were examined in national data for 1972-1982.
Abstract
National Crime Survey (NCS) data indicate that student victimization was and continues to be a serious problem: 36 percent of assaults and 40 percent of robberies occurred in school. Trends in assault show little change over time, while robbery and thefts stayed fairly level and then decreased in the most recent years. Teacher opinion poll data show an increase in physical attacks on teachers to an all-time high in 1979. There was an up-and-down pattern for personal property damage, with the latest increase in 1978, and there was a higher but level rate of theft since first measured in 1978. Junior high schools and urban schools were likely to experience more personal violence than senior high schools and those in other locations. Overall, data contradict the notion of a progressive worsening of the school crime problem, but suggest that concerns about school crime are justified by the real experience of many teachers and students. 15 references.