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Why is school violence a
public health problem?
School violence is youth violence that occurs on
school property, on the way to or rom school
or school-sponsored events, or during a school-
sponsored event. A young person can be a victim, a
perpetrator, or a witness o school violence.
Youth violence includes various behaviors. Some
violent actssuch as bullying, slapping, or hitting
can cause more emotional harm than physical harm.
Other orms o violence, such as gang violence and
assault (with or without weapons), can lead to seriousinjury or even death.
To learn more about school violence and youth violence,
please visit: http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention.
School associated violent deaths are rare.1
17homicidesofschool-ageyouthages5to18yearsoccurred at school during the 2009-2010 school year.
Ofallyouthhomicides,lessthan2%occuratschool,
and this percentage has been stable or the past
decade.
In2010,therewereabout828,000nonfatal
victimizationsatschoolamongstudents12to18years
o age.1
Approximately7%ofteachersreportthattheyhave
been threatened with injury or physically attacked by a
student rom their school.1
In2009,about20%ofstudentsages1218reported
that gangs were present at their school during the
school year.1
In a 2011 nationally representative sample o youth in
grades 9-12:2
12%reportedbeinginaphysicalghtonschool
property in the 12 months beore the survey.
5.9%reportedthattheydidnotgotoschoolon
one or more days in the 30 days beore the survey
because they elt unsae at school or on their way to
or rom school.
5.4%reportedcarryingaweapon(gun,knifeorclub)
on school property on one or more days in the 30
days beore the survey.
7.4%reportedbeingthreatenedorinjuredwitha
weapon on school property one or more times in the
12 months beore the survey.
20%reportedbeingbulliedonschoolpropertyand
16%reportedbeingbulliedelectronicallyduringthe
12 months beore the survey.
Fact Sheet 2013
Understanding School Violence
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
Division of Violence Prevention
How does school violence
aect health?
Deaths resulting rom school violence are only part o
the problem. Many young people experience nonatal
injuries. Some o these injuries are relatively minor and
include cuts, bruises, and broken bones. Other injuries,
like gunshot wounds and head trauma, are more serious
and can lead to permanent disability.
Not all injuries are visible. Exposure to youth violence
and school violence can lead to a wide array o negative
health behaviors and outcomes, including alcohol anddrug use and suicide. Depression, anxiety, and many
other psychological problems, including ear, can result
rom school violence.
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Who is at risk or
school violence?
A number o actors can increase the risk o a youthengaging in violence at school. However, the presence o
these actors does not always mean that a young person
will become an oender.
Risk actors or school and youth violence include:
Priorhistoryofviolence
Drug,alcohol,ortobaccouse
Associationwithdelinquentpeers
Poorfamilyfunctioning
Poorgradesinschool
Povertyinthecommunity
Note: This is only some information about risk. To learn
more, go to www.cdc.gov/injury/violenceprevention.
How can we prevent
school violence?
The goal is to stop school violence rom happening in
therstplace.Severalpreventionstrategieshavebeen
identied.
Universal,school-basedpreventionprogramscan
signicantlylowerratesofaggressionandviolent
behavior.3 These programs are delivered to all students
in a school or grade level. They teach about various
topics and develop skills, such as emotional sel-
awareness and control, positive social skills, problem
solving, confict resolution, and teamwork.
Parent-andfamily-basedprogramscanimprovefamily
relations and lower the risk or violence by children
especially when the programs are started early.4 These
programs provide parents with education about childdevelopment and teach skills to communicate and
solve problems in nonviolent ways.
Mentoringprogramscansignicantlyreduceyouth
violence.4 These programs pair a young person with an
adult who can serve as a positive role model and help
guide the young persons behavior.
Understanding School Violence
2
How does CDC approach
prevention?
CDC uses a our-step approach to address public healthproblems like school violence:
Step 1: Defne the problem
Beore we can prevent school violence, we need to know
how big the problem is, where it is, and who it aects. CDC
learns about a problem by gathering and studying data.
These data are critical because they help us know where
prevention is most needed.
Step 2: Identiy risk and protective actors
It is not enough to know that school violence aects
certain students in certain areas. We also need to knowwhy. CDC conducts and supports research to answer this
question.Wecanthendevelopprogramstoreduceor
get rid o risk actors and to increase protective actors.
Step 3: Develop and test prevention strategies
Usinginformationgatheredinresearch,CDCdevelops
and evaluates strategies to prevent school violence.
Step 4: Ensure widespread adoption
Inthisnalstep,CDCsharesthebestpreventionstrate-
gies. CDC may also provide unding or technical help so
communities can adopt these strategies.
What does CDC do to
prevent school violence?
The CDC leads many activities that help us to understand
and eectively prevent school violence. Some o these
activities include:
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS).
The YRBSS monitors health-risk behaviors among
youth,includingphysicalghting,bullying,weaponcarrying, and suicide. Data are collected every
two years and provide nationally representative
inormation about youth in grades 9-12.
www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/yrbs
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Reerences
1. Robers S, Zhang J, Truman J, Synder TD. Indicators o School Crime and
Safety,2011.NationalCenterforEducationStatistics,U.S.Department
ofEducation,andBureauofJusticeStatistics,OceofJusticePrograms,
U.S.DepartmentofJustice.Washington,DC;2010.Availablefromhttp://
nces.ed.gov/pubs2012/2012002.pdf.
2. CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.Youthriskbehaviorsurveil-
lanceUnitedStates,2011.MMWR,SurveillanceSummaries2012;61(no.
SS-4).Availablefromwww.cdc.gov/mmwr/pdf/ss/ss6104.pdf.
3. CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.Theeectivenessofuniversa
school-based programs or the prevention o violent and aggressive
behavior: a report on recommendations o the Task Force on Community
PreventiveServices.MMWR2007;56(RR-7):1-12.Availablefromwww.cdc
gov/mmwr/PDF/rr/rr5607.pdf.
4. CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.Bestpracticesofyouthvio-
lence prevention: a sourcebook or community action (rev). Atlanta (GA):
CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention,NationalCenterforInjury
PreventionandControl;2002.Availablefromwww.cdc.gov/violencepre-
vention/pub/YV_bestpractices.html.
Understanding School Violence
1-800-CDC-INFO(232-4636)[email protected]/violenceprevention
Where can I learn more?
CDC Division o Violence Prevention
www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention
CDC Division o Adolescent and School Health
www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/index.htm
STRYVE
www.vetoviolence.org/stryve/home.html
Stop Bullying
www.stopbullying.gov
Surgeon Generals Report on Youth Violence
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK44294
School-Associated Violent Death Study. CDC leads a
collaboration with the Departments o Education and
Justice to monitor school-associated violent deaths at
the national level.
www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/youthviolence/schoolviolence/SAVD.html
School Health Policies and Practices Study (SHPPS).
TheSHPPSisanationalsurveythatassessespolicies
and practices at the state, district, school, and
classroom levels. Eight elements o school health
are assessed, including approaches to keep a school
environment sae and to prevent violence.
www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/shpps
Health Curriculum Analysis Tool (HECAT). The HECAT
contains guidance, appraisal tools, and resources tohelp schools conduct an analysis o health education
curricula based on the National Health Education
Standards and CDCs Characteristics o an Eective
Health Education Curriculum. The results can help
schools select or develop curricula to address a
number o topics, including violence prevention.
www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/hecat
School Health Index (SHI). The SHI is a sel-
assessment and planning tool that schools can use to
improve their health and saety policies and programs.
Five topics are covered, including violence.www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/shi
Academic Centers or Excellence on Youth Violence
Prevention (ACEs). Through collaborations between
researchers and local organizations (including the
local health department), the ACEs work with high-risk
communities to carry out and evaluate a multiaceted,
science-based approach or reducing youth violence.
www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/ACE
Guide to Community Preventive Services.
The Community Guide is a resource or systematic
reviews o research and recommendations about whatworks to improve public health. Examination o youth
violencepreventionstrategieshaveincludedrearm
laws, therapeutic oster care, universal school-based
violence prevention programs, and transer o juveniles
to adult courts.
www.thecommunityguide.org
Striving To Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere
(STRYVE).CDCsnationalSTRYVEinitiativeprovides
inormation, training, and tools to help increase
public health leadership in preventing youth violence,
promote the widespread use o evidence-basedprevention strategies, and reduce national rates o
youth violence.
www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/STRYVE
For a complete list and descriptions of CDC activities, see
PreventingYouthViolence:ProgramActivitiesGuide
(www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pub/preventingyv.html).
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