Youth Violence
On the morning of December 1, 1997, an informal prayer group was gathered in the lobby of Heath High School in western Kentucky. Just before the start of classes, Michael Carneal, a freshman at the school, opened fire in the lobby. The youth, wearing earplugs, pulled out a .22-caliber handgun at about 7:45 a.m. and opened fire, killing three girls and wounding five other students ("Student Kills Two"). Unfortunately, Michael Carneal's actions represent a growing trend in society: youth violence. Due to the rise in the number of violent crimes committed by people under the age of 18, youth violence has become a serious national concern. Since 1980, the rate of violence among American juveniles has steadily increased. In fact, between 1984 and 1993, the rate of arrests for violent crimes among juveniles climbed by nearly 68% (Noguera 1). As Pedro Noguera, professor of education at the University of California, Berkeley, points out, "this figure is particularly alarming given that many incidents of violence are not reported to the police" (1). Also, statistics show that the homicide rate for juveniles has exceeded the adult rate since 1989, and the juvenile arrest rate for all types of violent crimes has surp
"Boy Selected Victims". The Arizona Republic. 26 March 1998: A4. com/US/9712/03/school.shooting.pm/> (22 March 1998). "Student Kills 2, Wounds 6 at Kentucky School." CNN World News. 1 December 1997. (22 March 1998). Another factor contributing to juvenile violence includes behavioral models such as culture and personal relationships. In fact, Pedro Noguera suggests the following:Violence is a learned behavior which may be consciously and unconsciously reinforced through child-rearing practices or promoted by the media and other expressions of popular culture through subtle and blatant images. Even our collective response to the threat of violence often manifests itself through some other form of violence: we sanction the killing of killers, and accept the notion that personal safety can be achieved by allowing citizens to be armed (3).Various aspects of popular culture including television, movies, comic books, and music influence children's perceptions of society and its boundaries. According to the American Medical Association (AMA), "destructive behavior in real life follows television and movie violence like night follows day" ("Parents Must Ration TV"). In Japan, for example, a series of copycat knifing incidents have occurred involving butterfly knives, "a collapsible knife used by a character played by a pop singer Takuya Kimura in a Fiji TV drama series" (Herksovitz). In fact, the crime rate for Japanese youths has risen by more than 60% over the past two years, which has caused the Japanese government to launch a panel aimed at protecting the country's youth from violence and obscene material in the media (Herksovitz). "Parents Must Ration TV to Cut Teen-age Violence." CNN World News. 9 Sept. 1996. (22 March 1998)."Who Is Michael Carneal?" CNN World News. 3 December 1997. Moret, Jim. "Study: Harmful Violence Pervades TV." CNN World News. 7 February 1998. (22 March 1998).
Some common words found in the essay are:
California Berkeley, Ration TVFurthermore, Pedro Noguera, Fiji TV, Moret Cartoons, Poverty ViolenceViolent, Michael Carneal's, Targets Teens, CNN World, School Arkansas, march 1998, 22 march 1998, 22 march, youth violence, cnn world, michael carneal, parents ration, violent crimes, 1 1997, behavioral models, violent behavior, prevention 11 january, 11 january 1998, violence prevention 11, 1998 22 march,
Approximate Word count = 1818
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
