Education Week - April 11, 2018 - 7

Schools Have Gotten
Safer Over Time

U

.S. schools have significantly increased security
measures and preparation
for events like school shootings in the last 20 years, the newest
federal data show.
Meanwhile, rates of student victimization at school have continued to decline,
fewer students have brought weapons
to school, and fewer students report fear
of harm in school, according to a federal
report released late last month.
Fewer students report having access to an unlocked gun in the most
recent data, and, contrary to popular
perception, rates of violent deaths at
school have not trended significantly
upward in recent years.
"Our nation's schools should be safe
havens for teaching and learning free of
crime and violence," says Indicators of
School Crime and Safety 2017, an annual report released by the National
Center for Education Statistics and
the Bureau of Justice Statistics. "Any
instance of crime or violence at school
not only affects the individuals involved
but also may disrupt the educational
process and affect bystanders, the school

itself, and the surrounding community."
The newly released data take on
particular relevance as local, state,
and federal policymakers seek to
improve school safety following the
Feb. 14 shooting in a Parkland, Fla.,
high school where 17 students and
educators were killed.
Since that shooting, newly passed
state and federal bills have provided
increased funding for violence prevention measures, like training teachers
to identify threatening student behavior, and physical school security measures, like metal detectors.
But federal data show many schools
are already equipped with such measures, and some safety experts have
urged schools to focus instead on prevention and student supports.
President Donald Trump appointed
U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos
to chair a school safety commission
that will explore a variety of issues
and approaches to school safety.
"While there are positive trends from
the annual report on crime and school
safety, we know there is more we must
do," DeVos said in a statement.

Many indicators suggest U.S. public schools have gotten safer in recent
years, newly released federal data show. Amid debates about school safety,
the data also show increased use of physical security measures such as
metal detectors and locked entrances.
BY EVIE BLAD

TOTAL STUDENT VICTIMIZATION
Rate of nonfatal victimization against students ages 12-18
RATE PER 1,000 STUDENTS
TAKEAWAY:
Victimizations include
criminal incidents
such as theft, assault,
robbery, and sexual
assault. Federal
data show declines
in all categories of
victimization, including
serious violent
offenses.

200

150

100

50

At school
Away from school
0
1992

1994

1996

1998

2000

2002

2004

2006

2008

2010

2012

2014

2016

YEAR

POLICE IN SCHOOLS
Percentage of public schools with any sworn law enforcement officers,
including school resource officers present at school at least once a week

SCHOOL YEARS
2005-06

57.8 56.1

2009-10
2015-16

64.8

35.8

21.0% 20.4

ALL PRIMARY SCHOOLS

ALL SECONDARY SCHOOLS

TAKEAWAY: Civil rights
groups worry that more
school police can lead to
more punitive discipline,
especially for black and
Latino students.
Among schools that
reported on-site officers,
43 percent of primary
schools and 63 percent
of secondary schools said
those officers' duties
included maintaining
school discipline.

SECURITY MEASURES

SCHOOL YEARS

Controlled access
to buildings during
school hours

74.6%

19.4

Security cameras used
to monitor the school
Required faculty and
staff to wear badges or
picture IDs

Number of student,
staff, and other
nonstudent schoolassociated violent
deaths, and number
of homicides and
suicides of youth ages
5-18 at school

Number of
student, staff, and
other nonstudent
school-associated
violent deaths
Homicides of youth
ages 5-18 at school
Suicides of youth
ages 5-18 at school

2014-15

48

47

28
7

20
9

TAKEAWAY: Contrary to popular belief, the number of deaths at school has
not increased significantly in recent years. A snapshot shows the most recent
federal data are comparable to the data from 20 years ago.

93.3
94.1

75.1
80.6
25.4

68.0
67.9
47.4

Enforced a strict
dress code

58.5
53.1

20.6
24.1
24.6
11.8

Required students
to wear uniforms
1994-95

2013-14
2015-16

Random dog sniffs
to check for drugs

LITTLE CHANGE

1999-2000

Percentage of public schools that used selected safety and security measures

Required students
to wear badges
or picture IDs

TAKEAWAY: Since the 1999
shooting at Columbine High School
in Littleton, Colo., a touchstone
for school safety debates, schools
have significantly stepped up
security measures, the federal
data show.

20.4
21.5

3.9

8.9
7.0

7.2
4.2
4.5

Random metal
detector checks
0

20

40

60

PERCENT

The perception that schools are
less safe may be because students
and their parents are more aware
of threats to their safety. In
80
100
2015-16, 95 percent of schools
reported holding lockdown drills
with students.

SOURCE: Indicators of School Crime and Safety 2017

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Education Week - April 11, 2018

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