VIOLENCE IN SCHOOLS

What are your memories of elementary school? Talk with your partner(s)
about the following:

• First day • Break time / Play time

• Uniform • Best friends

• School lunches • Homework

• Favorite teacher • Bad kids

The following are examples of bad behavior at elementary school. Did you see
or experience any of these? What would you do if these happened at
your child’s school?

• Bullying • Drink and drugs

• Attacks on teachers • Stabbing

• Graffiti • Gun crime

• Smoking • Vandalism

Do you agree with these answers to violence in elementary schools? Work in

pairs and explain your answer: write it on your notebook.

a. All classrooms should have web cameras so parents can watch their
children.
b. Schools should order all bad kids to leave the school forever.
c. Parents of bullied children can sue the bully’s parents.
d. Teachers should receive better training to manage bad kids.
e. Parents of bad children should have their names published in local
newspapers.
f. Parents must pay a fine for their child’s bad behavior.
 g. Well-behaved children can give punishments to badly behaved children.
h. Teachers who cannot control their classrooms should be fired.

Violence in Japan’s elementary schools

Japanese elementary school children are ________ more violent. past

A government report shows that the number of cases of violence respect

________ to a record 1,890 during the ________ school year. This
lack
________ the previous record of 1,600 cases set in 2003. This is
becoming
worrying for Japanese ________ who are used to a well-behaved
citizens
society. Schoolchildren are traditionally famous for their good
violence
behavior and ________ for teachers. A government spokesman

said the ________ is because children have “difficulties expressing rose

their feelings” or “________ patience”. broke

Attacks against teachers ________ nearly 33 per cent to 336 cases get

during the latest school year. The government report stated: stabbings
“Children easily ________ their tempers because of ________
longer
things and quickly turned to violence.” This included ________ and
lost
destruction of school property. Worried parents ________ in the
stayed
classroom and watched their own children in one school to try and
committed
________ students to study. Teachers have said they no ________

know how to control many children. Police statistics show serious jumped

crimes ________ by children are increasing. trivial

1. TRUE / FALSE:
a A lot of violent crime has hit Japan’s schools this week. T/F
.
b There are record levels of violence in Japan’s elementary schools. T/F
.
c. Japanese elementary schoolchildren are usually well behaved. T/F
d The government said the violence is because of video games. T/F
.
e Teachers jumped after children attacked them. T/F
.
f. Children lost their tempers over trivial things. T/F
g Worried parents have fitted classrooms with web cameras. T/F
.
h Police statistics show children are committing more crimes. T/F
.

BAD BEHAVIOR: In pairs / groups / decide who should be punished in the

following cases of ten-year-old students being violent. What should the
punishments be?

CASE CHILD PARENT TEACHER

A child throws a chair at a

teacher. The chair misses.

A child throws a chair at a

teacher and breaks the
teacher’s nose.

A child attacks a classmate with

a hammer. No serious injuries.

A bully’s victim attacks him with

a hammer. The bully is seriously
injured.

A child sets his / her class on

fire.

A bully causes a classmate to

commit suicide.

One child’s bad behavior mans

his classmates fall far behind
with their studies.

A child kills a classmate with a

knife.