School Shooters

School shooters while very covert in thought, are easy to find. If the administration staff watches the behaviors of the children in the environment, then they will notice a difference.

Children who are taking abuse in an environment will act in avoidance tactics, they will have defined safe zones in the school, and paths to follow. A child that gets surrounded by peers to get beat up, isn't simply a sign of one instance, it has been ongoing for years by that point. It is very easy to see a child who suddenly does something different, and learns to avoid people, and areas. Did the student come up to a T intersection of the school and look down one way before going further.

When they wait outside a door do they look at the door waiting to get in, or act nervous fiddling with the door knob. Did you notice something was different in what they did today, rather than yesterday. The simple fact is, a student who becomes the threat to the school has learned to formulate when to leave class, learns to isolate well, and learns to shut you out. If you find a student who won't talk, and I don't care comes out of their mouth, they are hiding something. When a school starts to suspect with boys, and it has gone on for years, notebooks are a great place to start looking for a hitlist.

Secondly, the child when observed either in the counselors office, or other places may shut the door. Schools have to get a clue, they isolate to not exist, and if they do that your school could be in danger. Another thing with students that are edgy, is that they don't like to be touched or patted on the shoulder repeatedly. They are more nervous, and it disrupts their ability to focus on the environment for cues. When you look at a child who is tormented every day, you will notice they stare off into space, out the window, or always at the same thing. You could probably wave your hand in front of their face and they are just not there. Flashbacks happen in children starting around kindergarden, but they are very brief, and as time goes on they develop the ability to store more information. It is so crucial that the school recognizes a child who is being abused, to stop the cycle.

Children can be misdiagnosed for learning problems due to this same abuse. Their mind is trying to process a ton of saved information, the only problem is that they cannot find the answers, and further lack the database of knowledge to deal with it. Their happy thoughts get repressed, to allow room for the incoming thoughts, and flashbacks. Around 9th grade is the area of noticeability, and anger will come out. Some students who suddenly get into trouble, may be looking for a way out of the situation they can't handle. It is not surprising that children don't speak up, and I don't blame them.

Society today, is one that supports and promotes bullying activity, but in the end when something tragic happens, the community ends up suffering the price. They play the blame game, when all it really took was for someone to pay attention. Around 10th grade is typically when hit lists are formed, and poems as well indicating suicidal tendencies. If a school really looks for the traits of child abuse, they will start to get a better overall picture of what is happening. Halls don't have to become zones, and it is easy to find those that wait to leave until it is safer. Everyday, I hear excuses, and I see them as just that.