Tag Archive for ‘violence’ at The Core Knowledge Blog

Tag Archive for 'violence'

“Conclusive Evidence” of Harmful Effects of Violent Video Games

Published by Robert Pondiscio on November 3, 2008 in Research and Reports. 9 Comments

Research in the U.S. and Japan indicates children who play violent video games show increased physical aggression months afterward. The study in the journal Pediatrics examined the content of games, how often they are played and aggressive behaviors later in a school year.

Craig A. Anderson, a psychology professor at Iowa State University said the study shows a similiar effect in both countries. “When you find consistent effects across two very different cultures, you’re looking at a pretty powerful phenomenon,” he tells the Washington Post. “One can no longer claim this is somehow a uniquely American phenomenon. This is a general phenomenon that occurs across cultures.”

The study in the United States showed an increased likelihood of getting into a fight at school or being identified by a teacher or peer as being physically aggressive five to six months later in the same school year, the Post reports.

“We now have conclusive evidence that playing violent video games has harmful effects on children and adolescents,” Anderson said.

A Slow Motion Train Wreck

Published by Robert Pondiscio on August 10, 2008 in No category. 2 Comments

A fight after school in Florida leaves one middle schooler dead, and and his classmate facing a stark choice: a 10 year sentence for manslaughter or a trial for second-degree murder. The Ledger, a newspaper in Lakeland, Florida, looks at the background of the two boys. This troubling story of uprooted lives, absentee parents, racial tensions, illness and crime is like watching a slow-motion train wreck.

The role of the school in this story is limited to a single paragraph in which school officials say “it wasn’t a race thing. It was a kid thing, a pride thing, a turf thing. Fights are common in middle school.” The lives of these two boys are by no means remarkable by the standards of inner city youth. Thus the unasked question in this story: Do schools have a role in preventing events like this from occuring? What is the lesson to be learned here?

Culture of Acceptance

Published by Robert Pondiscio on April 15, 2008 in Opinion and Teaching. 1 Comment

“There is a culture of acceptance towards violence in the city’s public schools. Administrators, faculty, and staff shake their heads in disbelief, but do nothing to change the broader picture,” writes former Baltimore middle school teacher Julia A. Gumminger in a piece on the Baltimore Chronicle and Sentinel’s web site. “Staff members look the other way when violent incidents such as rioting and fighting happen. ‘It’s just the way things are’ is a common phrase spoken in the hallways. Student-on-student fights happen daily, and now student-on-teacher assaults are happening more often.”

Gumminger writes about her experience in Baltimore, but it will sound familiar to any teacher at a failing city school. When I was punched by a 4th grade boy last year, the consequence was to be screamed at by the AP about the need to be more understanding. At least that was my consequence. The student was sent back to his classroom. Gumminger goes on at dispiriting length describing conditions in her school. It’s not pleasant reading, but it’s important.

“These are our schools, where our children go to learn. How can any child learn in an environment like this?!” she asks. “How can we sit by, and let an entire city’s population of children go uneducated? How can we accept this culture of violence as “just the way it is”? We need to collectively decide that enough is enough, and make a conscious effort to stop accepting this. Until we do, our city (and others) will continue to lose great teachers, and our children will continue to be on the receiving end of the biggest injustice in this nation.”

You’ve heard it before? You can’t hear it enough.