If you do, you're taking your eye off the ball. The Education Department notes that the incidence of violence has been dropping steadily since 1995-96, when a record 49 deaths were reported. The department classifies rape, sexual assault, robbery and aggravated assault as serious violent crimes. Proportionally, nine of every 1,000 students were the victim of a serious violent crime during the 1997-98 school year. The Labor Department lists 22,382 nonfatal incidents of violence in the workplace for 1998, less than a tenth of the number experienced in schools.
Kids have to learn behavior has consequences.
Such concerns are overblown, according to Kenneth Trump, whose company, National School Safety and Security Services, trains schools in running the drills. He notes that assaults on schools that end without casualties do not get national attention, but still underscore the necessity of drills. They emerged unharmed. We don't complain about security at Disneyland, and it's filled with kids. Copyright 2001 Associated Press.