Mass School Shootings Argumentative Analysis

Over two thirds of American parents are concerned about their children’s safety at school following the Columbine Massacre (Madfis, 2016) and other high-profile school shootings in the US. Are their concerns justified? Having examined a report by (Borum, Cornell, Modzeleski, & Jimerson, 2010) which addresses this question by reviewing a range of empirical evidence, I feel as though it is safe to say that American schools are safe and the publicity of the rare shooting cases creates a grandiose perception of danger and causes unnecessary fear. The report also explains why there is a miscomprehension regarding the occurrence of school shootings and provides insight on how school shootings could be prevented. The first ‘desperate’ measures following the school shootings were to suggest that teachers should have handguns with them

In the report by (Borum, Cornell, Modzeleski, & Jimerson, 2010), revenge as a cause for school shootings is mentioned and other studies too have shown that students who commit mass murder in schools are often bullied and suffer from rejection in school (Leary, Kowalski, Smith, & Phillips, 2003). In schools there are often a group of popular people who are extroverted and often participate in social events, are well known by others for their charismatic personalities and often good looks. Some students struggle to ‘fit in’ into the school community due to maybe a lack of social skills or lack of confidence. These students are often bullied and teased at school in front of others, therefore suffer from severe rejection and public humiliation (Leary, Kowalski, Smith, & Phillips, 2003). These cases show actual rejection however some students who are more introverted and spend more time alone may feel rejected by other students even if this is not necessarily the case and they are simply withdrawing themselves from the school