The student who shot and wounded two students and killed a teacher at Sparks Middle School in Nevada was only 12. When I was 12, my only worries were keeping my room clean and trying to remember how to work the lock on my new locker.
My mother told me that when she was growing up, the entire neighborhood raised her. She would spend the whole day playing outside and wouldn’t come back until the streetlights came on.
These actions are a thing of the past. Parents do not allow their children to roam the neighborhood anymore because people are crazy. Some of the things I hear about in the news today blow my mind. These days, people have to live with the mentality not to put anything past anybody.
At Danvers High School in Massachusetts, a 14-year-old is being charged with the murder of a math teacher, Colleen Ritzer.
I understand that everyone has struggles, but what I do not understand is why children are getting pushed to the point of taking someone’s life.
The children aren’t always to blame. The parents of these young shooters should be investigated. The mentality to kill has to be implemented somewhere in their upbringing. Parents should be talking with their kids and getting an understanding of where their heads are.
These kids didn’t just wake up and randomly decide to commit murder. The thought of killing your teacher is a matter that a child would spend a lot of time contemplating.
There had to have been some signs these students showed before acting out like this. I believe the parents just completely ignored the signs and now are choosing to act oblivious to the entire thing.
Teachers also need to get an understanding of boundaries. They should always maintain a teacher-student relationship and nothing more. If a student is getting out of hand, which I am sure is something that will happen plenty of times, they should know the proper protocol to handle the situation.
I was always taught that I don’t necessarily need to be the hero. I was told if a student is acting irate, do not hesitate to call the authorities. A teacher should never try to take serious matters, such as an out-of-control student, into his or her own hands.
The thing is, you never know what someone else may be going through. Even though people may keep a smile on their faces, you do not know the struggles they may encounter elsewhere. Everyone has hardships. Just be mindful of that when meeting someone new.