Where Do I Go From Here

It's been one month since I had a student threaten to kill me. I've had a lot of time to reflect on the situation. I don't know what sort of long-term impact it will have on me. Initially, I thought that teaching was not for me anymore. Then, I had colleagues tell me that they had been threatened. I was shocked that so many teachers had been through something similar in the past. Although, it was inspiring to know that others have been able to come back from something like.

I've had some time off. The position I was subbing for was filled. Now I'm subbing for a lady on maternity leave. I still do not feel safe in the building. I continue to scan rooms and look around in the halls. Even though I do not feel as safe as I would like, I've found that I missed being able to teach students.

I devoted my blog to looking school violence issues. I research a number of preventative measures. The most important thing I've learned is that you cannot take anything for granted. Grade point average and discipline record in no way indicates how sincere a threat of violence is.

This has not been an entirely negative experience for me. I've seen how wonderful the staff is that I get to work with. They have given me so much support. I could not imagine working with another group of people. I'm growing as a person and as an educator. Specifically, I've chose to no longer be naive. I'm making a concentrated effort to be aware of my surroundings. I realize that there is no foolproof safety measure a school can take to deter violence, unless we turn our work environments into a prison. We can't control the mindset and behavior of others. We can, however, control ours. I know I've got to remain positive and empower myself to be vigilant in paying attention to the things that go on around me.

Thanks for listening. I've enjoyed blogging about school violence. I hope you've learned something that will be useful in the future.