This qualitative study investigated high school student peer counselors' experience of a mind-body medicine curriculum incorporated into a peer counseling program following a school shooting. A series of focus groups were held with peer counselors in 10th-12th grade (n = 24, mean age = 16.5 [SD = 1.0]; 71% female) participating in the mind-body…

Bullying in schools has received increasing attention since its implication in a number of school-based shooting incidents. A number of protective factors have been identified as reducing risk behaviors such as substance abuse among adolescents. This framework, however, has not been examined with respect to bullying victims. The results of a…

Purpose: PowerPoint presentations have changed representations of knowledge. They represent a social transformation process of communication which is also reflected in social-studies classrooms. Thus, it is important to examine not only how students hold presentations but also to explore the construction of knowledge through presentations: What…

Thirty years ago we would think nothing of driving to school with a jackknife in our pocket or rifle in the gun rack. Since then, the practices of possessing, transporting, and using firearms have been limited by laws, rules, and public perception. Despite restrictions on youth, the Youth Handgun Safety Act does afford 4-H shooting sports members…

Violent writing is a real, yet rarely understood phenomenon in the secondary and post-secondary classroom. The 2007 Virginia Tech shooting tragedy sensationalized violent writing as a marker of disturbed and violent persons. However, violent writing comes in multiple forms and is composed for multiple reasons. As secondary schools wrestle with…

Violence among American youth is a significant societal problem. The past decade witnessed juvenile arrests for violence, weapons, drugs, and curfew violations peak in the mid 90's. Analogous to the arrest trends for older juveniles, the arrest rate for young offenders rose 63% from 1987 until 1994 when it declined slightly. Since that time,…