Teachers: 4 Steps to Fill Gaps in Your School’s Crisis Prevention Plan

Not every educator works at a school that’s taken every possible precaution to secure their campus. How can teachers protect themselves and their students from unpredictable situations until their school district implements more comprehensive measures?

Here are 4 tips to creating the safest possible learning environment in your classroom:

 

1. Take a Stance on Bullying on Day One

Bullying is a crisis affecting schools across the country. Watch how one teacher takes a proactive approach:

2. Build Rapport with Your Students

Using non-confrontational classroom management strategies, educators can build relationships with even the toughest groups of students. Not only can these techniques eliminate the time and stress of trying to control a rowdy class, following these will ensure that students who are under stress or depressed feel comfortable disclosing their situation.

3. Talk About Red Flags & Warning Signs

Most of the violent attacks in schools over the past decade were committed by students who telegraphed their intentions beforehand—and possibly could have been prevented. A comprehensive report on warning signs has been made available to educators in this downloadable guide provided by the FBI.

However, teachers can’t be expected to catch every possible “red flag” behavior, and can depend on students to help identify warning signs. Below is a list of behaviors you can ask your students to watch out for:

Notable change in academic performance – poor or inconsistent preparation Overly aggressive behaviors towards others; inability to set limits or redirect focus Writings and comments endorsing violence; unusual interest in violence Indirect or direct threats in writings or verbalization Lack of empathy and concern for others, inability to care Appearance of being overly nervous, tense or tearful Expression of suicidal thoughts or feelings of hopelessness Impairment of thoughts – verbal or written

Inappropriate or strange behavior Low frustration tolerance Overreaction to circumstances Lack of resiliency Anger management problems Threats to others Notable change in behavior or appearance Poor decision-making and coping skills

4. Let Students Know About Available Resources

In many instances, a student who initiated violence had previously have shown signs of depression or other stress. Unfortunately, not every school has counseling services readily available for students.

If your school does not offer mental health services or you know that a student is unlikely to reach out to a counselor, online resources can be helpful. The U.S. Department of Health Services has an extensive resource center for educators regarding student mental health.

While these tips are great for improvements, they certainly do not cover every area of school safety. Therefore, if you have any other school safety tips to share with fellow educators, please let us know!