School kids becoming more violent

[Ewok85]

School kids becoming more violent

Public elementary school children committed a record 1,777 violent acts in the 2003 academic year, the education ministry said Friday.

The Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry said the number was up 27.6 percent from the previous school year and included acts of violence committed both on and off school grounds.

http://www.japantimes.com/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20040828f2.htm

Errgh... battle royale started like this :souka:

[TyPe-ZeRo]

also volcano high... except without the magical powers, or without the needless matrix "bullet-time" thing

[sabian]

But, this problem is universal, no?

[b0rdpladen]

Very universal indeed I think.. Here in Denmark it is anyways..

[blessed]

now here is an incentive and reason to learn... Kung Fu... haha :D.

[openup]

Isn't it the lack of parent education they have at home?
Parents of bad boys/girls should be jailed just like in Britain...

[TwistedMac]

My theory is our lives are too good these days..

we have time to go around and think about hurting people and stuff.

not alot of people had that when everyone had to work the farm =P

[Kamisama]

yeah.. times on the farm. Slaughtering cows in the shed, skinning, butchering them. Mom always coming into the bathroom to assume me of shaking the right hand of satan

[Toshi]

geez you guys are so suprised go to the ghettos of L.A. or all of the U.S. they do worse but thats my opinion

[Uchite]

Whatever happened to using the shinai to beat some respect and obedience into these little so & so's, and to do stop them from ever doing such things again?
Whatever happened to a good old stinging slap in the face as used so often by the Japanese Military during the World War II days? :japanese:
I don't mean to be extreme here, but these kids who are causing all this trouble in Japan have no respect for anyone or anything. They need immediate punishment and correction if they are indeed guilty.

America could follow this advice too!

[yamada]

When I was in elementary school, a teacher had a shinai to obey all of us in our classroom. When I was in junior high school, a teacher always slaps one student in the face to whom the teacher said why you stared at me. When I was in high school, a teacher who took charge of my class stopped slapping in the faces of us, as he was told not to by the principal because of pressures from PTA. It was all around from early in the '70s to the middle in the '80s. But now, a friend of mine complained that all of them knew that any teacher could use no violence to them at all. Most of the problems which happened so often by teachers in old days have already cured, but some parents have gotten worse.

[Reiku]

Hmm, I can't say how it is in Japan, but in the US juvinile crime has actually been in decline for years--despite what you hear on the news.

I was shocked when I found this out, because everyone seems to "know" that it's getting worse--they even pass new laws referring to the rise in violence--but then I saw the FBI's official chart of violence among people under 18 in the US, and it's showed a steady decline over the last 20 years or so...

...I'll see if I can find that article and those charts, but is it possible the same thing is happening in Japan?

[pipokun]

Actually, it's the same here.
It seems there are tons of juvenile crimes here, but...

[Dutch Baka]

Parents are to nice for their children, when a teacher say something bad to a child, even if it sometimes is no you can't do this bla bla bla, a parent start complaining.

But it is sad, and children need to learn more respect in some countries.

[ArmandV]

I would surmise that the problem with juveniles are one or more of the following:

1. Poor parenting.
2. Poor school discipline.
3. No activity outlets for kids.
4. Peer pressure.
5. Rotten kids.

[epigene]

I would surmise that the problem with juveniles are one or more of the following:
1. Poor parenting.
2. Poor school discipline.
3. No activity outlets for kids.
4. Peer pressure.
5. Rotten kids.
Absolutely right!! :cool:
Changes here in Japan reminds me of how things changed in US schools from the 1950s until today.

[ArmandV]

Absolutely right!! :cool:
Changes here in Japan reminds me of how things changed in US schools from the 1950s until today.

Quite! Only it just took the Japanese a lot longer to get to that point.

[Color red]

But, this problem is universal, no?

In japan, kids are aggresive against their own people. If you are gaijin, kids usually don't waste time.
:blush:

[kooo]

I think the problem probably isn't discipline. It's easy to brush it off as that, but there's probably something deeper than that. Maybe more Japanese children are becoming discontent with their lives or maybe the world in general is becoming more and more desensitized towards violence.

[Mike Cash]

You write very eloquently for a nine year old. Home-schooled?

[ArmandV]

I think the problem probably isn't discipline. It's easy to brush it off as that, but there's probably something deeper than that. Maybe more Japanese children are becoming discontent with their lives or maybe the world in general is becoming more and more desensitized towards violence.

What does the word discipline mean to you? There is much more to it than paddle-wacking some unruly kid's fanny.

[kooo]

What does the word discipline mean to you? There is much more to it than paddle-wacking some unruly kid's fanny.
Well, perhaps you could explain your views on discipline to me. I'll admit it's a subject I am ignorant about, unfortunatley.

[taehyun]

Each culture has different concept of discipline.
For a Japanese, for a Korean and for a Chinese discipline has different meaning.
Based on my observations, when there is a rule that forbids something,my Japanese colleague says:" I want to break it, but the authority A or B has put it, so ...", because Japanese respect authorities.
My Chinese colleague says "It is OK to violate the rule, if noone's around"
But my Korean colleagues, esp men with 2 years in the army, even don't discuss it.Women, however, often react like the Japanese.
Obviously, Americans also have different concept for discipline. Some Koreans living in the US, told me that they have had problems with that, like not discussing an order, respect towards the older person or the boss in a company...
I think it is best to leave Japanese teachers to decide what is discipline for the Japanese children within the Japanese society.

[bexchurnside]

Whatever happened to using the shinai to beat some respect and obedience into these little so & so's, and to do stop them from ever doing such things again?
Whatever happened to a good old stinging slap in the face as used so often by the Japanese Military during the World War II days? :japanese:
I don't mean to be extreme here, but these kids who are causing all this trouble in Japan have no respect for anyone or anything. They need immediate punishment and correction if they are indeed guilty.
America could follow this advice too!


Wow, I thought all Japanese had courtesy, respect, and honour. As an English lady, I must say that Japanese are definately refined enough if not more than we are, and the English see you Japanese in a very positive light as being civilized people of high culture.

Each culture has different concept of discipline.
For a Japanese, for a Korean and for a Chinese discipline has different meaning.
Based on my observations, when there is a rule that forbids something,my Japanese colleague says:" I want to break it, but the authority A or B has put it, so ...", because Japanese respect authorities.
My Chinese colleague says "It is OK to violate the rule, if noone's around"
But my Korean colleagues, esp men with 2 years in the army, even don't discuss it.Women, however, often react like the Japanese.
Obviously, Americans also have different concept for discipline. Some Koreans living in the US, told me that they have had problems with that, like not discussing an order, respect towards the older person or the boss in a company...
I think it is best to leave Japanese teachers to decide what is discipline for the Japanese children within the Japanese society.

Maybe throwing them into the Jietai would straighten them up. These chaps could use some military discipline. Fortunately, they would not have to shoot anyone, and they would only be doing good community service. How are the laws there in Japan? Are they tougher than England and Canada, or are they more lenient?

[Goldiegirl]

Part of the problem in the US is we have to make everyone feel good and not hurt their self esteem. The teachers where my nieces and nephews go to school can't even correct the assignments with a red pen as that as seen as to negative and harsh. Also the school system keeps the unruly and disruptive children in the regular classrooms with the children who behave because they said they don't want to intrude on the civil liberties of the misbehaving children and get charged with discrimination.

[nurizeko]

Seems developed natinos are somehow failing their youth, the UK and America has problems with violent youths aswell, and then the majority of kids who behave themselves are demonised along with the little punk underclass, because the media likes nothing better then a story to make adults fear the younguns.

I can only emagine the knida reaction I would get from wearing a hoody simply because its an item of clothing I own, and visiting a relative in an old folks home, or going into a shop or whatever.

We had a shopping centre here that actually banned kids with hoodies from the entire mall.

[Uchite]

Part of the problem in the US is we have to make everyone feel good and not hurt their self esteem. The teachers where my nieces and nephews go to school can't even correct the assignments with a red pen as that as seen as to negative and harsh. Also the school system keeps the unruly and disruptive children in the regular classrooms with the children who behave because they said they don't want to intrude on the civil liberties of the misbehaving children and get charged with discrimination.
EXACTLY! Thank you! :bow:

[Qu_Qu]

bullying at school is a serious issue in japan

[tigi]

My theory is our lives are too good these days..
we have time to go around and think about hurting people and stuff.
not alot of people had that when everyone had to work the farm =P
LOL times on the farm were too bad man.
Ppl actually dont need to be worried about beeing killed in a street (its so strange that in 3million ppl u die cause a criminal thought u looked bat at him).
In the past u could kill someone that is living in front of u cause u are afraid with him man.
The ppl in these times had to worry about having the minimum to eat.
Now u can find a job and u get payed. u can buy ur fkin dvd or ur pc.

[sonieb33]

It is hard for me to believe that it is so hard to comprehend what makes kids go wrong.

I am the mother of 4 children: ages 22, 19, 16 and 13.

I ALSO have a B.A.S in Criminal Justice specializing in Juvenile Justice and...

I work as a Youth Specialist at a juvenile program just outside of Detroit, Michigan.

I list my credentials in this order because I believe you can have a Doctorate in child behavior and/or psychology and STILL fail as a parent: "the proof is in the pudding" so to speak...and having three teenagers at once is truly a test of any parent.

Being a youth specialist allows me to not only test my theories on a regular basis, but to "fix" kids whose parents make the same mistakes over and over and over again. By fearing being "mean" or just being just plain LAZY parents allow kids to run the household and raise themselves (or each other).

Yes, I FIX the kids YOU SCREW UP!

Which brings me to the connection between the former and Japan:

I ALSO have a best friend whose husband was transferred here from Japan to the US almost 2 years ago (in August) with an infant in tow.

Her and I formed a very quick and close friendship...we consider ourselves "sisters" (we were born two days apart). THE ONLY thing which has ever disturbed me about my friend is that she NEVER sets up boundaries for her child and absolutely NEVER disciplines her.

I sat just today and watched the child hitting and punching her mother in the face and all her mother did was try to block the blows: one hit her squarely in the eye and had to hurt more than a little.
This is to mention only ONE of the horrible things this child is "ALLOWED" to do on a regular basis. I cannot comprehend THIS!! I asked another Japanese friend (my Japanese language teacher AND friend), who has been here (in the US) for 8 years, about this and she said this is common in Japan: kids will be off in the corner setting fire to the house and parents are calmly chatting with one another as if the kids don't even exist (this is a slight exaggeration, but you get the picture).

My friend is beside herself about what to do. She cannot take her child out of the house because she is unable to act like a human being. She's ended up putting her in daycare as much as possible because this kid is driving her crazy!! She keeps asking me if my kids acted this way and, trying to be polite, I don't quite answer straight because the answer is a very firm "NO!" When my kids went out of the house they knew how to behave; if they acted up they were punished - end of story. She cannot comprehend my raising 4 all at once when she cannot even control one...and I can see why. My kids are all 3 years apart so they were all young at the same time, so if even ONE of my kids were like hers I doubt if we would have survived.

I told her today that if her child is allowed to punch her in the face today, without being stopped, when she is 13 she will STILL be doing it. What will change? I usually keep my mouth shut, but when I saw her jack her in the jaw I was indignant. WHY, DOES SHE ALLOW THIS?? This is doing no-one any good at all!! This child is spoiled as well as the other Japanese families which I have met through her...one family stopped in at her house one day and the two kids promply began CLIMBING ON HER HALF WALL AND JUMPING OFF down to the level below (about a 4 foot drop)!! The parents just kept talking as if nothing was happening. Not only were they endangering their ownselves, but they were teaching HER 2 year old how to get onto the half wall and jump off, which could have been fatal for HER (the two year old immediately picked it up and began doing the same thing...whereas my friend had to chase her until both mother and child were ready to drop - which taught nothing to anyone) BUT no-body did or SAID anything to the two brats who were doing it to start with. I seemed to be the only person who was noticing. I stood there in awe as this was happening and it was clear to me that this was not an isolated incident.

I don't mean to say that you MUST SPANK your children, but what I'm saying is that you MUST WIN somehow...you MUST define limits and you MUST be able to defend those limits EVERY TIME! This carries on to every authority figure throughout that child's life. A child must NOT be allowed to do anything he or she desires and must not be allowed to run the household. Children do not feel "safe" if they do not have boundaries, just like we would not feel safe if our houses lacked doors and windows. This lack of security ushers in a plethora of mental and emotional problems.

For me there is NO WONDER why Japan's kids are getting worse and worse. In the 1950's the US went through the exact same thing, the sixties were the result...and some of the highest crime rates in history followed for the next 30 years until some brave souls stood up and spoke the truth about the necessities of firm discipline.

Watch Nanny 911 or Supernanny to see exactly what I'm talking about...shoot! Watch the "Dog Whisperer" for pete sake (sorry, but Ceasar uses the EXACT same concept which works for child rearing). No need to beat them, just win SOMEHOW!

Like I said before, the proof is in the pudding: do you know anyone who has "good" kids? do what they do... ASK THEM WHAT THEY DO!

NEVER and I mean NEVER spank a child for doing something which is merely irresponsible. Irresponsibility cannot be corrected by force...it must be acquired!! It's like learning to play the violin, you cannot force someone to learn it they must be shown and they must apply this themselves.

JUSTICE is very important for kids: if you are too lazy to judge who did what then find someone who isn't. Injustice breeds contempt - you DO NOT want your child to feel contempt for you!! He will lose respect, and honestly if you're too lazy to mete out justice then you don't DESERVE to be respected!

WE are the ONLY chance our children have!! They have ONE chance to learn good character and it is OUR job to nurture good character. If our kids are bad, it's OUR fault, not the school's or the government's or "nature" or because they didn't get a nap. When I don't get a nap, it's not ok for me to punch people, so why would it be ok for Susie?

Do you want to know HOW "Youth Specialists" turn screwed up kids around?

We give them limits and boundaries - we stand firmly and fairly. The rules are simple, logical and spelled out in detail before hand. This makes unstable kids feel secure and "safe"...because their life is now "predictable". This is EXACTLY what their parents failed to do for them at home; which is also sometimes why they relapse as soon as they return home.

Honestly, we have both abused/neglected kids AND spoiled ones, and I will tell you the truth - the "spoiled" ones USUALLY are beyond all help. I have NEVER seen violent youth like the ones who are coddled and spoiled - given everything they ever wanted and NEVER told "no"; who run their homes and their parents like German dictators and whom their parents are afraid of.

My friend's daughter already fits this profile and she's only 2 years old.

Because of my background I'm very very worried about their future.

I haven't said any of this to my friend, I'm too afraid that I will offend her...even though she MUST feel that I know what I'm talking about since I have so much experience. Still, parenting is a touchy subject, no-one takes parenting advice very well, if it's contrary to what they're currently doing. I will never understand this, but it is the truth.

Sorry this post is so long!

Sonieb33

[Pepe]

Thanks for the post Sonieb33, I wholeheartedly agree with you.
I am not a parent myself (yet - but doesn't stop my girlfriend and I trying ;) ), yet I have always understood that there are boundaries thanks to my mum. She did one hell of a job as a single parent considering that neither my little brother or I have ever been in jail, and only got into fights protecting other people. Key to her success was the fact that she made it clear that there were rules which must be adhered to, because to not do so carried negative consequences, but to do so had positive consequences (or neutral - but neutral vs. negative is positive if you get my drift).
Having learnt this early on I have applied this successfully in my life, because society only functions because we have rules and boundaries. Children need to learn this key lesson too, and failure to do so results in little s**ts who do everything they shouldn't - and you believe me that their behaviour doesn't change when they 'grow-up', because they don't magically absorb from the universe social knowledge which should be imparted by parents.
Although, considering I'm not a parent yet, I guess I should keep my mouth shut (*_*)

[KirinMan]

Also the school system keeps the unruly and disruptive children in the regular classrooms with the children who behave because they said they don't want to intrude on the civil liberties of the misbehaving children and get charged with discrimination.

Goldiegirl you are talking about Japan here right?






Oops this was in America, geez something about this statement sounds so familiar to schools here in Japan as well.:p

[hideway]

This is all fault of this crapy rap generation.
When you see kids like this you know something is terrible wrong.

[Pepe]

This is all fault of this crapy rap generation.
When you see kids like this you know something is terrible wrong.

It's funny because it's true. I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

[KirinMan]

This is all fault of this crapy rap generation.
When you see kids like this you know something is terrible wrong.

Sounds quite similar to what parents and "old" folks were saying about Elvis back in the 1950's. Ironic isn't it?:souka:

[Pepe]

Yeah, but the thing is that rap/hip hop tends to embrace a violent way of life. I won't go so far as saying it glorifies it, but rap/hip hop culture (in general) does more than condone it. Just look at the lyrics, and the actions (rappers getting gunned down, this whole East coast/West coast crap), the derogatory positioning of women and so on and so forth. I used to work as a bouncer during my first year at uni and found that fights almost exclusively 'broke out' in a club when hip-hop/r'n'b/rap was being played. The same club later in the evening, even though the same patrons were present (and more intoxicated) would be a safe and enjoyable environment as long as the music stayed away from the aforementioned genres. Sure my evidence is both anecdotal and correlational (correlation does not imply causation), I do, however, feel there is some truth to it.

[pipokun]

We even have color gangs, but they are cute here.

[SushiShin]

lol speakin of Battle Royale I and II they are great movies or Volcano High the korean movie is good too, but a Must See Dorama for this is Gokusen, a serie where the Teacher is violent but she means it al well because she decided to be teacher and not the follower of yakuza :cool:

[maushan3]

Rap music is not the cause of this so-called violent behavior. Rap music is just an excuse to do this behavior. Would there be no Hip-Hop music, there would still be violence, just that it would be 'triggered' by something else. People are violent by nature, just like animals, it's an instinct and will always find a way to get their anger out.

Parents need to educate their kids for them to know that the gangsta culture they see in videos and listen to in the lyrics and tell them that what rap music portrays, the carnal pleasures are just but a fantasy. See, I, for one, like hip-hop music, and that doesn't mean that I will be tempted to buy a gun and kill some people over some drugs.

Mauricio

[g7enn]

Television contributes to aggressive behavior and decreases learning in school.

In the US:

How many minutes per week do parents spend in
meaningful conversation with their kids? My guess:
5 minutes minutes a day or 35 minutes per week.
Answer: 3.5 minutes per week.

What is the percentage of 4-6 year olds that would
rather spend their time watching TV than with their dad?
My guess: 25%. Answer: 54%

Guess the number of murders a child sees a year
before leaving grade school and then by 18 years of age?
My answer: 9,000 by end of grade school and 18,000 by
18 years of age. Answer: 8,000 and 200,000!

Guess the number of junk food ads seen in 4 hours of
cartoons on a typical Saturday morning and the number
of ads children see in a year? My guesses: 100 & 1,100.
Answers: 200 & 20,000!

It directly interferes with cognition, both emotionally,
via the negative feelings that interfere with learning,
and, also, behaviorally. Emotionally, the aggressive and
anxious feelings stimulated by TV interfere with kid's
ability to think clearly.

The youth suicide rate has increased about 300% since
1950. This coincides with the increase in TV watching.
Psychiatrist Milton Hershey, of the Penn State Medical
Center, has found that teen suicide rates the past 40 years
have matched the explosive rise of television. Could this
be due to TV generated emotional child abuse?

Researchers, also, discovered that the suicide-TV link was
stronger than the association of suicide with other factors
like alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, or total drug use. For more information
google: parenting-healthy-children emotional-child-abuse

[Pepe]

Correlation does not imply causation.

Just because the statistics support the idea of a correlation between T.V. and teen suicide etc. doesn't mean that T.V. is to blame - I firmly believe the issue is that kids are not getting enough quality time with their parents and as such look for something to do. Grabbing the telly remote is easier than being sent outside to play with your mates (although in our PC world playing outside = too many dangers, and as such it is better to isolate individuals), and as long as parents are not able, and in too many cases not willing, to uphold their duty as a parent, they will sit in front of the telly.
I would rather see qualitative data than quantitative, because the stats only describe a trend, but don't help in explaining it.