Students' attacks on teachers on rise

In January, a 6-year-old Virginia student shot his teacher, nearly killing her. Then in February, a Florida student stomped on a teacher's aide over a Nintendo Switch. And in April, a Texas high school student punched his teacher after being told not to use his cellphone in class.

Such violence by students against educators has been on the rise across the United States, as students return to in-person learning after studying online for a year during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Some observers blame lax discipline in school, some point to the pandemic's psychological impact on students and some blame parents for always being on their children's side. Regardless of the cause, it seems that teaching has become a hazardous profession in the US today.

At the Newport News School in Virginia, the 6-year-old student brought a 9mm semi-automatic pistol to class and intentionally shot teacher Abigail Zwerner. The bullet punctured her left hand, striking through to her chest. She had to undergo multiple surgeries.

In Matanzas High School in Florida's Flagler County, 17-year-old, 270-pound student Brendan Depa assaulted Joan Naydich, a teacher's aide, pushing her to the floor because she took away his game console. The student pushed her so hard that Naydich, physically much smaller than Depa, was knocked unconscious.

Depa then stomped on her, and bent down to punch Naydich in the body and back of the head approximately 18 times. He tried to kick her, while being pulled away by school staff members.

In Houston's Lamar High School, a 15-year-old student was using his cellphone and refused to participate in a theater class. When teacher Steve Carpentier told him that he could not use his phone in class and requested that he hand it over, the student punched him in the face. The student had been suspended for fighting shortly before the incident.

Educators across the country have said that such violent incidents directed toward them have increased since schools resumed in-person teaching post-pandemic.

Verbal harassment

A survey conducted last year by the American Psychological Association revealed that one-third of teachers reported that they had experienced at least one incident of verbal harassment or threat of violence from students.

In the survey of nearly 15,000 primary school administrators, teachers and counselors, about 18 percent of school psychologists and social workers, 15 percent of school administrators and 22 percent of other school staff members reported at least one incident of student violence.

The survey found that 72 percent of teachers said they find work stressful, compared to 38 percent before the pandemic.

Nearly half of the teachers surveyed — 49 percent — were contemplating quitting or changing their jobs.

In a New York Post report, Daniel Buck said he quit working at a public school in Wisconsin to work at a Christian school, adding that the policies adopted by school boards meant that schools "without boundaries and consequences "were "descending into chaos".

Buck was referring to a new practice of school discipline called restorative justice, which is a gentler approach to student discipline, and typically involves fewer school suspensions or expulsions. It focuses on mediation and agreement rather than punishment, by having students meet with those whom their actions have affected, to talk about their issues, or to meet with counselors to reach a solution.

Charles White, a writer and teacher living in the Midwest, has witnessed violent acts against teachers.

"I've seen a teacher bitten. I've witnessed teachers being pushed. I've watched teachers have tables thrown at them," he wrote on the online publishing platform Medium.

White believes lack of academic achievement is the root cause of student violence and that the pandemic has only exacerbated the problem. "Looking back on the past three years, I believe school violence will continue to rise," he wrote.

Agencies contributed to this story.