The first order of the day

There is trepidation in schools now. What used to be stories we heard from abroad are now brought to local attention.

The first recorded school assault in the United States was the Enoch Brown School massacre in 1764, which was more of a socio-cultural conflict that targeted the school. Teacher Enoch Brown and 10 students became easy symbols of a societal concern. It is attributed more to war atrocities then rather than bullying, as most cases have occurred only in the recent past.

A CNN report from the United States shows that in 2026, there have already been 30 incidents of school shootings, and the school year in our country has just about started. More disturbing is the record in 2023, which shows 84 incidents in the US.

In our country, there is a very low incidence of violence on campuses. Not really because there have been none—albeit a few—but because most of the school violence recorded relates to gang wars and bullying, which often happen off campus, and some are politically motivated. There are more incidents of self-inflicted harm due to bullying than injuries toward others.

Nevertheless, this points to the psyche of our students today and the type of influence our teachers and school administrators have on them. Discipline seems very hard to impose in schools. Teachers who form a discipline committee are often stressed by the fact that parents tend to take the side of their child when a misdemeanor is committed.

The Parents-Teachers Association (PTA), or the Parents, Teachers and Community Association (PTCA), as they call it now, seems to have no teeth in ensuring that disciplinary measures are implemented and not just documented on paper.

The guidance offices are not conducive to student consultations and counseling, considering that they do not even have adequate privacy, let alone the right ambiance for relaxed and open communication. Our schools are cramped and hectic. Our teachers are flustered by the many reports they have to make aside from their lessons and grades, let alone subject preparations. Plus, they have to cope with the overwhelming demand of technology that updates faster than the absorptive capacity of the already loaded teacher.

In the process, students who bicker in school and whose conflicts eventually escalate to bullying are not noticed. Moreover, security measures are not enough, as inspections are sometimes deemed privacy intrusions and safe space violations.

In an article by Sanjana Gupta, “How to Identify and Prevent School Violence Before It Begins” (Very Well Mind, February 4, 2026), the author states that school violence can take the following forms: physical, psychological, sexual, bullying, and cyberbullying. Physical violence can manifest not just in crimes like shooting but also in damage to property, physical aggression, theft, and even arson. Psychological violence impinges on emotional or verbal abuse. These two main causes spill over into the succeeding violations of peace and harmony in a child’s or a person’s well-being.

But it is not only students who are susceptible to these disruptions. Even teachers and school staff get a dose of abuse from students, fellow workers, administrators, parents, and the community.

There is a need for dialogue, deeper consultation, and openness of mind to help each other keep order and peace in institutions where we leave our children for at least a third of the day. There is a need for more engagement of students in character development and physical and emotional expression that will help them grow mature and discerning so that they may make the right choices in whatever they are exposed to—whether through media in all its forms or their experiences. Then there should be an appropriate venue in schools for this: the right structures that are conducive and reassuring. These should take top priority in the order of the day and in the design of our educational system. And should I say, so help us God!