Episode 85: Are Australian Classrooms Becoming More Violent?

Violence, threats and aggressive behaviour towards teachers are becoming an increasingly serious concern in Australian education. But is violence in our schools actually increasing, and if it is, what's driving it?In this episode, we take a closer look at classroom violence against teachers and what the available Australian data tells us. We explore the experiences of teachers and school leaders, compare violence in primary and secondary schools, and examine factors that may be contributing to increasingly complex behaviour.In this episode, we discuss:What Australian research tells us about violence against teachersWhether classroom violence is actually increasingPrimary school vs secondary school violenceWhy student behaviour may be becoming more complexThe impact of violence and threats on teachersThe effect unsafe classrooms have on other studentsThe difficult balance between supporting complex students and protecting staffWhether current consequences and behaviour policies are workingWhat schools and education systems could do differentlyWhy teacher safety and student wellbeing shouldn't be treated as competing prioritiesIf you found this episode valuable, subscribe, like the video and share it with another teacher.And let us know in the comments:Do you think violence and aggressive behaviour towards teachers have become worse during your time in education and what do you think needs to change?