It is unfortunate that despite efforts by the police and school administrators to crack down on violence in schools, students are still taking weapons to their respective institutions.

According to an article published in the Tuesday Gleaner, a home-made gun and 34 pairs of scissors were among the weapons seized by the police during the search of a Corporate Area school recently.

The article did not say if all the weapons, including the gun, were found in the possession of students, however the fact that they were found on the school grounds means the items were accessible to the students.

Weapons in schools have been a concern for quite a while. Some have suggested that metal detectors be installed in schools while some have called for searches at the institutions. A part of the equation to tackle this problem is the role of parents.

How many parents know that their children are taking weapons to school, and why? How many school administrators or police call in the parents when a child is found with an offensive weapon, even if it's a pair of scissors?

Civility and safety

We need to recognise that bringing back civility and safety in our schools has to be a joint move by all partners, including parents, students, teachers and the police. Adults need to remember they are older and so are expected to ensure that the youth are kept in line and reprimanded when they go wrong.

It is time we stopped cowering in fear or allowing the little things to slide by, because, as we can see, our reluctance to collectively address the problem is certainly not making our schools or society any safer any faster.