"Student Confrontations" by Selvin Sinclair

Student Confrontations

by Selvin Sinclair

During my time at Progress High School, I have witnessed serious confrontations within the student body. Most of the involved students are getting physical. Mostly this takes place in the lunchroom because many students feel it is the perfect time to settle their differences. My opinion is...who wouldn't start a fight in the lunchroom?!? The lunchroom is huge, full of your friends, and most of the security guards have their eyes on other students (which is understandable because the whole 9th grade is there!). All the more reason why some students feel they can get away with anything and feel that it is a good time to confront their enemy. But the question I want to ask is, "What are good ways students can agree upon when dealing with their confrontations?" One student, JahPaul, told me that whenever a student is messing with him, he focuses his anger on a different topic in order to not get into any trouble with him or her. Felicia, who is another student going to Progress, told me that she would ignore verbal attacks by other students, which I think is a brilliant way to not get into any student confrontations. Last but not least, an anonymous student told me that if she is having trouble with another student, she'll talk to him or her about the situation. All of these techniques are brilliant in their own way. Here are the tips I find helpful when dealing with other students:

1. Ignore. Eventually the student will get tired of messing with you.

2. Tell a friend. Tell your friend about the situation. Maybe he or she will reason with the person.

3. Sit down and talk to the person. If he or she won't give up, tell that person how you feel.

4. Tell his or her friends. Maybe the person's friends will have a better influence on him or her.

These are the tips I recommend when dealing with student confrontation.