After attacks on schools, government seeks more security – 01/01/2024 – Education

After the unprecedented increase in attacks on schools in the last two years, the majority of states that recorded incidents claim to have implemented security reinforcements, in addition to booklets and protocols. Few, however, mention programs that involve improving coexistence in the educational environment.

Since 2001, the country has recorded 36 attacks — the majority (58.33%) were concentrated from February 2022 to October last year. The main weapon used was a firearm, followed by a knife and a Molotov cocktail. In 17 incidents, the perpetrators took more than one type of weapon.

The data is presented in the report “Extreme Violence Attacks in Schools in Brazil”, which was developed by Unicamp researcher Telma Vinha and eight other experts in the field.

Based on the study, the report contacted the Education and Security departments of the states that recorded episodes of violence in the period: São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo, Bahia, Ceará, Amazonas, Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná and Minas Gerais. The only one who didn’t respond was Goiás.

The report does not include the case of Blumenau (SC), in which four children were killed with axes, because the perpetrator was a man who had no connection with the educational institution.

Vinha defines that tragic episodes in schools are the tip of the iceberg of educational problems. “It’s a sore edge, but a sore edge,” she says. Therefore, she argues that reinforcing security is not enough: it is necessary to think about coexistence policies for the teaching environment as a whole.

Daniel Cara, professor at the Faculty of Education at USP, agrees. “School is not an airplane. We need to make that clear,” he says. He is the rapporteur of a document that proposes 13 measures to combat attacks in schools and was published on the MEC (Ministry of Education) website in November.

The educator places investment in safety in third place in the order of priority actions, after coexistence in the school space and, in second place, attention to students’ mental health.

In the report conducted by Vinha, it is pointed out that, in all the attacks listed, the perpetrators were men, motivated by hate speech or communities of extreme violence. Bullying is identified as part of the problem, but alone it is not enough to explain the phenomenon.

“Several associated factors produce the occurrence of an attack. Nor can the motivation for attacks be reduced solely to issues of mental health of the perpetrators, even though they are an aspect
significant,” says the report.

Among the measures listed by the states sought by the report, the reinforcement of school rounds, for example, is mentioned in at least six (SP, MG, CE, BA, AM and MS). Security cameras are listed in four categories (SP, AM, MG and MS).

The presence of the panic button, to call the police, is cited by three (SP, RJ and MS). The increase in the number of psychologists appears among the measures adopted by only two (PR and ES).

Among the states with the highest number of attacks is São Paulo, which recorded six episodes in the last two years. Among the actions adopted, the SSP (Public Security Secretariat) under the Tarcísio de Freitas (Republican) administration highlights the installation of panic buttons and the intensification of school patrols.

The Education department says there is an intention to triple the number of so-called POCs (coexistence guidance teachers), who, among other actions, work to mediate conflicts, adopt restorative practices and support the development of actions aimed at restoring relationships.

In Rio de Janeiro, which registered four cases, the Military Police Secretariat mentions that 4,400 professionals were trained to deal with emergency situations until the police arrived at the school. The Rede Escola application was also implemented, which speeds up emergency care, says management Cláudio Castro (PL).

The Department of Education has a system for reporting cases of threats, bullying, racism, aggression and even theft. In relation to psychological care, the folder indicates that students should be referred to Caps (Psychosocial Care Centers).

Two attacks were recorded in Espírito Santo in the period analyzed. What happened in Aracruz had the most impact: a 16-year-old teenager broke in and shot at students and teachers in two schools in the city. In total, four people died and 12 were injured.

When contacted, the Education department cites among the projects the expansion of psychosocial action with the hiring of 225 professionals, such as psychologists and social workers. First aid training was also promoted. Public Security under the Renato Casagrande (PSB) government highlights the launch of the State School Security Plan.

There are also measures within the federal government. In April, the Lula (PT) administration began investigating social networks and pointing out security problems in them through Operation Safe School, which carried out 388 searches and seizures and made 401 arrests of people suspected of planning attacks on schools.

After the actions, some progress was recorded in this fight. On Twitter (currently X), for example, a community that supported crimes in schools and serial murders was banned from May onwards. This does not mean, however, that these conversations have been eliminated for good or that they have not migrated to other social networks.

A Sheet found on TikTok, in April, several users who glorified perpetrators of attacks on schools. “Companies have started to repress what is already visible. But they are not acting in the interactions that are happening now”, warns Cara.

The Ministry of Justice and Public Security, in addition to the Operation Safe School program, states that it also developed De Boa na Rede, a virtual library that teaches how guardians can monitor what is accessed on the internet by their children.

The measure is viewed with reservations by experts, who say that parents should not be solely responsible for their children’s digital education and, often, are unaware of the tools.

The Ministry of Education states that, after the increase in attacks, more than R$3 billion was allocated to states and municipalities. Furthermore, the ministry cited several actions that were carried out, such as training dialogues, seminars, training courses to protect the school environment.

For Vinha, there was an effort across Brazil to prevent the scenario of violence in schools from worsening, but many implemented actions have already proven ineffective. An example are the courses that educators take individually.

“People even change, but they cannot change the collective. Good policies expand the capacity of school professionals to deal with these situations.”

In addition to attacks on schools, the researcher also indicates that, in recent years, there has been an increase in hate speech on social media and in cases of self-harm and anxiety among young people. “Sometimes it doesn’t turn into an attack, but we have young people in pain. That’s everyone’s problem.”