10. Nonfatal teacher victimization at school*

Students are not the only ones who are victims of crime at school. Teachers in school can also be the targets of violence and theft. In addition to the personal toll such violence takes on teachers, those who worry about their safety may have difficulty teaching and may leave the profession altogether. Information on the number of crimes against teachers at school can help show how severe and widespread the problem is.

• Over the 5-year period from 1994 through 1998, teachers were the victims of approximately 1,755,000 nonfatal crimes at school, including 1,087,000 thefts and 668,000 violent crimes (rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault) (table 10.1). On average, this translates into 351,000 nonfatal crimes per year, or 83 crimes per 1,000 teachers per year. Among the violent crimes against teachers during this 5-year period, there were about 80,000 serious violent crimes (12 percent of the violent crimes), including rape or sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault. On average, this translates into 16,000 serious violent crimes per year.
• During the 1994-98 period, the average annual rate of serious violent crime was similar for teachers (on average, 4 per 1,000 teachers), regardless of their instructional level, gender, race/ethnicity, and the urbanicity of the schools where they taught (figure 10.1 and table 10.1)⁴.
• In the period from 1994 through 1998, senior high school and middle/junior high school teachers were more likely to be victims of violent crimes (most of which were simple assaults) than elementary school teachers (38 and 60, respectively, versus 18 crimes per 1,000 teachers) (figure 10.1 and table 10.1).
• During the 1994-98 period, senior high and middle/junior high school teachers were more likely to be targets of theft than elementary school teachers (63 and 67, respectively, versus 39 thefts per 1,000 teachers) (figure 10.1 and table 10.1).
• The average annual violent crime rate for teachers at school varied by gender. Over the 5-year period from 1994 through 1998, male teachers were more likely to be victims of violent crimes than female teachers (53 versus 25 crimes per 1,000 teachers) (figure 10.1 and table 10.1).
• Teachers were differentially victimized by crimes at school according to where they taught. For example, over the 5-year period from 1994 through 1998, urban teachers were more likely to be victims of violent crimes than rural and suburban teachers (40 versus 24 and 24, respectively, per 1,000 teachers). Urban teachers were also more likely to experience theft than suburban and rural teachers (63 versus 46 and 31 per 1,000 teachers, respectively) (figure 10.1 and table 10.1).

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