Narrative Prompt

Often, insults are thrown about like they are meaningless. At older ages, most of us we understand the concepts of sarcasm and know when there are times when it is better to stay silent than to cause unnecessary controversy. However, at a younger age, we were unrestrained and ignorant to social courtesy, often letting our inconsiderate thoughts out even if it could potential harm another. A common social norm is that even though insults, teasing, etc. can be hurtful, it is just a part of growing up. I can subscribe to this ideal, as sarcasm is just another form of humor. However, I think there comes a point where insults start crossing the line and becoming incredibly scaring on young psyches. This is a constant issue at schools, and even though we acknowledge that it is there, we do little to truly counter it. It does not take long for simple childish fun to turn into personal persecution and abuse. Since I have had to deal with these issues, I know of how even innocent teasing can turn into torment after prolonged abuse. There are some repercussions that I seriously believe that people do not consider when they are raising their children and allowing them to continue behavior that could eventually spread hatred and conflict among the student body. Though there are psychological problems that arise in the individual, verbal and physical abuse in schools results in distractions from education, potentially diverting focus from actual learning. If this is prolonged, then the combined deviations from educational values would result in an overall decline in student performance. (Potentially for an entire school if the situation becomes that complicated and deeply-ingrained within the system.) This is not an issue that will simply vanish if we hope hard enough or pay it no attention, it needs to be addressed to minimize the amount of abuse students go through in school, especially in the earlier stages.