A student tackled her through a classroom door. Then everyone shrugged.
Has Violence Against Teachers Become Accepted by Society?
Dr. Elizabeth Martin was 22, a new mother, when a high-school student tackled her through a classroom door. The surgeries and recovery lasted years — but what stunned her more was the reaction: sympathy laced with resignation, as if teacher assault were simply part of the job. The student's parents sued the district, and she found herself answering attorneys' questions about whether she had done enough to stop it. Drawing on American Psychological Association surveys showing violence against educators rose after the pandemic, Martin argues that normalizing abuse sends teachers a devastating message.
Until we stop responding to teacher assaults with "that's just teaching these days," we will continue sending educators a devastating message: we know you are being hurt, and we have decided that hurting you is normal.