Social Network Sparks Fights at High School

A recent spike in fights at James Monroe High School is being at least partially attributed to Facebook drama finding a schoolyard stage to play out upon, according to Principal John Gordon. At least two out of the last three fights at the school were borne out of situations which arose on the popular social networking website. Gordon says fights at his school are rare, prompting him to hold a student assembly last Friday to address the issue. 

Gordon also wrote about the incident on his official school blog in an entry entitled "Student Confrontations". Addressing parents in the post, Gordon wrote that "recently we have had an increase in physical altercations between our students. We are asking for your support in order to de-escalate some issues before they arise at school." 

Gordon asked parents to monitor their children's activities on social networking sites and encouraged parents to take a more active role in monitoring their children's behavior on social networking websites and to help defuse negative situations before they spill over into class. 

In an interview, Gordon didn't go into much detail on the nature of the disputes which led to the fights. He did encourage students to behave more civilly.

"We just want to make sure that whatever is being said out there on Facebook doesn't make it into the school," said Gordon.

For parents, the task of providing adequate supervision over their children's social networking behaviors can be challenging, admits Gordon. 

"Kids are on these social networking sites while their parents are away at work or late and night and they also have passwords to protect their accounts," said Gordon.

Gordon also noted deteriorating civility among students. 

"Students are being very uncivil and rude when speaking to each other," said Gordon in his blog. "The use of profanity has also increased. If a student is having a bad day, the slightest thing could push them over the edge, potentially leading to a physical altercation."