school violence

School – Based violence has been recognized as a major educational challenge (UNESCO, 2019). In Uganda, and particularly in urban centers such as Mbale City, reports of student misconduct, peer influence, and group-related conflicts are becoming more common. These challenges not only affect academic performance but also threaten the safety and well-being of learners. Therefore, this study examined the causes, effects, and prevention strategies of school-based violence and gang activity in Mbale City. This study adopted a mixed-approach design, combining literature review with contextual observations in the community whereby Secondary data was obtained from text-books, reports, academic publications and newspapers. Studies indicated that violence in schools negatively affects learners’ academic performance, psychological well-being, and social development (UNESCO, 2019; UNICEF, 2018). Locally, informal observations and reported cases in Mbale City suggested increasing incidents of bullying, student grouping, fighting among students, Intimidation and harassment, Group-based conflicts and indiscipline. The study identified key contributing factors such as peer pressure, family background, Weak school discipline systems (Gottfredson, 2001), Exposure to violence in media and community influence, Overcrowding in some schools and school environment. This further highlighted that effective prevention requires a combination of school-based interventions, parental involvement, and policy support. In Mbale City, these activities remain significant challenges in education and these issues are increasingly visible which require urgent attention according to media reports (Daily monitor 2026, April 17). The study concludes that a coordinated approach is essential in promoting safe and supportive learning environments by combining global research with local understanding to strengthen discipline systems and supervision, Guidance and counseling services in schools, student behavior monitoring by parents and Government’s support to policies that promote school safety.

School violence continues to present serious challenges to teaching, learning, and teacher well-being in post-apartheid South Africa. Existing research has largely focused on the prevalence, causes, management, and disciplinary responses associated with violence in schools. Thereby positioning teachers as informants for experiences of school violence. Such a singular focus limits our understanding of how teachers interpret and make sense of these experiences within their professional lives. This paper attempts to fill this gap by using currere as a reflective, autobiographical approach to study lived educational experiences. I purposively selected two teachers from schools in the Mashishing Circuit of Mpumalanga Province to participate in the study. To collect data, I used reflective journals guided by the four stages of currere: regressive, analytical, progressive, and synthetic. Currere created a platform for teachers to revisit their past experiences of school violence and analyse how these experiences shape their current pedagogical choices and practices. The findings suggest that violence in schools is an ongoing emotional and structural condition. It influences teachers’ well-being, authority, pedagogical choices, and attitude toward learners. Currere enabled teachers to reimagine pedagogical approaches that balance classroom safety with meaningful learning. The study highlights the methodological value of currere for examining teachers' lived experiences in violent school settings. The paper recommends providing well-being support for teachers who experienced violence and adopting restorative approaches in schools.

Background Adolescent suicide attempt is a major public health concern linked to psychosocial distress, school environment, health-risk behaviors, and physical activity patterns. This study aimed to develop an explainable XGBoost model for adolescent suicide-attempt status and to determine whether physical inactivity and low physical education (PE) participation could serve as informative school-based indicators. Methods Data were obtained from the Global School-based Student Health Survey conducted in Argentina in 2018, Anguilla in 2016, and Jamaica in 2017. The Argentina dataset was used for model training, while Anguilla and Jamaica were combined as an independent validation cohort. The outcome was self-reported suicide attempt during the past 12 months. Candidate predictors included demographic, anthropometric, dietary, psychosocial, violence- and injury-related, tobacco-related, sexual behavior, physical activity, and PE-related variables. An XGBoost model was developed using nested cross-validation, staged hyperparameter tuning, and Bayesian fine-tuning. Model performance was evaluated by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). SHAP and partial dependence plots were used for interpretation. Results A total of 27,710 adolescents were included; 5,165 (18.6%) reported at least one suicide attempt. The final model achieved an independent validation AUC of 0.7928 (95% CI: 0.7790–0.8066). The top 18 SHAP-ranked predictors retained a cumulative 10-fold cross-validated AUC of 0.7865. Loneliness was the most influential predictor, followed by sex, insomnia, early cigarette use, PE days, physical attack, school peer kindness, and physical activity. Physical inactivity and low PE participation showed nonlinear associations with predicted suicide-attempt risk. Conclusions Loneliness and insomnia represented the psychosocial vulnerability profile, while physical inactivity and limited PE participation emerged as potentially informative school-based indicators requiring further longitudinal investigation. These findings support risk-stratified prevention strategies integrating early psychological identification with inclusive, socially supportive physical activity and PE programs.

زمینه و هدف: اقدام به خودکشی در نوجوانان یکی از نگرانی‌های عمده سلامت عمومی است که با پریشانی روانی‌اجتماعی، محیط مدرسه، رفتارهای پرخطر سلامت و الگوهای فعالیت بدنی مرتبط است. هدف این مطالعه، توسعه یک مدل XGBoost توضیح‌پذیر برای وضعیت اقدام به خودکشی در نوجوانان و تعیین این بود که آیا بی‌تحرکی بدنی و مشارکت پایین در آموزش تربیت بدنی (PE) می‌تواند به عنوان شاخص‌های مدرسه‌محور اطلاعاتی عمل کند یا خیر. روش‌ها: داده‌ها از پیمایش جهانی سلامت دانش‌آموزان مدرسه‌ای که در آرژانتین در سال ۲۰۱۸، آنگویلا در سال ۲۰۱۶ و جامائیکا در سال ۲۰۱۷ انجام شد، به دست آمد. داده‌های آرژانتین برای آموزش مدل استفاده شد و داده‌های آنگویلا و جامائیکا به عنوان گروه اعتبارسنجی مستقل ترکیب شدند. متغیر پیامد، اقدام به خودکشی خوداظهاری‌شده در ۱۲ ماه گذشته بود. پیش‌بین‌های کاندید شامل متغیرهای جمعیت‌شناختی، انسان‌سنجی، تغذیه‌ای، روانی‌اجتماعی، مرتبط با خشونت و آسیب، مرتبط با دخانیات، رفتار جنسی، فعالیت بدنی و متغیرهای مرتبط با PE بود. یک مدل XGBoost با استفاده از اعتبارسنجی متقاطع تو در تو، تنظیم مرحله‌ای ابرپارامترها و تنظیم دقیق بیزی توسعه یافت. عملکرد مدل با مساحت زیر منحنی مشخصه عملکرد گیرنده (AUC) ارزیابی شد. برای تفسیر مدل از نمودارهای SHAP و وابستگی جزئی استفاده شد. نتایج: در مجموع ۲۷٬۷۱۰ نوجوان وارد مطالعه شدند؛ ۵٬۱۶۵ نفر (۱۸٫۶٪) حداقل یک بار اقدام به خودکشی را گزارش کردند. مدل نهایی به AUC اعتبارسنجی مستقل ۰٫۷۹۲۸ (۹۵٪ CI: ۰٫۷۷۹۰–۰٫۸۰۶۶) دست یافت. ۱۸ پیش‌بین برتر بر اساس رتبه‌بندی SHAP، AUC اعتبارسنجی متقاطع ۱۰-تایی تجمعی ۰٫۷۸۶۵ را حفظ کردند. احساس تنهایی تأثیرگذارترین پیش‌بین بود و پس از آن جنسیت، بی‌خوابی، مصرف زودهنگام سیگار، روزهای PE، حمله فیزیکی، مهربانی همسالان مدرسه و فعالیت بدنی قرار داشتند. بی‌تحرکی بدنی و مشارکت پایین در PE ارتباطات غیرخطی با خطر پیش‌بینی‌شده اقدام به خودکشی نشان دادند. نتیجه‌گیری: احساس تنهایی و بی‌خوابی نمایانگر پروفایل آسیب‌پذیری روانی‌اجتماعی بودند، در حالی که بی‌تحرکی بدنی و مشارکت محدود در PE به عنوان شاخص‌های مدرسه‌محور بالقوه اطلاعاتی ظاهر شدند که نیازمند بررسی طولی بیشتر هستند. این یافته‌ها از راهبردهای پیشگیری مبتنی بر طبقه‌بندی خطر که شناسایی روان‌شناختی زودهنگام را با برنامه‌های فعالیت بدنی و تربیت بدنی فراگیر و حمایت‌گر اجتماعی ادغام می‌کنند، حمایت می‌نماید.