Why do so many school antiviolence programmes backfire? And why do policymakers keep making the same mistakes? The authors of Responding to School Violence examine the pervasive rise of school security measures since the Columbine shootings, highlighting the unintended consequences of policymaking too often shaped by fear and sensationalism.

Probing an array of now ubiquitous tactics and programmes--metal detectors, police patrols, zero tolerance policies, and more--the authors show how increasingly punitive schoolhouse dynamics negatively affect student safety and even...