Are Children Safe from Crime?: Focusing on Streets in Elementary School Zones

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine street environments wherein fear of crime and actual crime are highest in the environments surrounding elementary schools. To achieve this objective, elementary students' fear of crime and actual crime experienced were analyzed. The study adopted a geographical method based on streets. The study results were as follows. First, a large number of elementary students experienced fear of crime on the road at the school they attended. Female students feared crime more than male students. Second, students' fear of crime was mainly attributed to human factors (Many Bullies, Few People). Third, most elementary students experienced a fear of crime within a certain distance (500 m) from the school. Fourth, fear of crime and actual crime occurred mainly in small streets, small parks, or middle or high schools (advanced schools) nearby. Fifth, fear of crime and actual crime occurred near geographically similar elementary schools. Sixth, elementary students primarily experienced a fear of crime and actual crime on streets in densely populated residential areas.

Public elementary schools' handling of student neglect and adjustment problems

“…The formation of the elementary school students' character is a pedagogical process that has been specifically organized in the development of empathy and the capacity to establish interaction with the surrounding worlds based on the principles of inter-individual conflict-free relationships (Mokeyeva et al, 2015). In addition, elementary school students enter society for the very first time, staying away from the protection of their families (Byun and Ha, 2017). Thus, elementary school is an environment that directly encounters the students and can potentially educate the students' paradigms, minds, and behavior.…”