The issue this study will address is the impact of violence in the student’s home on their academic performance. To address this problem, the purpose of this study will be to identify signs that a child is experiencing violence in the home as well as how teachers and other adults in the student’s life react to the issue. We also want to find the strategies in which teachers might use to interact with the child and the child’s family when there might be a suspicion that the child is suffering from either witnessing or being a victim of this violence. It is important to note that the child might not be the only one suffering but maybe she or he sees events of violence in their home, making this have a traumatic impact on a child which might have a big effect on a child as they go to school.

To gather data, we plan to conduct interviews with teaching professionals as well as other school personnel, who have encountered students who have suffered violence at home. The interviews will be transcribed and analyzed. We will divide the recorded data into three categories: students who encountered direct violence and showed academic changes, students who witnessed violence and showed academic changes and students who directly encountered or witnessed violence and showed no academic change. Through interviews with teachers and school personnel, we plan to gather information that will lead to a better understanding of: identifying children that are encountering violence, ways to interact with children who have experienced violence in the home without frightening them or getting them into trouble, and ways to help them succeed in the future.