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Sunday, March 07, 2004
For once, I actually agree with a teacher's union:
Repeating the refrain he has uttered hundreds of times, teachers' union President Timothy Murphy pleaded with the school board to make suspensions or expulsions requirements - rather than an option - when students fight or defy teachers.
The small band of teachers who came with Murphy to carry signs and show support said the change is necessary to keep students and staff safe.
"Kids need to know the consequences," said John Grande, a physical education teacher at the Hartford Transitional Learning Academy, a school for special education students who need a therapeutic setting.
Where I come from, fighting or defiant kids knew what they had coming. The problem is that most of the troublemakers didn't care about being suspended or expelled. Many welcomed the early vacation. That's why I would go even farther. Kids in elementary schools need to learn discipline and respect early. Corporal punishment is obviously not an option these days, and would probably best be left to parents (who seem to ignore this form of discipline themselves, but that's another topic). So maybe they should give these kids tasks that would embarrass them (a la the "dunce cap"), or demand other things from them, such as cleaning the school premises.
What disappoints me is the next statement in the article:
"We need to stop appeasing them. ... Administrators have to understand what we need is a zero-tolerance policy."
With this, I disagree. Too many instances of ZT have run amok, like kids being suspended for carrying GI-Joe toys, or shop tools. Common sense should prevail, and discipline should be strict, swift, and commensurate to the misdeed. Once schools learn this, the kids will respond.Labels: Archives_2004
.: posted by
Dave
4:22 PM
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