"Children being children" in public school classrooms

Another elementary school student has been handcuffed, link; this one in Georgia.

It rekindled interest in the news about APS students getting handcuffed, link.

The children's lawyer argues that children should not be put in handcuffs for acting like children.

Not all children behave in ways at school, that place them in situations where handcuffs are even considered.

Children being children commit inadvertent acts. When you ask them to stop, they do. Depending on how they were raised, they might even apologize. For the most, their misconduct doesn't disrupt teaching and learning by their classmates.

Then, there are students who when you ask them to please stop, will not. Students whose misbehavior does disrupt classrooms; students who think its funny to burp and burp and burp and burp ... and won't stop until finally someone throws handcuffs on them and ends their disruption.

When a teacher asks a student to stop misbehaving and the student's response means, no, the problem becomes an administrative issue. According to school board policy, administration is charged with enforcing district and school discipline problems.

Why is student discipline not even being discussed in the educational reform discourse? Why aren't we talking about the effects of chronically disruptive students on other students?

I asked APS Supt Winston Brooks why we never talk about student discipline, link; still nothing.

In the absence of any other explanation, Brooks is unwilling to talk about student discipline because it is a serious problem, the administration is responsible, and it is being managed ineffectively. If teachers were ever asked, they would substantiate the existence of an enormous problem and too little administrative support.

Brooks is understandably, though not acceptably, unwilling to talk about the issue candidly, forthrightly and honestly.

It is the practice of administrators to keep disruptive students in classrooms as long as possible; expecting teachers to correct their behavior. It is their practice to burden teachers with recalcitrant and disruptive students, rather than free teachers to focus on students who want to learn and need their teacher's individual attention.

Chronically disruptive students are an administrative responsibility. Do we want to invest our teachers in teaching or behavior management?

Are handcuffs the right answer? It depends on the situation.
If there is no other choice than allowing 29 other kids to be
deprived of their education, then yes, handcuffs are the answer.

Neither those who agree or disagree with my conclusion, will
find a venue where they can discuss these issues or any others.
There will be no public discussion at all.

The leadership of the APS will not point to a time, a day and a place, where they will sit down and discuss student discipline and the effects of chronically disruptive students on test scores and graduation rates.

The Citizens Advisory Council on Communication has petitioned the leadership of the APS for their support in an effort to create a venue for two-way communication between the leadership of the APS and the community members they serve; a place where we can discuss the need to handcuff students.

I asked the Journal if they would investigate and report upon the effects of student discipline and chronically disruptive students in the APS.

Apparently, they will not.




photo Mark Bralley