RubySoho
Winston
If You Can Get Suspended for Drawing a Gun, Can You Get Fined for Doodling a Speeding Car?
August 22nd 2007 19:07
What a world we're creating. Yes, we've had problems with violence in schools. We've had tragedies. No one disputes those things. But does that mean that we must chuck our common sense out the window?
What I'm referring to is the new trend of "zero tolerance" rules in schools across the country. There have been countless examples of this already, many of which have resulted in punishment or suspension of good, honest children, but I'm going to toss out another one. As long as a stupid, misguided policy exists, it's worth talking about. In this case a thirteen-year-old Arizona boy was suspended for 5 days for passing in homework with a gun drawing doodled on it.
For all the guys out there reading this, raise your hand if you were ever a thirteen-year-old boy. OK, now, how many of you ever doodled guns, knives, tanks, swords, lasers, or what-have-you on whatever paper was at hand? I'm betting a fair number of you. Kids doodle. Boys tend to doodle weapons (due to whatever sexual/social norms exist in our culture, etc.) quite a bit. It's normal. Millions of kids have drawn guns and whatever else, and about 0.0001% of those kids ever turned out to be any sort of a threat. Generally, a seemingly happy, healthy boy does not draw a gun on his paper one day and then walk into school the following morning pumping shotgun rounds into anything that moves. In virtually every school shooting case that I've heard about, the perpetrators have been social outcasts with clear signs of disturbed personalities. This is where common sense should come in to play. I know it sounds crazy, but maybe when a kid who has no history of bad or troubled behavior doodles a gun, it's just because he was harmlessly drawing. Possibly he deserves the benefit of the doubt?
But, heaven forfend that people should actually use common sense, or do anything as radical as actually TALK to this boy to see if there was some sort of a threat. You know what, school authorities? Thirteen year old kids are sort of dumb. It's not their fault, they can't help only being thirteen and not having a ton of common sense or experience. But that's the way it is. It's easy for adults to walk around looking for signs of trouble in every shadow. We've been around longer, we've seen more, we trust less. Kids? They have the luxury, for a short time, of not understanding all the possible malignant signs that adults see. For the most part, when you're thirteen you doodle a gun because it's cool looking, not because you're a maladjusted misanthrope with a grudge against humanity. Cut the kids some slack.
Children need to be punished when they do something wrong. But they also need to understand why it's wrong. Heck, they need to do something wrong in the first place! As far as I'm concerned, drawing a picture of a gun does not merit a five day suspension, unless there was a note under it that said, "Hey Principal Whoever, say your prayers!". That would merit some attention. But even then it would be necessary to talk to the kid. Schools are taking a hard line, but it's also the easy way out. These "zero tolerance" punishments don't tackle the actual problem, they just send the kid home. Too often, good kids are catching these punishments when a five minute talk might have sufficed. Instead of weeding out angry kids, this policy may be creating them.
Common sense, where are you now?
What I'm referring to is the new trend of "zero tolerance" rules in schools across the country. There have been countless examples of this already, many of which have resulted in punishment or suspension of good, honest children, but I'm going to toss out another one. As long as a stupid, misguided policy exists, it's worth talking about. In this case a thirteen-year-old Arizona boy was suspended for 5 days for passing in homework with a gun drawing doodled on it.
For all the guys out there reading this, raise your hand if you were ever a thirteen-year-old boy. OK, now, how many of you ever doodled guns, knives, tanks, swords, lasers, or what-have-you on whatever paper was at hand? I'm betting a fair number of you. Kids doodle. Boys tend to doodle weapons (due to whatever sexual/social norms exist in our culture, etc.) quite a bit. It's normal. Millions of kids have drawn guns and whatever else, and about 0.0001% of those kids ever turned out to be any sort of a threat. Generally, a seemingly happy, healthy boy does not draw a gun on his paper one day and then walk into school the following morning pumping shotgun rounds into anything that moves. In virtually every school shooting case that I've heard about, the perpetrators have been social outcasts with clear signs of disturbed personalities. This is where common sense should come in to play. I know it sounds crazy, but maybe when a kid who has no history of bad or troubled behavior doodles a gun, it's just because he was harmlessly drawing. Possibly he deserves the benefit of the doubt?
But, heaven forfend that people should actually use common sense, or do anything as radical as actually TALK to this boy to see if there was some sort of a threat. You know what, school authorities? Thirteen year old kids are sort of dumb. It's not their fault, they can't help only being thirteen and not having a ton of common sense or experience. But that's the way it is. It's easy for adults to walk around looking for signs of trouble in every shadow. We've been around longer, we've seen more, we trust less. Kids? They have the luxury, for a short time, of not understanding all the possible malignant signs that adults see. For the most part, when you're thirteen you doodle a gun because it's cool looking, not because you're a maladjusted misanthrope with a grudge against humanity. Cut the kids some slack.
Children need to be punished when they do something wrong. But they also need to understand why it's wrong. Heck, they need to do something wrong in the first place! As far as I'm concerned, drawing a picture of a gun does not merit a five day suspension, unless there was a note under it that said, "Hey Principal Whoever, say your prayers!". That would merit some attention. But even then it would be necessary to talk to the kid. Schools are taking a hard line, but it's also the easy way out. These "zero tolerance" punishments don't tackle the actual problem, they just send the kid home. Too often, good kids are catching these punishments when a five minute talk might have sufficed. Instead of weeding out angry kids, this policy may be creating them.
Common sense, where are you now?
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Comment by Onesnap
He (as a joke) leaned over to a classmate's computer and typed 'DIE' on the screen. The poor kid was plucked out of the classroom and sent right to the principal's office. It took ONE HALF HOUR for the staff to calm the boy down...he was crying that hard knowing his parents were called to come get him and that he was in that big of trouble for a joke. Keep in mind this child has issues that the teachers are full aware of and the way he was treated is horrible. The situation was handled to meet their 'zero tolerance' policies. But did this teen boy really want his classmate to die. No. Did the school have to treat him in a special manner because he's special...maybe. The whole thing just made me sick.
So zero tolerance is good in some cases. My mom's teaching career finished off (before she retired) with her having to report a student to the authorities to get his locker searched for drugs. At least she went out on a high note...no pun intended.
When I was growing up it was almost like someone paid off the cops to not bother kids having parties (i.e. raging keggers) in the woods. Now those same hilltowns have cops crawling all over to prevent such 'fun times'. So growing up in the Hilltowns may be different now, but I doubt it's any more 'safe'.
Comment by youranter
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Comment by katyzzz
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Difficult problems sometimes require some action to stop the upwards spiral, and in taking such action they're bound often to get it wrong,
Prevention is better than cure. They got prevention wrong a long time ago.
Somebody has to do something, obviously other things have not worked.
katyzzz
Comment by Damo
The teacher is nuts and should be sacked.
Comment by Brenton
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Comment by Winston
Small Thoughts on Big Questions
So growing up in the Hilltowns may be different now, but I doubt it's any more 'safe'.
I think that goes for towns and cities and schools everywhere. We have these new zero tolerance rules, and yet I don't feel that they've done much to actually improve safety. It's a Band-Aid to make it look like some type of positive action is being taken, without actually having to invest much time or thought into anything.
Thanks for the comment!
Comment by Winston
Small Thoughts on Big Questions
Schools are so interested in protecting their own asses from potential angry parents (and shame on some of these parents, too) and lawsuits, that they're selling kids up the river to avoid the slightest whiff of trouble. It's some type of weird mass hysteria coupled with stupidity.
I can only hope that people come to their senses some day.
Comment by Winston
Small Thoughts on Big Questions
The thing that SHOULD be done is to use common sense and experience. Any teacher who can not tell the difference between a child with some issues who needs some help and a good, normal kid who just drew a doodle should probably reconsider their career.
Appreciate the feedback
Comment by Winston
Small Thoughts on Big Questions
Comment by Winston
Small Thoughts on Big Questions