School Board Stupdity in Action

[disney junky]

There was quite a lot to it, and I'm glad to say that the school administration used their brains and adapted the punishment to suit this particular circumstance. He didn't just get off scot free. And he wasn't caught making the knives -- he was actually caught after three were made, which leaves you to wonder where the teacher was in all this. (the answer... in his office)

It was a mess, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it would have been if he'd been expelled for a year and turned over to the police.

I'm sorry...you posted that he was caught making knives in shop class. That's what I thought you meant. My bad....

We'll just agree to disagree.

 

[MushyMushy]

I'm sorry...you posted that he was caught making knives in shop class. That's what I thought you meant. My bad....

We'll just agree to disagree.

I understand I didn't write it correctly. The end result was the same, though -- he was in possession of knives. And I'm glad our school doesn't use a cookie cutter approach.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

I'm suprised people think this child should be commended. I know that in our schools children are told repeatedly "if you see a gun, leave it there and tell a grown up". The child did not do that.

So many things could have gone wrong here -- at the very least the child has now destroyed any fingerprints on the gun, at worst the gun could have gone off in the child's pocket, or the child's hands.

Does the child deserve to be expelled? Perhaps not, but he did make a huge mistake.

 

[SpecialK]

I also live in the Chicago area. The news coverage that I saw stated that the school could not comment on the situation because of confidentiality issues. You're only hearing one side here.

Regarding zero tolerance - when I was completing my Masters project, I wrote the discipline policy for the school where I was teaching. You would not believe the hoops schools jump through to word every policy so that litigation can be avoided.

Zero tolerance policies didn't come about because administrators wanted to abdicate their authority; they came about because so many parents turned to lawsuits when they didn't agree with a disciplinary action.