Zero tolerance ... again

jimpeel

Well-Known Member
What a bunch of brainless jerks we have running the school system. They think that what they did was "reasonable" even in the face of their own admission that he had no criminal intent.

No wonder so many parents are pulling their kids out of public schools and schooling them at home.

The blade from a pencil sharpener is about 1" long. What a mighty sword that this child could have weilded against his classmates, slashing and thrusting his way through the screaming hordes trying to flee his viscious attack! Oh, the humanity!

http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/607283.html

Island fourth grader suspended for using broken pencil sharpener
By DANIEL BROWNSTEIN
[email protected]
843-706-8125
Published Thursday, September 11, 2008

A 10-year-old Hilton Head Island boy has been suspended from school for having something most students carry in their supply boxes: a pencil sharpener.

The problem was his sharpener had broken, but he decided to use it anyway.

A teacher at Hilton Head Island International Baccalaureate Elementary School noticed the boy had what appeared to be a small razor blade during class on Tuesday, according to a Beaufort County sheriff's report.

It was obvious that the blade was the metal insert commonly found in a child's small, plastic pencil sharpener, the deputy noted.

The boy -- a fourth-grader described as a well-behaved and good student -- cried during the meeting with his mom, the deputy and the school's assistant principal.

He had no criminal intent in having the blade at school, the sheriff's report stated, but was suspended for at least two days and could face further disciplinary action.

District spokesman Randy Wall said school administrators are stuck in the precarious position between the district's zero tolerance policy against having weapons at school and common sense.

"We're always going to do something to make sure the child understands the seriousness of having something that could potentially harm another student, but we're going to be reasonable," he said.
 

jimpeel

Well-Known Member
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/608416.html

School district defends suspension in pencil sharpener incident
By LIZ MITCHELL
[email protected]
843-706-8169
Published Friday, September 12, 2008

After a rash of irate e-mails and phone calls and a flood of national attention, the Beaufort County School District challenged the accuracy of a story published about a Hilton Head Island fourth-grader suspended after bringing a pencil sharpener blade to school.

Jill McAden, principal of Hilton Head Island International Baccalaureate Elementary School, sent a letter home to parents Thursday saying, "We regret that inaccuracies in a local news story created an impression that we do not use common sense in working with our children.

"The student was not suspended for having a pencil sharpener," McAden wrote. "He had an exposed blade which created a dangerous setting for the student and other children. The student was suspended for one day for inappropriate behavior in the classroom. The suspension was warranted."

The information in the story published in The Island Packet on Thursday was taken primarily from a Beaufort County sheriff's report. According to that report, the sheriff's office responded to the school after a teacher noticed the boy had what appeared to be a small razor blade.

"It was obvious the blade was the metal insert commonly found in a child's small plastic pencil sharpener," the deputy noted in his report.

The 10-year-old boy -- described in the report as"a very good student who has not been in any previous trouble" -- cried during the meeting with his mom, the deputy and the school's assistant principal, according to the report.

He had no criminal intent in having the blade at school, the sheriff's report stated, but was suspended.

In a news release, the district said the incident needed to be "clarified." The release stated the boy was suspended for "inappropriate behavior," a cause never mentioned in the sheriff's report.

"If they modified it, they've modified it," said Sheriff P.J. Tanner. "That's their jurisdiction to do so when it comes to disciplinary action."

District spokesman Randy Wall said the onslaught of calls and e-mails and the national attention did not drive the district's decision to send out the news release.

"We received many e-mails from people who believe the child had a pencil sharpener at school, that it broke and he got suspended," Wall said. "The (Thursday) article implies that the pencil sharpener happened to break at school and that's what caused this predicament. And that is not accurate."

The Island Packet article never stated that the pencil sharpener broke at school.

In the interest of student confidentiality and at the request of the student's family, Wall said the district could not elaborate on what the "inappropriate behavior" entailed.

He also said the district does not have a zero tolerance policy, despite being quoted as saying it did in the Thursday story.

The district did away with a zero tolerance policy last year and instead adopted a broader, more nuanced approach that requires the superintendent to ensure effective discipline of disruptive students and advises expelling or banning them from school activities only when necessary.

The student code of conduct says any person on school property carrying a weapon or what can be perceived as a weapon will be suspended and recommended for expulsion.

Wall said the boy created a "potentially hazardous situation" by bringing a piece of metal from a pencil sharpener to school.

Superintendent Valerie Truesdale said student discipline is left up to the discretion of individual school principals.

Though at first concerned about the school's action, Board of Education Chairman Fred Washington Jr. said he now believes the district acted responsibly.

"Given what we know, I think we handled it appropriately," he said. "There are some things, based on student confidentiality, even board members should not have access to."
 

tonksy

New Member
Sounds to me like there is more to the story that we are not getting because of the child's minor status.
 

spike

New Member
How many examples do you want?

Maybe enough to show that most people running the school system are "brainless jerks". Can you do 50%+?

Or maybe something indicating that the majority of homeschoolers are doing it because of this kind of incident.

You know something that actually backs up the claims you made up.
 

jimpeel

Well-Known Member
Maybe enough to show that most people running the school system are "brainless jerks". Can you do 50%+?

They enforce these regulations by rote with no thought process. They just follow the script. How much brain power does that take?

Or maybe something indicating that the majority of homeschoolers are doing it because of this kind of incident.

This is but one of many reasons that people are fleeing the public system and why vouchers are gaining in popularity. Of course, you take my comment as being the ONLY reason they are fleeing.

You know something that actually backs up the claims you made up.

This from Berzerkly. Your kinda guys.

http://parents.berkeley.edu/advice/school/privatevspublic.html

This from Atlanta, GA.

http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/052399/new_0523990015.shtml

ATLANTA -- Two mass shootings in a month have helped keep some private school phones ringing as parents search for safe havens for their children.

Home-school enrollment has skyrocketed more than 250 percent this decade in Georgia, while private schools have gained a more modest 33 percent, according to Department of Education figures.

...

The number of Georgia students being taught at home has risen from about 3,100 in the 1990-91 school year to 21,132 this year, according to the state education department.

...

The question is whether alternatives like private schools or home-schooling have suddenly become more attractive after six mass shootings on public campuses in the past 11Ú2 years across the nation.


...

''I am certain we are going to see increases in enrollment next year,'' Cummings predicted. ''You'll find an increase in home-schooling also.
''Parents are very jumpy. When they see this happen anywhere, they are concerned with the safety of their children.''

http://www.profam.org/docs/acc/thc_acc_hhssf.htm
 

spike

New Member
They enforce these regulations by rote with no thought process. They just follow the script.

By "they" I think you mean "some schools". The generalization is is just illogical.

This is but one of many reasons that people are fleeing the public system and why vouchers are gaining in popularity. Of course, you take my comment as being the ONLY reason they are fleeing.

You said "No wonder so many parents are pulling their kids out of public schools" as if this was a major reason people homeschool. It's not.

This from Berzerkly. Your kinda guys.

What was that supposed to prove Jimbo? That's about private schools.

http://parents.berkeley.edu/advice/school/privatevspublic.html

This from Atlanta, GA.

Two mass shootings in a month have helped keep some private school phones ringing as parents search for safe havens for their children.

Again, what's your point? Your original argument was that overreacting to safety concerns was a majot reason people were homeschooling. This does not support that. In fact you could say it argues against your original point.
 

MrBishop

Well-Known Member
Teachers over-react, but they learn that from the parents of said kids. Parents have been so bombarded by fears about everything from terrorists, school-shooters, pedophiles, etc etc.. that they push for increased security for their kids..including at school. So..Principals over-react because parents are asking them to.

Lord help the Principal that under-reacts.
 
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