Throughout the lesson the boy goaded and pushed the teacher with silly remarks and some schoolboy double entendres but pushed his advantage in front of his classmates a little too much by making a particularly vulgar reference towards the teacher's wife.
The teacher lost his composure completely and soundly smacked the boy around the head back and forth, with a venom that was truly frightening . before dragging him out of the room, presumably to be reviewed by the headmaster.
Now this was in the late 1970s where the odd "thwack" with the blackboard duster was a regular punishment for talking in class.....but as I recall , we the children that were left alone in the classroom after this explosion of violence, only discussed how appropriate the teacher's reaction actually was! In our eyes this boy had overstepped the mark and by disrespecting the teacher's wife he had in fact sealed his own fate on the matter.
The case of Peter Harvey htttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/nottinghamshire/8652243.stm
is an example of a man that was targeted by the children under his care for blatant and systematic bullying. They chipped away at his eccentricities as children have a want to do, yet took the goading to a level way beyond anything that could be seen as pure mischief making. (One girl in the class had arranged to video the encounter thus setting the scene for an out of control performance) and Mr Harvey lost control and severely injured the ringleader boy.Of course I am not saying that this boy deserved the injuries that he received, but I am so glad the the judge in the case saw the situation for what it was......a vulnerable man pushed way beyond his coping abilities by some out of control children.
Instilling respect and discipline within schools is an incredibly difficult job, especially as I do feel that respect for authority has been eroded away since old farts like me were at school. I don't want to join the screaming hoards of the Daily Mail readership here, but I do think that children that are not respected by themselves and others are now having children of their own....so where does the youth of today learn respect and tolerance for others when everything seems to be stacked in a... "me, me, me", way of living
OMG!! I couldn't agree more! I will be 34 in June, and I can recall a few paddlings on the behind....well deserved, to be sure. Got a smack on the hand with a ruler to which my mom objected. She had no issues with corporal punishment, but I was not to be hit on the hand or head. My backside was the target! Though, I did punch a teacher when I was in 5th grade. My whole class was out of control that year. It was that teacher's first and last year of teaching. I feel quite guilty about it, too.
ReplyDelete~Randy
It's a hard question. The schools can't do it alone. Parents and the community as a whole have to help. And, how do they help, when they don't understand respect for themselves and others either?
ReplyDeleteThere's a school in NYC where this problem is being addressed. Parents are expected to be involved in their child's progress from day one, which is pre-school, in this case. Children are held to certain principles and expectations.
But, when you come right down to it, these parents want their children to grow up as respected members of the community. They sign on.
What do you do with the multitudes of parents who don't have any time for their kids, and then, when the kids get into trouble, say that they don't believe that their little gem could do such a thing? When, in reality, they don't want to put forth the effort it would take to correct the problem with the "gem."
One thing that might help -- no cellphones in school. Anyone caught with one given appropriate punishment. Honestly, we were able to communicate with our parents perfectly fine without the things, and kids today can too. All they want the phones for is to communicate with their peers. And, they provide an easy way to cook up trouble.
Teaching basic common sense and manners falls on the parents. If the parents are not involved,due to whatever reason, a mature adult, possibly that of a friends parents, a mentor, should be teaching the kids.Also, when kids reach a certain age they should be able to figure out common decency.
ReplyDeleteI agree completly about the lack of courtesy these days. It's a rarity you hear the words. "Thank you", "Please", "Your Welcome", "Excuse me".
Raising three daughters they were taught manners and respect.
What I find scary as all hell is this generation is the future! They are a, " I want it now and I want it new with little to no effort".
I could go on an on.
Great post today! xoxo
Times do not seem to change, when I was in high school, about 50 years ago, we had a History teacher that finally lost his cool, seems the same situation that your article was about. There was a group (not called a gang then) of boys that constantly badgered the teacher. One day he had it and he boxed the ears of the closest one, the ringleader. Then he drug him down to the principle's office. You could hear the boy screaming "I'll get you!" all the way down the hall. The teacher never returned, I don't know if it was by choice or if they sacked him, and the boy was suspended for the rest of the year.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that this kind of stuff goes way back.... Some parents just don't teach their kids how to respect their elders or peers. Today is a me, me, me society, most children are given too much and never expected to work for anything. So they don't even respect what they are given, because there is always more.
My children - if they came home with a note about a paddling, would get another one! Although it never happened, they knew I would do it!
Of course the little shit deserved it. And I don't care if he does come from a broken home. These days broken home means not having Sky HD!
ReplyDeleteTwo words; Political Correctness. One of the worse things we seem to have inherited from our American cousins.
ReplyDeleteParents are afraid to discipline their children, in case they themselves get punished for it.
Children are growing up without the necessary discipline.
Society becomes a byword for no respect, no discipline.
The PC brigade come up with ever more ridiculous ways of causing no offence, and concentrate too much on human rights, at the expense of human responsibilities.
It takes a very brave person (in this case the judge) to try and break this cycle.
interesting and detailed comments....I love it!
ReplyDeletepersonally I feel that families ARE so fragmented nowaways...not just with the single mom type family unit (without a father figure) but alot of people are isolated without the large extended families that teach children to interact and respect their elders...
Bruce has a point too....people ARE frightened to discipline children ( I got told off by aunts, grandparents and family friends and took notice of them all)... a thing thatwould be unheard of nowadays....
I knew my mother would be shamed if a relative or family friend was not happy with my behaviour...nowadays a comment just starts a row, as parents rush to defind their own kids at any cost...
discipline is down to families....The parents that I know (Mike and Bev) Chris' brother and his wife etc have children that are beautifully behaved....but the parents work long and hard at ensuring this happens......
somefamilies, I am afraid cannot be bothered! (Bel...your comment is noted too!)
Oh deffinitely. When I was being raised it was a family affair. If I did something wrong I was disciplined by mom, dad, aunt, uncle, older cousins, grandparents. It didn't matter. Of course, there's always, "Just wait till I we get home." That works on my nephews and nieces, cause they know what's to be expected. My mom manages a home for trouble (another word for really bad) kids. She's had her ribs broken by a 10 year old! But they know she means business. If they break the law she calls the cops on them. If they do something wrong she takes away privleges. Of couse, she can't use corporal punishment. But they act better for her than they do their parents or teachers.
ReplyDelete~Randy
John....here goes.
ReplyDeleteBeing a teacher (who is currently on a sabbatical,of sorts), I will jump into this discussion......most of whom present very good arguments.
Let me start by saying (this is feeling like a blog already!) that I worked with so-called 'problem' kids for 28 years and this was by choice because I found them to be way more interesting than the humdrum average kid like I was. Yes, they are needy but there usually is a very good reason for this. I always found that the child (I don't care how old they are)will always respond to RESPECT. Otherwise there will never be a trust built into the relationship. It worked for me with the exception of one child (13 Years old) who had serious 'mental' issues and had to be hospitalized.
I know most regular classroom teachers would tell me that I must be living on a cloud and besides I only worked one to one with students. I'd say that a teacher with such a view should re-evaluate why they are teaching in the first place.
I have always felt that a teacher should never touch a child out of anger. My grandmother used to say " If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!!!"
I witnessed a 'strapping' on the hands of a boy once because I was ordered to. After that, I refused. To see the anger in the principal's eyes was scary.
We all bring issues to the workplace. And I feel that a teacher who 'loses it' in class is not in control of the situation (classroom) and probably shouldn't be there.
This is where an effective administrator would see a 'problem' and put in the appropriate supports for that teacher. These being, PARENTS, counsellors, support staff and maybe a Psychologist.
Sounds easy but it isn't at all. The bottom line is that school is not the place for teachers to work out their frustrations on children.
I do realize that it is getting more difficult by the year to 'take on' all the cultural shifts we have seen in the past 20 years. My question is .....who and what is pushing our culture in the frenzied direction of today? Why are we buying into all this bullshit? It won't be changed overnight but recognizing the 'cause' will certainly start a process by which we can at least envision a more sane future for us all.
John, you got me goin'! This should generate lots of comments.
To
I totally agree, and am glad the judge saw the situation for what it was rather than the knee-jerk reaction of defending the student.
ReplyDeleteI will say, in my own life, I am the tough one and the school is too lenient. I have a daughter who will push and manipulate and do it all with a smile so they are reluctant to punish her. I have begged them to back ME up and, to date, the school hesitates. Among my peers, too, I am "the mean one." Teaching your children to listen and behave seems to be out of vogue . . . much to my disgust.
I think one other problem is that everyone is in to everyone else's business today. I don't remember everyone telling my parents how to parent. So much emphasis on the kids' self esteem, no spanking, no grounding, not to look at lying as a problem -- just creativity, etc. I believe that after a while all the noise can make a parent unsure of themselves and hesitant to do the hard work. It's a shame, though.
Let's just say, I am happy to have decided not to become a public school teacher.
ReplyDeleteI would wind up in prison.
Sad thing is, few take personal responsibility for their actions. Saenz has only seriously 'back-jawed' me one time. He has not done it since.
I pulled Saenz from public schools for several reasons. One being bullies; and the lackadaisical manner in which, the school handled them. The entire school system down in Corpus Christi is under investigation due to bully issue by the state.
I agree with the PC crappola as well. Parents have lost the right to discipline their children but, can sent to jail for their child's truancy, criminal, or felonious actions.
The world is a messy place
HEY RANDY
ReplyDeleteWe would get the 'beat down' by neighbors and BIG MOMMAS. LOL
HUMMMMMMMS
Maybe that is why I stuck out the military. I was used to the discipline. ~;>
Two excellent comments...
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that respect generally commands respect back, but what I see in certain aspects of our world is the "me me" culture.
Children should be respected and cherished ..yes....but they ARE children NOT adults or friends and they need to know this....they also need to learn that they are PART of a community......so many people live in their own little hetronormal bubbles without thought for the wider community , with its rules,and all of its benefits.
as for Mr Peter Harvey
apparantly he was loved and respected by scores of previous students....what happened to his support?
if the kids are being disruptive and disrespectful, can't the teacher get rid of those kids? If I had to make a living teaching school kids these days, oh my, I kill somebody or myself!
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more... I think you said it all... Kids surely are raised to think its all about Me, me, me, me...
ReplyDeleteSad situation, add it to the list... guess that sounds kind of negative but whew there are a lot of things right now that need working on!
well said!!
ReplyDeleteGill in Canada