Obama backs race-based school discipline policies

[Carrie Grace]

I wonder what the race-baiters' next step will be if they run off all the white teachers either to private teaching or completely out of the profession, with such blatantly racist policies as these?

This is one big reason we pulled our children out of the public school in our district and enrolled them in a smaller, conservative charter school. I work in the public school system, and I see groups of kids acting like thugs--screaming, cursing at teachers, shoving and swinging, etc., and it is tolerated. Teachers are told to stand down, as it is "part of their culture".

Part of their culture???

Teachers are leaving in droves--I think around 30 left at the end of this past school year from one school alone. THIRTY. Yet, the district has the audacity to blame the surrounding charter schools for "stealing" their students. They also blame a middle school teacher (one who left her position the day after this transpired) of being assaulted by students because she was using her authority as a teacher to demand these students get to their classroom. The administration is putting the lie out there that she "started it". She says the whole thing was on video (school has cameras), but that the administration has somehow "lost" it. How conveeeeenient. I remember when it happened, and I remember clearly the first accounts all supported her. Strangely <sarc>, since she decided to speak of what is happening in the school, she is now being maligned and essentially called a liar. The Teacher's Union told her that she is basically being a troublemaker. Big surprise there. Apparently, you can be assaulted by students--shoving you and pulling your hair until a fellow teacher intervenes, but you cannot assert your authority over same students because that is instigating an assault. Really? She is at fault because she told these brats to stop messing around in the hallway and get to class? Truth be told, most teachers are afraid of the students, and the students know it.

Then there is a gym teacher at one of our high schools, who was approached by the principal. What were her expectations for students (and she specified a certain race) to get a passing grade? She responded that she really didn't have "high" expectations. They were rather simple. 1. Come to class; 2. Be on time; 3. Don't disrupt the class; and 4. At least marginally participate in class. The principal said to her, "Do you think you could maybe relax some of those requirements?" Wait, what? Is THAT not racisim? When she told this story to a select few, everyone just hung their head in defeat. How can they help these kids be successful, when the policy is to encourage laziness, lack of respect, and lack of self-control?

[biblegirl]

My husband is an assistant superintendent, and I am a reading specialist in a very diverse, low-socioeconomic school district. I can speak for both of us when I say that we deal with children as individuals, not as members of particular racial groups. No one gets special favors for having a certain color skin.
On the other hand, each child we deal with is cared about as someone precious to God. Each child brings to the table his or her own needs, and for some that would include discipline. Our interpretation of 'fair' is to decide which approach is most beneficial for helping that child grow into the best person he or she can be. Because every child is an individual, there is no 'one size fits all' approach that really works.
Before moving into his assistant superintendent job, my husband was a principal of an elementary school for 12 years. Yes, many of his more difficult students were minority students (though not all). Some of those students spent a lot of time in the principal's office. Surprisingly, those were the very students who would run up and high-five my husband at football games or other events- sometimes years after they had moved on from elementary school. Some would even come back to visit him after graduating from high school. Many of these kids had grown up in homes where no one took time to teach them self-respect and self-control. Kid's have a natural instinct to know who really cares about them and who doesn't. Thoughtful discipline done with the right motives wins their respect.
I know that many liberals believe that government can solve any problem. It can't. Kids lives are changed by relationships, not government mandates.

[Wally]

Give me a school district.

I'll choose what's taught. I'll see every child gets a chance.

Then let me discipline the teachers and parents as I see fit.

Most of the problems will cease.

The Teachers will know I support good dedicated teachers.

The parents will know if they don't apply discipline to their kids, I'll apply it to them.


And the kids will know they are a precious treasure to me, and I will do all that I can to give them a future.


....maybe in the next world Lord Jesus? ... the engine's blown on this one.

[Carrie Grace]

Give me a school district.

I'll choose what's taught. I'll see every child gets a chance.

Then let me discipline the teachers and parents as I see fit.

Most of the problems will cease.

The Teachers will know I support good dedicated teachers.

The parents will know if they don't apply discipline to their kids, I'll apply it to them.


And the kids will know they are a precious treasure to me, and I will do all that I can to give them a future.


....maybe in the next world Lord Jesus? ... the engine's blown on this one.

That's just it. It seems that the teachers that love their students and just want to help them achieve their potential are pressured to just push them through--to let the next school deal with them, and these kids just don't have a fighting chance if they have no one to lift them up and nurture them. It is so sad. My heart is broken almost daily about some child who is in a shelter, has been shuffled from foster home to foster home, or lives with parents that just don't care. Every morning before I enter the school building, I try to pray for God's protection over all the students and staff, and for His Light to pierce the darkness that thrives there.

[sherrimae]

Sadly, nothing surprises me much any more.

Our son has always been in private school, but our special needs child was not able to keep up there so we had to enroll her in public school.

After our daughter was harrassed mercilessly in 2 school districts and special education programs were cut by 50% (and our daughter was already not receiving the services she was supposed to be getting) we were just about fed up with public school. The final straw for us was finding out that girls were being beaten up by other students at the high school our child was zoned to attend. That information just struck terror in my heart. What chance was our visually impaired child going to have for safety when normally sighted girls were being beaten up? One girl we heard about was beaten and cut up so badly that her face was permanently disfigured. Nothing much was done to the violent students.

That was the last straw for us and thankfully God had provided an alternative for us. A lady I had recently met recommended a homeschool group that works with special needs children. Now our daughter is happier, safer, and will be able to earn a regular high school diploma.

[Wally]

Sherrimae,

Praise the Lord for His provision.

[Acts5:41]

Sherrimae, that's great!

My husband is totally blind.

I worked at a charter school for almost a year, it focused on low-income, minority, kids.

I remember one day one of the teachers came up and said "Heather, I need to AXE you a question" I couldn't believe it. This was a teacher, molding the minds of tomorrow. The teachers treated me as their personal slave until my boss caught on and corrected them.

I'd look at the resumes coming in, for teaching positions, and they were full of spelling and grammatical mistakes. My favorite said "I think of the box". ONe day I pointed out a particularly bad resume to the hiring manager and she said "Oh, I called her for an interview".

And they were teaching minority kids; at the charter school. How could they have ANY chance to learn?

[waiting1]

Sadly, nothing surprises me much any more.

Our son has always been in private school, but our special needs child was not able to keep up there so we had to enroll her in public school.

After our daughter was harrassed mercilessly in 2 school districts and special education programs were cut by 50% (and our daughter was already not receiving the services she was supposed to be getting) we were just about fed up with public school. The final straw for us was finding out that girls were being beaten up by other students at the high school our child was zoned to attend. That information just struck terror in my heart. What chance was our visually impaired child going to have for safety when normally sighted girls were being beaten up? One girl we heard about was beaten and cut up so badly that her face was permanently disfigured. Nothing much was done to the violent students.

That was the last straw for us and thankfully God had provided an alternative for us. A lady I had recently met recommended a homeschool group that works with special needs children. Now our daughter is happier, safer, and will be able to earn a regular high school diploma.

I pray you always can and will be able to get what you need for your daughter sherrimae and for any of your children for that matter. Disabled children have it worse now than at any other time. And I'm sure our healthcare will target these individuals for euthanasia in due time citing how much of a drain they are financially to our health system and that these dollars could be better spent on a person who will be able to recover from their afflictions and contribute to society. My Autistic son has said so many wonderful, witty, and sometimes wise things that are priceless, yet they would do him in. Woe be unto those who would harm a child.

Matthew 18:6 But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

I have sons 2 with Aspergers, I with Autism. I worry for my Autistic Son who is only 9, he is very concerned for others who are hurting and will ask if they are alright. I just pray the Rapture is soon I would hate to have him be left to live in this vile world with people acting the way they do and getting worse and worse every day. Decent people love him, bad ones look to him for a target.

[Acts5:41]

I have Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and have encountered a lot of bad types looking to exploit me.

Fortunately God has guided me.

Lot of wolves out there. It's very hard to be a parent.