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This Speakout has not been edited

By Louise Benson, MD, Broomfield

A 17 year old boy is facing six years in adult prison for lobbing a plastic pop bottle "bomb" near his school during the week of the Columbine anniversary.

A 30 year old knock-dead blond teacher has been given 45 days in jail for plying a 17 year old boy with alcohol and groping him on a field trip. Both of these stories are in the same Rocky Mountain News edition (June 9, 2007). What's wrong with this picture?

This is Zero Tolerance School Discipline, defined by the American Bar Association as automatic and severe punishment of children for a variety of infractions, resulting in suspension, expulsion and often, criminal charges. The ABA and other organizations such as the American Psychological Association have official positions against Zero Tolerance policies. Many states and school districts have modified their harsh sanctions, after seeing more and more illogical and ridiculous results, and in some cases, tragedies such as the suicide of a senior who was expelled for the friend's knife in his car. At the same time that juveniles who meant no harm are being charged with felonies as adults, adults such as the teacher mentioned above, receive leniency. This is grossly unfair.

Many Districts Attorney, and their approving constituents, say: "In this post-Columbine world, we've got to send a message that we're serious about violence and school disruptions." Fair enough. But children don't read the newspaper or listen to the news to find out what happens to the unwitting kids who say something angry or naive, or do something stupid, such as the boy above who picked the worst week of all to pull a prank. Teenagers' brains are not fully developed until the early twenties. This is why even the most well-behaved and mature-appearing teenager will unexpectedly do something really dumb.

Zero Tolerance Discipline has not worked to make our schools safer, but it continues to ruin the lives of children who had no intention of harming anyone. In fact, Zero Tolerance makes schools less safe when other students hesitate to report rumors for fear that a classmate will get expelled and arrested even if it wasn't serious! Colorado and other states have enacted specific laws regarding threats to schools, and I call it the "No nail clippers, no bomb jokes" method of discipline, making hapless students the equivalent of airline passengers in the age of terrorism. Some states even call such charges against students "Making a terroristic threat." No evidence of plans, intent or ability to carry out a threat is needed to convict. All a kid needs to do is open his or her big mouth. This used to be called "trash talk," and was considered in most cases to be acting out, a normal way that children signal that something's not right in their world, such as bullying or family trouble s.

Of course, all hints of threats or trouble should be investigated immediately. But when a threat is found to be non-serious, don't go overboard with Zero Tolerance. Use common sense to decide what the most productive approach should be: search for root causes (including bullying and poor school climate), counseling, restorative justice, restitution for costs of disruption, temporary suspension, etc.

Students should be educated on proper ways to express feelings, how to see a counselor, and what has been happening to unfortunate classmates elsewhere who "trash talk" or pull pranks. Any discipline must be fair, individualized, and fit the behavior.

Experts have been studying the harm and counterproductivity of Zero Tolerance for almost a decade now. Zero Tolerance is an ineffective political, not an educational, solution. There are effective and humane school discipline methods that return to common sense. Recently, the Office of the Attorney General came out with revised school safety guidelines that are beginning to address the problem of bullying, and more reasonable application of suspension and expulsion policies. It's time to end the zero tolerance=zero thinking madness.

Louise Benson, of Broomfield, louisebenson@comcast.net, is the author of Scapegoating for Columbine: Collateral Damage in the War on School Violence, which shares her family's experience with Zero Tolerance and details research supporting a return to common sense school discipline.

READER COMMENTS

Hello! Good Site! Thanks you! hsrpahzappnwn

You're right. You're not alone. It seems that some of our most intelligent educators are failing to model critical thinking.

A few years ago, my daughter was asked to make a fake sword for a school play. I was skeptical, though, and was worried that it would get her into trouble. I made an appointment to see the school principal and brought the prop along. Although it was tough to get the appointment and I had to endure many personal put-downs by an educator who could simply be described as rude and arrogant, I am glad I meet with her. I learned that my daughter would have been suspended under the school’s weapons policy for bringing a sword made of aluminum foil to school. I have also learned to tape record every single conversation that I have had with any member of this school’s administration because the arrogance, verbal abusiveness, and confusing rules are difficult to believe.

There are several online group that strive to end zero tolerance in public schools. Groups such as these offer support to families and individuals suffering the consequences of a system that preaches bureaucratic control over common sense.

Good Luck.

My favorite Group:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PAZT/

Interesting Reading:

http://www.edlawcenter.org/ELCPublic/Publications/PDF/Survey_ZeroTolerance.pdf

http://www.apa.org/ed/cpse/zttfreport.pdf

http://www.zerointelligence.net/

True, many children should not be held liable for their stupid acts, after all they learn this behavior at home. Imprison his parents and then perhaps more parents will become involved with their children's lives and we'll have less stupid acts (unless it is genetic).
Simple fact of life, be involved in your children's lives, or except the fact they may go to prison or worse......

SHE THREATENS JUDGES, INTIMIDATES LAWYERS, AND PERSECUTES CHILDREN. I'M SO GLAD THIS CORRUPT DA HAS FOUND YET ANOTHER OUTLET FOR HER LONELY BITTER RAGE. HEY CAROL!! THERE'S A 3 YEAR OLD IN INDIA YOU CAN CHARGE AS AN ADULT FOR RIOTING. JAILING ANOTHER CHILD AS AN ADULT SHOULD PROVE REWARDING FOR YOU MY DEAR MS. CHAMBERS!!!

Thank you Dr. Benson for this intelligent piece. It is about time we start once again to treat our kids as just that, kids. They make mistakes because they are young, not because they are dangerous. They must make mistakes in order to learn. Imprisoning them and treating them more harshly than adults is surely not the best way to teach them anything, much less how to behave in society. The example that pops to my mind it the grade school girl in Longmont who reported to her teacher that she found a paring knife in her lunch which her mother had apparently left there inadvertently. I do not remember the exact outcome of this but I beleive that the child was suspended and perhaps expelled, even after she had done the right thing by reporting this heinous act to her teacher! So what did she learn from this? DON'T TELL ! That is the biggest message from zero tolerance.

Thank you Dr. Benson for this intelligent piece. It is about time we start once again to treat our kids as just that, kids. They make mistakes because they are young, not because they are dangerous. They must make mistakes in order to learn. Imprisoning them and treating them more harshly than adults is surely not the best way to teach them anything, much less how to behave in society. The example that pops to my mind it the grade school girl in Longmont who reported to her teacher that she found a paring knife in her lunch which her mother had apparently left there inadvertently. I do not remember the exact outcome of this but I beleive that the child was suspended and perhaps expelled, even after she had done the right thing by reporting this heinous act to her teacher! So what did she learn from this. Why, DON'T TELL. That is the biggest message from zero tolerance.

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