Teacher's Outburst Caught On Camera

NBC10.com ^

[cricket]

"And, hey, with all these teachers molesting students, no wonder we are seeing a big gap in classroom respect."

You are half right. . .teachers molesting students; and students being disrespectful and unruly do have a common denominator. . .but not each other. . .

Liberalism is the disease and root cause for both unacceptable behaviors.

IMHO ;^) of course.

[JerseyHighlander]

I know a teacher in NJ who had a h.s. student pull a chair out from under him. The teacher required 3 surgeries on his back and neck. After many years of litigation, the school district had to pay for the claims plus civil damages out of court. It cost the school district a lot of money. 6 digits.

Make no doubt about this, what this teacher did is assault with a weapon, and he has clearly broken the law. If this student's parents/guardians so desire, the school district will lose a lot of money here, and the teacher will lose his NJ teacher's certification. The response of the administration will also put the careers of the administrators who decided to work this as an internal situation, in jeopardy. Case law in NJ is highly in favor of the student here.

[Mugwump]

"There is so little respect in classrooms anymore I don't know how any good teacher stands it."

My schoolteacher wife experiences the disrespect and defiance on a daily basis. Her solution? discipline!, but the rules won't allow that. She refers to herself as "an animal trainer without the whip." She's one of those who cares, and she's become so frustrated that she's seriously thinking of leaving the profession.

I've heard it from innumerable sources in schools: The kids have too much power -- and they know how to use it.

[JerseyHighlander]

It is clearly visible on the bottom left of the video that the teacher has his hand firmly on the back of the student's chair.

[brytlea]

Did you watch the video? The teacher did not pull the chair out from under the student. He tipped it somewhat forward so the child would stand up. Only a court full of crazies would call that assault.
sundero

[nikos1121]

"It is clearly visible on the bottom left of the video that the teacher has his hand firmly on the back of the student's chair."

Meaning what? That he did or did not assault the student?

[cricket]

"They ban cell phones in our school (but it IS a private school)...if your cell phone goes off in class, or if it is even OUT of your purse or pocket, too bad, you lose it!"

Yes, it is 'private'. . .and of course it makes so much sense ie fair. . .reasonable. . .so why cannot public schools do the same?

. . .'fair and reasonable' notwithstanding. . .can they?

[Rakkasan1]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1354453/posts

Claims of education funding cuts just don't add up
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1354258/posts

[JerseyHighlander]

The chair is clearly moved more than two feet by a dragging motion on schoolroom linoleum. He pulled it out from under the kid.

Common results from having a chair pulled out from under a person on a hard surface include broken/fractured coccix, pinched nerves, permanent nerve damage, herniated disks, and various neck injuries. Surgery, weeks of bed rest, prescription painkillers, lifelong pain, and limited mobility and strength in the spinal column are typical outcomes if injuries occur.

That's what people are defending on FR today.

[sonrise57]

That's my read on the what happened as well. The kid was in no way at risk for falling on his butt, however a swift kick upon his would be approriate. Unfortunately we no longer apply the "board of education" to the "seat of learning." Not PC.

[CitizenM]

She has a good method. According to what several of my friends who are teachers, (aged between 45-55) discipline is the main problem. I guess, if all teachers applied your wife's good idea, most students would be in the hall, and not the classroom.

One friend who is leaving this year actually had a girl toss a used "feminine cylindrical product" at him when he disciplined her. He went to the principal, and said he is leaving after June. Retirement benefits are no longer an issue for him.

[brytlea]

The kid didn't fall, so I don't think your scenario is a correct reading of what the video shows. I suppose we will have to agree to disagree. I'm defending nothing other than stating what appears to be the truth.
sundero

[brytlea]

Had to laugh at your comment about most kids being in the hall. We got in trouble if we sent them out into the hallway.
I don't expect anyone to feel sorry for me as a teacher, I choose to do it. But, I think that we need to look at the problem and what has caused it. I am gratified to see that the majority of the Freepers on this thread can see and understand!
sundero

[quietolong]

Support the teacher bump.

[BJungNan]

The teacher should have just ignored the jerky kid that would not stand and then given him a A on every assignment and for the class. As a sign that the teacher had given up on him. The kid would get the message.

[brytlea]

I couldn't tell if you were being funny or sarcastic or not. But, ignoring behavior like this (and it wasn't just not standing, the kid and his friends were giggling and whispering as well) generally causes an escalation. I have generally found that if I can stop the little stuff they pull I don't have to deal with the big stuff it evolves into.
I did have a group of boys who didn't want to particpate in the prayer/pledge when it became mandatory in TX a couple of years ago. I told the class at the outset that they were free to participate or not, but they would show respect for the rest of us who were participating, and they would sit (or stand) quietly.
I didn't have a problem, because if someone started talking or anything during that time, *the eye* usually was enough to stop them in mid sentence. Interestingly, out of my little group of about 5 boys who didn't want to do it, by the end of the semester, they were standing and saying the pledge with us. I think it was just a small rebellion or maybe attention seeking, or who knows. But I would NOT have allowed them to disrupt the rest of us. And they didn't. On the other hand, the jerky kid in the video deserved to have his Dad, deal with him harshly when he got home. Instead it appears Daddy is supporting him. I guess the jerk doesn't fall far from the tree.

[BJungNan]

I was not being funny but I was not clear in what I was saying. My approach was a round about action to deal with the kid in the long term.

Certainly you have to squelch the immediate disturbance. But sometimes you have to let things take their course to correct a problem. You can not rush a fine wine.

The kid was looking for a reaction. I would not have given it to him. I would have instead focused latter lesson plans on the Star Spangled Banner, what it means to people that has sacrificed for this country, how it originated.

Without saying it directly, I would have given the other kids something to contrast this students behavior against. He was making a statement (actually a challenge). That is how I would have made my statement.

Then, in direct response to the kid, on his next assignment and everyone one after that, I would have given him A+. No matter how bad his work was, he would have gotten A+ out of me throughout the rest of the year.

That would be a clear and direct message to him that I had given up on him. He might brag to the other kids about his A+'s, but they would be smart enough to see through it. And ultimately the kid would be the loser in the exchange. Or he would get the message and straighten up.

A friend that was a teacher in his last year ran into a bad student that challenged him. It ended up in the principle's office and the administration not standing behind my friend the teacher.

I gave him the same advice: just give the kid A+'s and forget about him. He came back to me and told me it worked. The kid got the message. He was not a problem the rest of the year. The next assignment he actually did the work to earn the grade.

Hope that clears up my approach. I just don't think playing someone else's game that is trying to confront you is usually the right approach. If they are looking for confrontation, don't give it to them.

[Rebelbase]

Everyone knows corporal punishment instills discipline. It would be good, IMO, for a school district to institute a pilot program for a school that enforces corporal punishment.

I'd be willing to bet it would have the highest test scores and lowest discipline problems of any of its district's schools.