Enforce discipline uniformly in city schools, panel says

"Provide informational meetings for parents and students regarding The Student Code of Conduct and related polices concerning discipline."

This is the KEY one. Force the parents to take action on there kids, not the teachers aka babysitters.

These current crop of kids' parents who lack moral family values are the reason the Y-town schools have to deal with these hoodlums. In my day, the school didn't have to deal with my kids because I would deal with them myself at home. All it took was a phone call from the school. I support a non-racial profiling ZERO TOLERANCE policy that kicks them out for good and never allows then to retuirn if the violation is severe enough like punching or threatening a teacher.

This list left off the MAJOR item- HOLD PARENTS RESPONSIBLE for making certain students come to school everyday, prepared with homework completed, dressed appropriately, and with the proper attitude. That they respect the teacher, principal and each other. Also parents should be held accountable to show up for parent/teacher conferences when required.

If the parent is not going to do their part in seeing the students get a good education, they should be charged with child neglect. Otherwise this school system is never going to rise from the bottom of the heap.

I have to agree. When we got in trouble at school, like a spanking (we did that back then), we also got it again when we got home. We were expected to get A's and B's, a C was not acceptable. Even though my parents were from Kentucky and didn't graduate from high school, they respected the educational system and demanded that we respect it also. That's part of the reason I have a Master's Degree today. Parents today do not respect the system and treat it like a babysitter that has to coddle and tolerate their poorly raised monsters.

When a teacher disciplines a student and the administration doesn't back the teacher, the system breaks down. Some school systems in the area have poor administrations and that is a huge problem. Y-town is one of the worst. A weak administration sends the wrong message.

Many districts have an even greater problem and that is when the school board doesn't support the administration and the teachers.

Every district has discipline problems to a certain degree. How bad it is allowed to get depends on whether the Board, Administration or teachers allow the inmates to run the assylum or whether they will stand together and say "Not on my watch you won't!"

The disciplinary problems in YSC dates back a long, long time and are complex. Yes, we all know there has been a gross breakdown in the family. However, the school system failed to address the discipline issues when they really first began and now they are out of control.

I agree that there should be a 100% ZERO TOLERANCE policy. I don't care if your little darling has ADHD, Autism, bi-polar disorder, or just a plain old bad attitude. I could not care less. If they are disruptive, violent, disrespectful, or disobedient, they should be removed, permanently, from the public schools and sent to a school for kids with behavioral problems. If you try to get them out of the school the parents will sue and cry discrimination. I don't believe in ADHD and most of these kids are just plain BAD SEEDS who have no home training. Yet, as long as they can get a doctor to corroborate their parents' story that the kid is somehow "disabled" then the schools have little recourse.

I went to YSC as a child and I can only describe the atmosphere as circus-like. It got worse as I moved up in grade level. By the time I reached high school I would describe the atmosphere as pure hellish. The same kids that were bad and disruptive in elementary school were now in high school beating the hell out of teachers and other kids, selling dope at school, using dope at school, and generally running the show. There was no order and those of us who tired to learn could not do so in peace and safety. I had to bring all of my books home from school every night to catch up because I could not concentrate and study at school. Only a few teachers really had control of their classrooms. The principal and vice principals hid in their offices all day and the majority of the teachers were too afraid to say a thing to the hoods and class clowns who held court in the classrooms every day.

There should be a Right to Learn law in this state and every state. ANY and EVERY disruptive child should be removed permanently and immediately, from the school system. Their right to be treated "equally" should not supersede the rights of other kids to learn.

"Among the key recommendations are:

Provide extensive training for administrators and teachers on The Student Code of Conduct and related policies concerning discipline while ensuring consistency in enforcement."

This reads as if the Teacher's can't read the damn policy. They can read ,what needs to be done is for the Administration to back up the Teachers. This has been a policy failure by Wendy Webb. She has not backed up the Teachers 100% in the past which let to apathy within the ranks.This is what lead to the "inmates to run the assylum " situation that we have today. Hell half of the expulsions should have led to jail time for some of these thugs. That is the TONE that needs to be sent by the next top Administrator, tow the line or expulsion with a chance of legal repercussions

"There should be a Right to Learn law in this state "

WOW, what a great idea! I agree 100%.

Provide informational meetings for parents and students regarding The Student Code of Conduct and related polices concerning discipline.

problem with this idea is, the parents of the children who get in trouble wont attend, they never attend anything, thus the problem. these phantom parents that see the school as a childcare facility and not as a place to get an education, will have no use for meetings, for after all "their children would never do these things"

there are kindergarteners getting suspended here, thats ludacris, maybe if they start punishing and giving these "parents" fines for their childrens repeated offenses theyll take a more active role in their childrens lives. it disgusts me, these lil hoodlums detract from my good childrens time in the classroom, i cannot wait to be rid of this district, and ill enjoy watching it cave in on itself from afar.

@havinmysay- I applaud you for having the personal responsibility to take your books home and make sure you got your education. I'm sure you make certain your children do the same. You are also right about the state instituting a "Right to Learn" law.

Maybe what needs to be done is "Invite" the parents to attend class with their disruptive students for a week so they can see first-hand what is going on.

If they don't accept the "Invitation" to attend school, then they can spend a week with their disruptive student in one of the soon to be empty PODS at the MCJ. Maybe a little forced one on one time might be just the thing!

After all, we parents are Legally and Financially repsonsible for our kids until they are 18 and I think the YCS should have the Balls to start making certain the parents ARE HELD RESPONSIBLE for them!

Administrators don’t need lectures on the discipline code any more then drunks need lectures on sobriety. Both groups behave as they do as a matter of choice. If the administrators were tested on their knowledge of the conduct code they would do well. However, the code is not enforced for political reasons by the administration. Teachers are more than willing to follow the code and do routinely refer students to the office for discipline. However, the administration does not want to follow up and antagonize parents for fear they will transfer their children to charter schools or complain to the superintendant. Many bad behaviors are ignored in an effort to be pals with students. The superintendant makes a practice of receiving complaints directly from parents instead of requiring them to bring complaints up through the ranks as is appropriate. Principals are afraid of being contacted by the superintendant’s office about a routine discipline incident in which the parent wants their child’s bad behavior to be excused. The principal will often find themselves on the defensive, trying to justify their actions against a parent and child who are willing to lie and intimidate. Some of the time, there is follow-through that results in effective discipline. But, much of the time it becomes a racial battle with the implication always being that white administrators do not understand or accept reasonable behaviors by children from a different culture. It’s a constant threat of such accusations that has driven away some of the best and brightest teachers and administrators. Some schools are much worse than others, but, generally, most adults, particularly those who believe that children should respect their elders, would be shocked at the daily rude and uncooperative behavior of many students. The behaviors keep them from benefitting as they should. Nobody is doing the kids a favor by allowing them to learn that they can violate rules and be rude. The rest of the world will not be that tolerant. When they discover this general intolerance, they will become angry, attack society and ultimately suffer the consequences.