School Discipline Policies

Waiting for Superman is the latest documentary to be released into theatres. It depicts the current state of public education and offers recommendations from experts on how to improve a failing school system. This film precedes recent comments by President Obama on the importance of strengthening the quality of education in this country if we are to remain competitive in a global market.

Here is a trailer for Waiting for Superman.

It also comes when severe budget cuts, thanks to the recent economic slowdown, have strapped already cash-pinched schools even further, forcing them to cut additional programs and staff when the public school system is on the brink of disaster.

Waiting for Superman is the brainchild of David Guggenheim, the same documentary filmmaker who brought us "An Inconvenient Truth," the documentary that rocketed former Vice President Al Gore to Nobel Peace Prize status. Sheila Curran Bernard, associate director for documentary film studies at the University of Albany/SUNY, told USA Today, "What gives some of these films their power is not just the content, but also the craft. Imagine how dull 'An Inconvenient Truth' might have been if it were not shaped well."

Telling a Story

The same can be said of Waiting for Superman, a film that follows five families through the public school experience, according to a synopsis on the official movie website. It illustrates how the educational

Could your child’s public school be playing “big brother” to its students? For some students, their schools just may be spying on them – even in the comfort and privacy of their own homes.

In February, a Pennsylvania Court faced a case where a public school was accused of spying on students via the webcams attached to school-issued laptops.

According to the initial complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Lower Merion School District used remotely activated webcams on school-issued laptops to spy on students’ home activities. As CNN reports, the lawsuit claims that Blake J. Robbins, a student at Harriton Senior High School, became aware of the spying in November 2009, when an assistant principal told Robbins that he had been caught via the webcam engaging in “improper behavior” in his home.

This video reports the story referred to above.

It is yet unknown what the boy was doing in his bedroom or whether he received disciplinary action from the school. Nevertheless, the case is receiving widespread national attention and prompted nationwide concerns from students and parents.

The School District’s Response

Webcams Used Only for Locating Missing Laptops

The school district has issued a letter to parents admitting that spyware was installed on the laptops that the schools issued to students but maintaining that the feature “was only used

Although the media may not frequently report sensational stories of public school gang activity, the reality of the statistics is not reassuring. Experts have found that a rising number of schools have been encountering gang-related activity – in areas outside of the stereotypical urban cities. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, during the 2003 – 2004 school year alone, 41% of high schools and 31% of middle schools reported gang activity.

As Phi Delta Kappa, an association of professional educators, explains, “Once the exclusive of poor neighborhoods in our large cities, youth street gangs have lately inspired an almost paralyzing fear in both suburban and rural middle-class communities across the nation.”

To address the growing gang dangers prevalent in school communities, educational leaders have been enforcing new practices to keep campuses and students safer.

Gangs in Public Schools: The Rising Concern

While gangs can realistically arise in any region, many schools throughout the country have reported significantly higher rates of gang activity. For example, as the Seattle Times reveals, one local Washington state high school, Garfield, has been forced to make significant changes in order to combat pressing gang problems in recent semesters. According to reports, “As Seattle struggles with heightened violence attributed to street gangs, the city's schools are increasingly shaping policies to keep the problem from spreading onto campuses.”

Garfield High School has implemented comprehensive changes in an effort to reduce gang activity, including:

• The school purposefully avoided scheduling any

While media coverage surrounding gangs in school has subsided in recent years, the problem is still alarming. The National Center for Education Statistics reports that 23 percent of public schools experienced incidents of street gangs in their public school hallways. To protect students from local gangs, public schools are working to create action plans specifically targeted toward the phenomenon of street gang psychology.

Are Gangs Still a Problem in Public Schools?

While not every school and community is forced to cope with gang affiliations, nearly a quarter of the country’s public schools are directly confronted by street gangs. Reviewing further details from the National Center for Education Statistics, investigators report that “Street gangs are organized groups that are often involved in drugs, weapons trafficking, and violence.” Street gangs in public schools stimulate a climate of fear amongst students and teachers. Additionally, street gangs also increase the incidents of violent actions and outbreaks on campus.

Although studies show that urban schools are more likely to report the presence of gangs, surrounding suburban areas are still targeted areas for gang activity. 31% of urban public school students report gang occurrences on campus, but 18% of suburban public schools also face these issues.

This video reports on the creation of a gang task force in Atlanta schools.

What Causes Gang Issues and Affiliations?

According to research, teens and younger children choose to join a gang for

In light of terrifying outbreaks of school violence, nearly all public schools have embraced a “zero-tolerance policy” to deter students from malicious behavior. As the American Bar Association (ABA) describes, ‘“Zero tolerance’ is the phrase that describes America's response to student misbehavior. Zero tolerance means that a school will automatically and severely punish a student for a variety of infractions.” Common student infractions include carrying a weapon to school, engaging in threatening forms of physical or verbal behavior, and bullying other students.

However, does the zero-tolerance policy work in public schools? The ABA argues that the zero-tolerance approach has devastatingly turned into a “one size fits all solution” for problems that need more personal interpretation and subjective assessment. For example, misunderstandings and common minor infractions are penalized under the large umbrella of zero tolerance – leading to overreactions and potentially unjust punishments.

Subsequently, many parents and community members are questioning if other types of behavior policies would be more appropriate in keeping public school campuses safe.

This TEDx Talk discusses the impact of zero-tolerance on teenagers.

What are Zero Tolerance Policies?

Zero-tolerance policies are rules that specifically target the most serious risks facing the safety of students in public schools. For example, students who bring any weapon to school can be punished under zero-tolerance restrictions.

While these types of policies were intended to help create a more widespread environment of safety and