And so the experiment begins. The politics are pretty interesting, with neither the teachers’ unions nor the voters in places like Baltimore city necessarily thrilled about this development. It’s far more popular with various legal services groups, liberal foundations, and of course the Obama Administration’s Department of Education and Justice Department. [Washington Post, earlier on similar Los Angeles initiative and on the race angle]
4 Comments
Exhibit F in the long list of reasons why American students are falling behind their counterparts in other countries.
I can accept the argument that ordinary offenders should not be sent home to hang around on the streets. But neither should classes be disrupted by those who won’t obey teachers. “In-school suspension” sounds like a reasonable compromise– get them out of class, but keep them doing schoolwork.
I’m not sure conservatives can’t get behind this too. Suspension is just one weapon in arsenal. Many of these kids view suspension as a good thing. Then the fall further behind.
I really don’t think this is a liberal/conservative issue. It is a very nuanced “how to best get through to these kids” issue.
Suspension should be the second-last resort (the last resort being expulsion.) It should not be used for simple insubordination. That said, if the student is behaving badly enough often enough, it might be appropriate.