Teachers Powerless Under The Safe Schools Act?
Put yourself in this situation. You are a teacher. You reprimand students who have been unruly or who have committed some sort of offense in your classroom. Instead of taking things in stride, the students gang up on you and attack you both physically and verbally. How would you react? How would you deal with the situation? How should the students be penalized?
If I were asked that question, I would probably say that they should be expelled from the school and sent to some sort of program which could help them deal with their behavioral problems. But of course, that’s just me.
Did you know that this incident actually happened in real life in Michigan? Understandably (at least from my point of view), the teachers were looking to expel the students. However, the court has decided to merely suspend them. FOX News has this story:
Michigan schoolteachers assaulted by students do not have the right to seek enforcement of a state law requiring the students be expelled, a state Court of Appeals panel has ruled.
AdvertisementThe appeals court, in a case involving four Lansing School District middle school teachers, upheld a lower court ruling that disciplinary decisions are within the discretion of the school board. It may be “unfortunate” that the Legislature did not empower teachers to enforce the Safe Schools Act, designed to protect the safety of teachers and students in the classroom, the court said. But “it is within the province of the Legislature.”
The teachers and their union filed the lawsuit after students involved in the assaults were suspended but not expelled. They claimed the law required expulsion, with the opportunity for subsequent reinstatement.
What struck me here - more than the idea that the kids are not being expelled, because really, it is a good thing that they can still go to school - is the statement of the court: “It may be “unfortunate” that the Legislature did not empower teachers to enforce the Safe Schools Act, designed to protect the safety of teachers and students in the classroom.”
It just brought to mind the other side of the school safety coin - the safety of the school personnel. It’s alarming that legislation such as the Safe Schools Act does not seem to take the safety of these personnel into more consideration. While I do place a priority on the safety of the students, I do believe that teachers and other school staff should not have to worry about their safety either.
What are your thoughts on this issue? Should teachers have the power to at least recommend expulsion and have the school board approve such recommendations? Or should the court be the one to decide?
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Posted on January 30th, 2009 by Deborah J Thomas
Filed under: Administrators, News, People Involved, School Safety Issues
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