Admittedly, I got a little chuckle out of a news announcer last week when I heard the following, “The question is: when is it OK to tape a student’s mouth shut? Prince George’s County [MD] answered the question: Never.” Or, something along those lines.
Apparently, some frustrated teacher, after repeated attempts to get her students to be quiet, took action and silenced them by getting creative with the duct tape. Of course, the parents are outraged and I am sure the lawsuits will follow to compensate them and their children for their “pain and suffering.”
Today they announced that another Prince George’s County, MD teacher is under investigation for taping students’ mouths shut, after they refused to be quiet. Once again, I found myself laughing at the news.
I know you may be thinking that it’s not funny. These teachers, who have both been forced to take leave since the accusations arose, should be punished. I beg to differ. Of course, I’m of the school of thought that a little public humiliation is good, especially for children in this day and age. Adversity builds character.
Prince George’s County, for those of you who are unfamiliar with the area, isn’t exactly the nicest or safest place to live. In fact, it’s a place most of the rest of us avoid for fear of being ransacked, robbed, and raped.
I can imagine the children we’re dealing with, here. They are probably little criminals in training. Their parents are probably on welfare and just looking for another payday (hence, the upcoming lawsuits for pain and suffering I predicted). If they had done their job as parents in the first place, their children would show some respect for adults and authority and would have obeyed their teachers numerous requests to quiet down.
I’m usually not the first to defend teachers. But, in this case, I have to agree. What harm does putting a little duct tape over their mouths cause? These children should have been too embarrassed to tell their parents. Back in the day, you were ashamed when you got in trouble at school, and did your best to ensure your parents didn’t find out for fear of more punishment at home. “Why did your teacher yell at you? You did what? Get your butt over here right now!”
If the parents and school backed the teachers in this dispute, every other kid would think twice the next time a teacher made a legitimate request, like to be quiet. Instead, they have taken away more power from teachers and put it in the hands of hoodlums.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
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Love it Hotmes! A little controversial (future criminals, etc.) but good sticking point about the administration rarely backing the teaching staff.
ReplyDeleteBack when I was in 5th grade our teacher often dealt with a student who talked too much in class by taping his mouth shut. She used a spool of Johnson and Johnson adhesive tape, 20 or 30 pieces(!) of tape over the offender's mouth. Mouth taped shut for the rest of the day. And that tape HELD, I know from experience!
ReplyDeleteAnd if you got in any more trouble while you were taped up, you had to have your mouth taped shut again all day long the next day too.
And nobody ever imagined our teacher could get in trouble for doing this. Of course that was back in the early 1960s. Oh how the world has changed!