Many thanks to John Neal for his comments about disruptive students hurting the education process (Jan. 27). I agree with him.
Teachers come to their classrooms to help their students learn what education has to offer. Teachers guide and support those students wanting to learn — they don’t have the time to constantly intervene and redirect inappropriate and often verbally and physically threatening behaviors toward the teacher or other students. T
These students must be escorted from the room, the parents called in for a chat with the principal, and then “Johnnie” needs to have an extended “time-out” at home. Parents usually don’t like the trouble kids being sent home, but do not see what is going on time after time after time when their offspring are acting out in school and causing problems. They must be living on another planet.
I believe many parents feel that bringing up their son or daughter is the number one duty on the top of a teacher’s job description. Wrong. The teachers did not bring these disrespectful, uncommitted, disruptive, and sometimes violent and threatening kids into the world.
Teachers are not slaves — they are highly educated, sincere, respectful, caring individuals who choose one of the hardest professions.
Like John Neal, I am all for ending compulsory education for students in Maine over the age of 14. It will free up many desks for more students. It will free up educators to do what they do best — teach.
Carolyn Libbey, Lewiston
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I think the view on
I think the view on disruptive students is a bit warped. While there are some "bad apples" in every class, not all disruptive students are as described in this letter. Many parents have their "disruptive" children in programs to help them and when the child goes to public schools the rules change. Many cannot get services in the schools that are needed for the child. Budgets have been cut and so have these school based programs. Accommodations cannot be made without a battle between the parents and the schools. Children entering elementary schools sometimes do not have parents that have the knowledge of what to expect or how to express to the school what is going on and what needs to be done for their child. They take the response of "your child doesn't qualify" as the end all be all. They do not know what steps they can take to go to the next level. The schools have to look at the budgetary concerns and what they can and cannot afford to provide. In the end the losers become our children that are not getting what they need.
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Yeah, because what we really
Yeah, because what we really need is even more uneducated, unschooled, and unemployable young people on the streets with nothing to do and no legitimate means of income. Do you really think those troublemakers will just go to the local Burger King for a job? Nope, a majority of them will follow pursuits that will lead to jail time. This is an improvement?
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.How about compulsory community/military service then?
If the kids don't wish to be taught, you give them the option of being used to clean streets and do community service until they're 18 and then four years as ground troops in either the Marines or the Army instead of school.
I bet most of them would change their attitudes in a hurry...
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Well said.
Well said.
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