| Zero tolerance discipline in BVSD |
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| Sunday, 19 August 2007 | |
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From Louise Benson, MD, louisebenson(at)comcast(dot)net. Submitted August 18th, 2007
(Also see the BVSD response at the end of the article from Ellen Miller-Brown, Deputy Superintendent for Teaching and Learning)
Zero tolerance discipline in BVSD - In need of moderation?
Zero Tolerance School Discipline is a widely used philosophy which gained adherents after the tragedy at Columbine in 1999. It is defined as the use of harsh consequences including suspension, expulsion, and often arrest, for a wide range of student behavioral infractions. The hope was that by punishing even minor offenses, and "sending a message ," the more serious offenses and school shootings could thus be avoided. The majority (80%) of US schools use some form of zero tolerance, known as mainstream/punitive discipline. While state laws in Colorado and elsewhere mandate expulsion for weapons and drugs on school grounds, many school district have expanded the use of suspension greatly, and have used expulsion for non-violent offenses which did not involve weapons or drugs. This includes vague written or spoken threats, artwork, expanding the definition of "weapon," as well as events off campus and on-line.
It has become clear from research, as well as experience since 1999, that Zero Tolerance Discipline does not prevent school tragedies, is harmful to students, and in fact is counterproductive to school safety. School tragedies continue to occur sporadically. It is clearly harmful to expelled students, many of whom had no intent to harm anyone, and who are often on the streets if no appropriate and quality educational alternatives are offered. Many of these students never graduate from high school, and get into more trouble. There have been documented suicides of seniors whose future plans were destroyed. Even students with more resources have experienced educational derailment that is undeserved. Zero Tolerance is counterproductive when classmates who have been encouraged to "tell" on others when hearing rumors, fear that doing so will ruin a student's life if it's not serious. This is exactly what happened in Santee, California, several years ago, resulting in tragedy. It is clear that "telling" is critical, and handling all incidents fairly and rationally leads to more troubled students getting help, and fewer school tragedies. At the same time, there are proven alternatives to Zero Tolerance Discipline that involve developing smaller, inclusive schools where adults care and get involved, and newer anti-bullying methods are used. Behavioral consequences are graduated, individualized, and fair. Zero Tolerance is a political "feel good" solution, not an educational solution to unsafe schools. That BVSD uses Zero Tolerance Discipline is evidenced by multiple publicized episodes of expulsion (for non-state law mandated reasons) in the past several years. This includes two 13 year old boys who were arrested, and expelled for verbalizing about wanting to kill a teacher; no writings,plans, or weapons were found. Another 13 year old boy was arrested, and expelled after verbalizing suicidality and vague threats against bullies to a peer counselor; no plans or access to weapons were found. Currently, at least three BVSD students known to the writer are under suspension and facing possible expulsion, two 13 year olds for passing nasty notes, and one 17 year old for a non-injury pellet gun incident off campus. BVSD, to its credit however, has fewer (according to the most recent available data of '04-'05) than the national average of something less than 1% of all public school students expelled in any one year, with Colorado at about .4%. In Colorado in 2004-5, there were 2400 expulsions and 71,000 suspensions, and 11,000 referrals to law enforcement. A recent discussion that the writer had with Ellen Miller-Brown, PhD, Deputy Superintendent, and Michele DeBerry, Director of Athletics, Activities and Discipline, indicates that they are not proponents of Zero Tolerance, and have made efforts to educate principals and assistant principals, who have significant autonomy in discipline, on Restorative Justice. BVSD Watch applauds this effort, and encourages more education, and more oversight of decisions to suspend or expel. Many states and school districts nationwide are turning away from Zero Tolerance. Texas passed a bill mandating school official examination of all circumstances of an incident prior to expulsion. Colorado's Attorney General, in the 2006 Revised School Safety Manual, has advised using suspension and expulsion for those cases bearing a true relationship to school safety. California has an educator website dedicated to appropriate use of these sanctions, as does Colorado. Many large, respected organizations such as the American Bar Association and the American Psychological Association, have well-reasoned positions against Zero Tolerance, and there is a wealth of information to be obtained just by googling "zero tolerance," or searching the websites below. The sea change across the nation which is supplanting Zero Tolerance with modern discipline methods may be coming late to Colorado because we are the home of Columbine, and say "Never again." The way to ensure it is to embrace newer anti-bullying and discipline methods, smaller schools, control school access and environs (not done at Platte HS), and continue rapid assessments of any hint of trouble. But don't go overboard when the situation is found to be non-serious. BVSD Watch believes there should be more education of school officials, parents, and the community on this topic of vital importance. BVSD should review its discipline policies, and specifically refute Zero Tolerance, and specifically endorse such programs such as Restorative Justice. In order to mete out individualized consequences, principals must continue to have autonomy, but oversight and education by district officials in each case of lengthy suspension or expulsion is essential.
Additional reading:
Response from Ellen Miller-Brown, BVSD's Deputy Superintendent for Teaching and Learning: While BVSD has committed to restorative justice in the past, there is an increased emphasis on it under a new name, "restorative discipline" this year through Chris King, our new superintendent. Chris spoke to our district leadership team on July 31. This team comprises all of the school-based leaders as well as leaders at the Education Center. He shared what will be the same and different under his leadership and what he expects of leaders in this new chapter of BVSD. One of the things that will be different is his emphasis on relationships in the area of discipline. As he stated in his speech, "Another example of how we can focus more on relationships is the use of restorative discipline in our schools. Many of you have begun to see infractions by students as teachable moments, and you are using restorative strategies to improve both the attitude of the student and the environment of your school. That's what I mean when I talk about community-building. I will want much more experimentation and implementation of restorative discipline in the future because I believe fundamentally that how we treat students during their most vulnerable moments speaks volumes about who we are and what we stand for as adults. I pledge to model this kind of trust and interdependence with you, if you pledge to model this kind of trust and interdependence with those whom you supervise and educate." Kappy Hall, an assistant principal at New Vista High School, has been assigned for part of her contract to promote restorative justice for two years. All principals and assistant principals have been expected to read, The Little Book of Restorative Discipline for Schools: Teaching Responsibility; Creating Caring Climates, and implement the practices suggested in it. Last year for the first time we tracked the use of restorative practices as one of many discipline strategies in use by schools. This year we have that data as a baseline and expect schools to increase the use of these strategies. Additionally, we will develop a continuum of disciplinary responses as well as review and implement preventive strategies. It is our hope that our improved relationships with families and students will ensure that students learn from their mistakes and feel respected during this process. Ellen Miller-Brown, Ph.D. Deputy Superintendent for Teaching and Learning Boulder Valley School District
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