General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsOregon first-grader humiliated by school’s punishment after being 1 minute late to class
ttp://kfor.com/2015/02/26/its-our-fault-parents-angry-about-6-year-olds-punishment-for-being-late/
The family of an Oregon first-grader is outraged that his school forced the boy to sit by himself during lunch as punishment for being late.
The boy’s grandmother, Laura Hoover, took to Facebook to protest his retribution with photos of Hunter sulking into a cardboard wall blocking his view of a cafeteria bustling with his peers.
“His momma’s car sometimes doesn’t like to start right up. Sometimes he’s a couple minutes late to school. Yesterday, he was one minute late,” Hoover wrote. “This is what his momma discovered they do to punish him.”
His mother, Nicole Garloff, came to check on little Hunter at Lincoln Elementary in Grants Pass on Tuesday and ended up taking him home. She found him staring at his stark food tray in tears over the whole ordeal.
He had already been upset that morning, she said.
Lincoln Elementary officials issued a statement Thursday regarding the seemingly unusual punishment for a young child after an outpour of phone calls inundated the school district, the Oregonian reported.
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
msanthrope
(37,549 posts)geek tragedy
(68,868 posts)KamaAina
(78,249 posts)
tularetom
(23,664 posts)KamaAina
(78,249 posts)
Wella
(1,827 posts)If the parent can't get the child to school on time, the school needs to sit down with him or her and try to figure out a solution. Punishing the child will only alienate the child from school.
BTW, is this a public or charter school?
msanthrope
(37,549 posts)I used that type of barrier with some of my SPED kids, for testing and some classwork.
Turns my stomach to see it used for punishment.
appalachiablue
(41,127 posts)rather the mother who's habitually tardy according to reports here. Call her, explain, give warnings then I don't know, fine her, but that's probably not possible although truancy fines for parents sure are in place. Not a pleasant route but all I can think of now. Shaming this poor little boy is just barbaric, especially over the mother's issues.
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)
appalachiablue
(41,127 posts)
Poor little boy, like he doesn't have enough going on at home which the school darn well knows. Just horrible. KamaAina
(78,249 posts)500.
appalachiablue
(41,127 posts)isolate & shame him....
Hate injustice & cruelty. Once told I was too sensitive for this world. So be it.
hifiguy
(33,688 posts)A first-grader being a minute late? 
is this bullshit?
Oktober
(1,488 posts)A late child entering the room detracts from the start of the day and is time stolen from all the other children and the teacher...
Habitual tardiness adds up...
If the car is slow to start then the mother needs to go out even earlier...
It's only five minutes... It's only 15 minutes... It's only the 3rd time... It's only the 3rd time this week...
At a certain point there has to be a consequence. The question is whether or not this one is appropriate. The school doesn't have much influence over the parent so the child will have to bear some consequence.
LakeVermilion
(1,040 posts)I doubt that the first grader has much control over situation. My guess is that this first grader will grow to an adult that will not support public education.
Educators should be aware that everything they do is measured as a plus or minus against their schools and profession. In this day and age everyone gets measured, no one gets a pass. We are not a very empathetic society.
Oktober
(1,488 posts)... Decide when their child should start class and interupt the others?
Hopefully not every parent is so selfish...
prayin4rain
(2,065 posts)or exhausted, or are dealing with mental health problems, or health issues, or any number of issues that make them unable or unwilling to get their kids to school on time, are exactly the kids that need to be treated with compassion. Punishing a six year old for not having an organized family is cruel and pointless. Does the six year old have the power to solve his families' problems?
Oktober
(1,488 posts)They can talk and cajole and plead but in the end you accept that once the parents decide it's ok for the kid to arrive whenever they want him to.... That's fine...
prayin4rain
(2,065 posts)sense to punish the six year old. I agree, unfortunately, schools and teachers have to deal with the parents' problems/issues, as well as the kids. But everyone sharing the burden that these parents create makes more sense than placing it all on the shoulders of a six year old. The six year old probably has enough on his shoulders.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)Oktober
(1,488 posts)Parents set the schedule at school now...
The vast majority of punishments have a public element to them to act as a deterrent. What is a punishment that doesn't have any public aspect to it?
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)Oktober
(1,488 posts)Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)Oktober
(1,488 posts)Certainly nothing public and certainly nothing towards the child because it isn't their fault...
The schools should just accept that kids can come and go as they please into class. The cost to the rest of the students is acceptable to you.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)How else will you teach a child the proper amount of fear and self-loathing?
Oktober
(1,488 posts)What's with all the dramatization?
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)He should also be maced if he spills his juice during lunchtime isolation. That way he'll learn to not make a mess.
And if he's caught reading ahead in class, a good punch to the face ought to teach him to stay on the same page.
Maybe do like my kindergarten teacher did and throw him on the ground a few times if he squirms on his blanket during naptime. After all, other children are trying to rest!
We have to keep children in line, you know. Gotta make sure the rules are followed.
Oktober
(1,488 posts)... where whatever you feel like doing is good enough...
If you have to go to the obviously ludicrousness of comparing punching or macing a child with what we see in the OP...
Must have run out of constructive points...
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)If the only options on the table are making allowances for a late first grader or publicly humiliating and isolating him as a penalty for something beyond his control, yes, he can come in late. I'd suggest a phone call to the parents to see what's up, but nothing, nothing in this scenario, allows for the idea of treating the child like a leper.
The penalty is far out of scope of the infraction and - once again - the child has no control over the infraction. If he's late because he was wandering the halls, that might call for a punishment like, oh hey, "write some sentences", or perhaps, "that's the third time this week, go to the office and we'll call your mother." If you really must go for "public example," another time-honored one was "come sit at this desk next to mine."
You are using "THE RULES!" as cover for sadism. It's a school, not a fucking supermax. He's a first-grader, not a serial cannibal. They're teachers, not Judge fucking Dredd.
Oktober
(1,488 posts)Pull it back a few notches and we can talk again...
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)Oktober
(1,488 posts)Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)I'm making fun of you and your facile, harebrained "ideas."
Oktober
(1,488 posts)1) You jumped to ridiculous extremes like comparing sitting behind cardboard and a child being punched in the face or hit with a tazer.
2) You admit that you have no alternative other than letting children come and go as they please.
3) Finally backing into the well worn tactic of "Oh... it's just satire"
Anything else?
Cal Carpenter
(4,959 posts)You're off your fucking rocker.
smirkymonkey
(63,221 posts)
Thor_MN
(11,843 posts)Oktober
(1,488 posts)Thor_MN
(11,843 posts)"What's with all the dramatization?"
Apparently I was too subtle.
LanternWaste
(37,748 posts)Must be tough to live in a world to which there only two solutions to any given problem.
smirkymonkey
(63,221 posts)WTF?
zappaman
(20,606 posts)How will he ever recover?
Liberal_in_LA
(44,397 posts)villager
(26,001 posts)n/t
zappaman
(20,606 posts)
villager
(26,001 posts)
zappaman
(20,606 posts)You AND the first grader are cute!
villager
(26,001 posts) 
Skittles
(153,150 posts)considering the child had no control over when he arrived
I think it could be handled better.
But I don't think it's that big a deal and, as I said, I would be more embarrassed if my mom posted pictures of it than having to eat alone.
Skittles
(153,150 posts)absolutely she should have taken the picture but definitely people should think before they post
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)& then blaming everyone but herself.
Her car doesn't "start right up" so she's apparently often "just a minute or two" late.
but it never occurred to her to leave a few minutes early to make up for her slow-starting car; and she only lives a mile away besides.
the school's policy is cruel but was instituted after over a year of habitual lateness on mom's part. and though according to the parents the kid never said anything 'until recently,' I don't really believe that either.
mom somehow is always "just a few" minutes late, which tells me it's her problem. her car isn't breaking down every morning, she's not incapacitated by her arthritis, she's just one of those people who's always late. and she and grandma would rather blame the school than deal with her problem.
for sure the mom is a jerk who blames the school for her problem.
But the school shouldn't be punishing her son for her faults. not in first grade.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)find there is information this story doesn't cover.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)as having to sit in that place, in front of the whole school, day after day for months -- which is what happened to him.
The nasty idiots didn't even tell the parents they were doing it.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)is apparently how often the lazy mom brought the kid late to school though.
it might cause the kid some pain to know his mom doesn't care enough to get him to school on time, too.
Aerows
(39,961 posts)
laundry_queen
(8,646 posts)
zappaman
(20,606 posts)And the humiliation stems from the mom taking the pix and posting to the world.
Liberal_in_LA
(44,397 posts)zappaman
(20,606 posts)
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)A significant bar to clear for sure..
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)problems? and that she doesn't care enough about it to change her lazy habits?
and you think that one day, just out of the blue, the mom who's habitually late to school and was late that morning decides, out of the blue, that she'll just go on down to school at lunchtime to "check" on "little hunter"? Uh-huh.
"His mother, Nicole Garloff, came to check on little Hunter"
nolabels
(13,133 posts)My commute to work in the early afternoon most of the time gets me there a half hour early. I leave an hour or earlier just to make sure i make it there on time. It takes me 20 minutes to get there with low traffic but some days like Fridays ad ten-plus minutes. But often no one can tell when they will be having an accident, a big snarl up on an adjacent freeway, or some emergency road repairs (20 to 40 times a year) on my route.
So i have a formula that I take. It gets me off the freeway and on to the side streets soon enough to make it to work on time. This sometimes even doesn't work, like the day before Thanksgiving. I left an hour and ten minutes before work a still was late that day because the side-streets were packed. You would think after the State had spent about 500 million on that little stretch of Freeway things would go easy along that part but they still don't
At my work they have a point system, one late is a half a point, at eight points they suspend you for three days, at nine points in a accrual year they fire you. I have six and half points right now and being late is not an option
Welcome to the land of productivity
Lurker Deluxe
(1,036 posts)There have been 8 weeks of work so far this year, and by your point system you have been late 13 times.
8X5=40 days, 13 days late is late every third day of work, at least once a week.
You may was well start looking for a different job, if you have been late 13 times in the first two months and that leaves you 5 more times for the year before termination ... you will never make it.
Being late, to anything, bugs the hell out of me. I quit inviting certain friends to events because they simply can not show up on time, such is life. I am the first person to work, every.single.day. I shut off the alarm, turn on the lights, fire up the compressor, then sit down and have my breakfast as the others begin to wander in. Point of fact is when I am supposed to be at work, I am there.
If I had been late thirteen times so far this year I would be looking for a new job, just not tolerated where I work.
nolabels
(13,133 posts)So it takes the full year to lose any point you acquired. For each day you miss they add a point up to two, on the third day you have to have a doctors excuse to come back to work. We have seven sick days by Union contract but each one still counts as a point. Last April I went out on works-mans disability for two months because I had to a double hernia repaired and i gained two points. I was late a two or three times by only two or three minutes because of traffic and called early to tell them about it but still got dinged. Had a three lates which i had told them about a week ahead because i had to take my 86 mother for outpatient surgery for cancer, still got dinged with points.
I have been there 15 years and been a truck mechanic for 37 years, but the people at work that i can talk to about it can do nothing about it. They tell me it's corporate policy. So at any rate, I don't plan on having another late or miss for anything. I had my mothers HMO changed to a much better one that works with me. And i guess they will have to haul me out of work in an ambulance if anything else happens.
Thanks for reminding me about it again, i think going to be getting to work even earlier 
Just remember Karma is often a two-way street
Manifestor_of_Light
(21,046 posts)"If I'm five minutes late to work, will the sun explode and wipe out all life on earth?"
No.
Well, then it's not that important, is it???
laundry_queen
(8,646 posts)At my work, they don't get even a little upset at late arrivals. Most of us are usually 10-20 minutes early most days, so they factor that in to the times, roughly once a month (twice in the winter usually), that we are late because of accidents. We are in a central location, so all routes that lead to my work are very congested and busy. One time, there was a fatality and they closed down the highway that turns into the main route in the city. Every side street we tried to take was even more congested. It took us 2 hours to get to work that day. As my boss said, it happens. Even some of the people that take the bus might be late twice a week, and that's okay so long as they usually come in early. They can't control the busses and I can't control when they shut down roads because of fatalities. Your company's point system sucks. You should be able to accumulate more points if you are generally early. What a crock of shit. My sympathies.
MrMickeysMom
(20,453 posts)If we keep reading that poster, we'll be sure to see more...
COLGATE4
(14,732 posts) jwirr
(39,215 posts)Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)I'm angry at the heartless moron who thought punishing a child for what he was not responsible for was a good idea, not at the kid.
zappaman
(20,606 posts)Not to say I wouldn't be pissed at the principal as well.
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)I don't.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)but no, her taking responsibility for her own actions is likely too much to expect in this case, since she already decided blaming the school is a better solution. that way she can continue being late, which she apparently values above her child's well-being.
Ilsa
(61,694 posts)Ostracism at this age is emotionally traumatic. If a person has feelings, that is.
former9thward
(31,981 posts)He will be aware real, real, quick. A thoughtless mother.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)for several months.
Don't you think that was worse than seeing a couple of snapshots online?
former9thward
(31,981 posts)of unforeseen consequences. Parents shouldn't do it. Not everything in life needs to be on FB. It is irresponsible. If this was going on for months and months she should have gone to the school board. But maybe her "car would not start".
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)humiliating him in front of all his classmates. And the school didn't tell the mother they were doing it! She just found out recently, but the school continued.
The grandmother's photos succeeded in shaming the administrators into changing their stupid, harmful policy. Good for her.
Chemisse
(30,809 posts)In addition, the child would not have been late at all if the parents had brought him to school on time. That's the real shame here; this kid is being punished for something that is out of his control.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)What the school did was far worse. The parents are struggling with health and money issues (hence the unreliable car) and the school hasn't disputed the fact that the boy was only a minute or two late.
If the administrators were human beings with any compassion, they would have tried to help this family, instead of punishing the child repeatedly. And it's completely inexcusable that they didn't tell the parents what they were doing to the boy.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)late. To go one mile.
Gee, after a couple years of being "one or two" minutes late on a pretty regular basis, you'd think she'd either walk the kid to school or get the kid in the car a little earlier.
apparently too difficult.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)And the school never bothered to tell the parent what they were doing to the little boy. If the school wanted the parents to change their behavior, why didn't they tell the parents about how they were punishing him?
Apparently that was too difficult for the school.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)That's a really weird disease; in fact, that's a bullshit excuse.
Apparently it's too difficult for mom to get her kid to school on time. It's easier to blame others for her own laziness and lack of consideration for her child's well-being.
Sorry, I have a friend with a full-on handicap much worse than osteoporosis that manages to get herself to work on time every day, and her child to day care on time.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)Even if you think the parents did something wrong, that is no excuse for punishing a helpless child.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)Chemisse
(30,809 posts)It is very easily fixed. All she has to do is get up 5 minutes earlier in the morning and the problem is solved.
Of course, that doesn't excuse what the school is doing to shame the child, who is innocent in all this.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)what a great example she's setting for her son.
villager
(26,001 posts)You ought to listen to the sensible posters hereabouts -- so what if a few kids get traumatized or brutalized? They have to learn not to ask for their fucking unicorns sometime!
Drahthaardogs
(6,843 posts)Especially if she knows her car might take a little bit to warm up. It is distracting to the teacher and the other kids when this little guy shows up habitually late. I don't condone in school suspension for a 6 year old, that is stupid. However, mamma could make a few adjustments on her end as well. She is also a moron it would appear.
gcomeau
(5,764 posts)The kid was in tears because the picture got taken, posted on the internet, then he traveled forward in time, saw it, broke out crying then jumped back to before the picture was taken...
Oh wait, damn paradoxes...
yuiyoshida
(41,831 posts)
It is Choc full of Paradoxes!!!
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)and the little boy has just been suffering in silence because his parents couldn't get him there on time?
And that the mother has a bone disease that makes it hard to get moving in the morning, and the father goes to work at 6 am?
Why is it okay to punish a 6 year old for something the parents did, without even telling the parents?
Oktober
(1,488 posts)pnwmom
(108,976 posts)But the school did choose to humiliate the boy for something he had no control over, and to not tell the parents what they were doing.
Oktober
(1,488 posts)... Or walk...
At what point does the distraction of a habitually late student start to take away from the rest of the class.
It isn't that he can't make it. It's that he is always a few minutes late and thus the parents need to leave earlier.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)And he couldn't walk for a mile alone on that busy street.
What excuse did the school have for not telling the parents what they were doing to the boy at lunch?
Oktober
(1,488 posts)... On time or even early?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)habitual lateness.
the kid has had detention 6 times. according to grandma. not 'months' of it.
and I don't give a damn about mom's osteoporosis -- it's not what's making her habitually "one or two minutes late". Osteoporosis doesn't do that. Failure to plan or laziness does that, or some kind of psychological bloc (if you've ever known anyone who was constitutionally incapable of being on time for others, but not for their own interests e.g.)
fredamae
(4,458 posts)for a 6 yo Child who is punished because of his parents who: A) One Works 6AM; B) One disabled; C) Have an Unreliable car.
It sounds as tho this family is struggling. It sounds as tho this family is doing the best they can in a no win situation. It sounds as tho, we as a society have failed this family...because cuts, cuts, cuts....
How is this not a problem?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)early as well.
She chooses not to.
fredamae
(4,458 posts)and criticize others. And this child was 60 Seconds late. What could he have Possibly Missed in 60 seconds?
His Disabled Mother and his Working Father (6AM) are doing the best they can with their "own boot-straps".....as lawmakers Directed as they cut services...(so, by all means Kick the Kid when the parents are down, right?) geeeez...
So why are "educated" Adults Punishing a Six Year Old Child For Something Someone Who He Has No Control Over, Did.
Why isn't the school seeking a way to Help families in need instead of Humiliating a Whole Family and I don't buy the hyperbole ...that this family is humiliated over the attention post publicizing this incident. What is Also happening is this family has just realized they have a Whole Bunch of Support-from all around the state...and the school is "re-thinking" it's policy(s) so that this does Not happen again to another child.
I'd rather have my tax dollars cover a program to help kids and struggling families with matters like this...instead of covering the cost of a Lawsuit and an award for damages inflicted upon him for merely attending this school.
Be grateful if you never have to walk a mile or two in their shoes...and have strangers judge you. I know I am.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)poverty.
If you haven't been judged by strangers, you've lived a charmed life. I've have family who dealt with disabilities much more severe than that woman's. Family who managed to get to work every day on time and get their kids to school on time as well.
But the issue has already been resolved to the satisfaction of all. Supposedly.
fredamae
(4,458 posts)have to do with This families struggles?
Not everyone is the same-not everyone has the same coping skills-not everyone can be judged based upon any degree of comparable disability. Each persons disability is a personal experience unique only to them. Not a single one of us can feel their pain.
You may fail in dealing with your disability in my eyes and arrogant, insensitive judgment..and in reality...you are in fact...putting all you have into your ability to cope. My argument would mean nothing to you or anyone else...it's irrelevant.
I don't by your argument. Imo--it is apathetic.
Got a link to those family photo's?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)that changes the picture presented in this story.
Most people don't question what they're presented with.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)without even telling the parents that they were punishing him like this, for circumstances beyond his control.
That's okay with you?
rhett o rick
(55,981 posts)crime? Remember it wasn't his fault.
zappaman
(20,606 posts)Pretty authoritarian to demand I march in lockstep to what you define as a Democrat, don't ya think?
And I already answered your questions here...
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6289745
rhett o rick
(55,981 posts)are really conservatives in Democrat clothing and I am not surprised when they don't show empathy.
An authoritarian is one that worships their leader and never, ever questions them. Sound familiar?
In this case I bet you think the boy was treated too lightly. Make an example of him so the other students will toe the line. Right? The fact that it wasn't his fault is immaterial, right? He needed to be made an example.
zappaman
(20,606 posts)democrat
[dem-uh-krat]
Spell Syllables
Word Origin
noun
1.
an advocate of democracy.
2.
a person who believes in the political or social equality of all people.
3.
(initial capital letter) Politics.
a member of the Democratic Party.
a member of the Democratic-Republican Party.
As to your assertions...
No.
But, nice try.
rhett o rick
(55,981 posts)But maybe I am being too general. New Democrats seem to agree with Conservatives on a lot.
nichomachus
(12,754 posts)MrMickeysMom
(20,453 posts)Or, are you baiting again?
Or, maybe you're remembering a similar experience that these kids today just have to "buck up" to?
It doesn't matter. Your posts speak volumes.
COLGATE4
(14,732 posts)
CreekDog
(46,192 posts)make him feel really, really bad
because obviously it's his fault that he's late to school...
hughee99
(16,113 posts)and certainly not enough control to ensure he's always on time. What is this "lesson" supposed to teach him, that people get fucked over for things they can't control, and the world is full of assholes in positions of power?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)hughee99
(16,113 posts)The punishment they gave doesn't fit the crime, doesn't punish the person responsible, and doesn't even attempt to actually address the problem. At best you could argue they're trying to humiliate and isolate the child to punish the mother. Do you really think that's an acceptable way to handle the situation?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)has the power to end it yesterday and would apparently rather continue being 'just one or two' minutes late and call out people on the internet.
No one asked the school what was going on, you'll notice. Everything comes from the parents or the superintendent. Which is why I don't assume I understand what happened at school, or that I have full information about it.
Why did mom just decide to drop in that day, for example? We don't know, but I think there was probably a reason.
hughee99
(16,113 posts)the child being late, and that the school is wrong for having this punishment. The difference in our posts is that you're focusing on how this mom needs to fix her problem for her child (and I agree she should). I'm focusing on how this school should fix this problem for any child in this situation.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)it's not my experience of what would typically happen with kids that age, or even high school students. The parents would be called, and the kid would at worst get sent to sit with the principal, not shamed at lunch time. And that lunch room picture contains a very small number of students, which seems weird.
Which makes me think something else is going on, and makes me look at the mom with a very jaundiced eye.
hughee99
(16,113 posts)While I completely understand your skepticism that this accurate, and I have some of that myself, I've seen too many stories of these sort of senseless school policies to discount it as a possibility either.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)hughee99
(16,113 posts)Last edited Sat Feb 28, 2015, 12:48 PM - Edit history (1)
Punished for something, it should be the person responsible, not their child, with as I suggested, a PHONECALL. But hey, don't let me get in the way of your outrage.
I hear in some places, "punishment" can get as bad as a sternly worded letter. I'm hoping to see amnesty international get involved in such places.
NutmegYankee
(16,199 posts)
sakabatou
(42,148 posts)
niyad
(113,263 posts). . . .
The superintendent of the school, John Higgins, and principal Missy Fitzsimmons began receiving threatening and harassing phone calls because of the photo. Higgins explained to Newswatch 12 that she believes students get caught up on missed work in the program. However, on Thursday, they opted to change the punishment.
"What I see (in the original Facebook picture) is a reason for us to take a closer look and see if there's a better way to structure this learning time, so that we can get kids caught up so that there's no actual or perceived isolation or stigmatizing," said Higgins. "I think the emotional reaction would've been like any parent whenever you see a child in a unique learning environment, and it's your child, (it) can trigger some questions."
. . . .
http://abc7news.com/news/oregon-school-shuns-boy-for-being-tardy/537024/
mercuryblues
(14,530 posts)learning time? This is happening in the cafeteria with him sitting by himself. This is pure punishment nothing unique about that. Jeeze what a moran to even say such a thing. Even dumber to think people will actually believe him.
I want to know what that pail on the table is, the one with a D on it. A Dunce cap? I wouldn't doubt it.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)
SomethingFishy
(4,876 posts)When I was in 5th grade, I was taking a test, and while I was working out problem in my head I was absently twirling my pencil in my hand. The Nazi I had for a teacher, Mr. Petrella, pulled me out of my seat and made me stand in front of the class and twirl my pencil for the rest of class. I had to retake the test the next day, and the fucker called me "twirly" for the rest of the year. At 52 years old I have never forgot that.
Egnever
(21,506 posts)This kind of garbage can have long lasting effects on a child. I hope the fallout from this does not cause this poor kid more grief.
Liberal_in_LA
(44,397 posts)villager
(26,001 posts)"Progressive values" in action, to be sure.
Paulie
(8,462 posts)I whispered to a neighbor during nap time in preschool. I remember the tape, the kind you had to moisten to activate the glue, with reenforcing strings. I'm In my 40's.
This kid has zero control over getting to school. Those adults with no empathy should be kicked to the fucking curb and banned from the field. 
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)
ReRe
(10,597 posts)... what does the "ND" stand for in your name? 
Paulie
(8,462 posts) Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)hunter
(38,310 posts)Panicked school officials would sometimes call my mom, but they learned not to.
My mom's most mild response would be "Oh, he'll be home for dinner."
The response school officials were most afraid of was my mom taking time off work and driving to school in full berserker mode.
But I was always home for dinner, at least until my later teens, when I might be found digging through dumpsters for food, and sleeping anywheres.
My most basic core self is feral human.
My mild autism was probably a blessing in disguise, for me anyways. My parents earned their gray hair the hard and brutal way.
To my younger mind pretty most everything so-called "responsible" adults did was simply more random shit falling out of the sky. No harm, no foul, no scars.
Egnever
(21,506 posts)This makes me fear every time I make my kids late.
They have little to no control over it. If this ever happened to my kids I am pretty sure I would be in jail the next day.
LittleBlue
(10,362 posts)He's learning that the system is a joke and punishment is arbitrary. Be skeptical of those adults, kid.
villager
(26,001 posts)He won't even need to read the book or see the movie now. He already knows that "grown ups" are out of their fuckin' heads.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)cwydro
(51,308 posts)sounds like a complete ass.
Ilsa
(61,694 posts)nearly every day. I was new to the school, and she never missed an opportunity to talk about me in class or comment if I made the tiniest mistake. I finally started feigning illness for the first time to get out of going. She was just a mean old woman and I hope she's dead and in Hell for mistreating eight year old kids. I've never said that about another teacher, even a male teacher who propositioned me.
This stuff stays with people.
Skittles
(153,150 posts)I used to like drawing, artwork, I even won an art contest - but then I got an art teacher who was so mean, always cutting me down - I never did artwork again
Ilsa
(61,694 posts)To have lost all of that creative expression... it hurts to read that, Skittles.
I bore it a few more months and moved on to 4th grade. Got a sweetheart of a teacher next who didn't try to keep me from developing new friendships with peers. The other teacher basically let the kids know that it was okay to bully the new kid.
Skittles
(153,150 posts)I was a GI brat and moved a lot so I had lots of teachers
MindPilot
(12,693 posts)Was that in the UK by any chance?
Fifth to seventh grade, I attended the local school in England, which was a two block walk, vs. a lengthy bus ride beginning at about 5:30 am to the base school. For whatever reason I couldn't wear the school uniform, so I was a standout. Many a teacher verbally eviscerated me as only a Brit can. On the other hand there was one guy who made "To Sir With Love" look like a documentary.
Skittles
(153,150 posts)but I did wear the uniform; my mum was a Brit 
I got paddled once, when we were learning about convicts being sent to Australia and I said, "Why would they do that? I'd rather be there than here." 
Oilwellian
(12,647 posts)he would bring his beautiful artwork home with his teacher's red penned comments scribbled on it. Art is subjective and I thought it absurd to critique a third grader's art. I complained to the principal about it and that stopped the red ink, but damn if she didn't make it her mission to nit pick everything my son did for the rest of the year.
Skittles
(153,150 posts)it is fucked up that they work with children
Skittles
(153,150 posts)anyone who thinks this is acceptable has no business working with children
wundermaus
(1,673 posts)There is really nothing that can be done to undo it...
If i were that kid's parent though, I would have that teacher (and who ever else was responsible) wear a dunce cap in class / office for the rest of the school year. Let's see how they like it.
Lurker Deluxe
(1,036 posts)Lunchtime detention scars a person for life?
Really?
When I was in school teachers, principals, and damn sure coaches could use corporal punishment. Getting swats on the other side of a closed door where everyone could hear is certainly more punishment than having to sit alone at lunch. Are we raising that much of a sissy generation that being forced to sit alone at lunch scars someone for life? I hope he never gets fired from a job ... he'll be in an institution for the rest of his life.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)
F4lconF16
(3,747 posts)Basically used when a male isn't manly enough. Wikipedia has a surprisingly good article on it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sissy
bravenak
(34,648 posts)Grown ups calling people sissies. 
F4lconF16
(3,747 posts)At least children tend to be honest about it.
Didn't realize this thread was from a week and a half ago, oops 
bravenak
(34,648 posts)Resurrected thread from long ago.
wundermaus
(1,673 posts)I know first hand what it is like to be physically and mentally scared for life.
And so I will not waste another second on you.
Starry Messenger
(32,342 posts)I still have trauma from that age from some stupid punishments at school. Why punish the little guy, he has no control over when he gets to school.
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)
But I'm happy to hear they are changing this policy. For now.
It's a shame this stuff can happen until it's posted online.
fredamae
(4,458 posts)F4lconF16
(3,747 posts)
lpbk2713
(42,753 posts)Too bad it's not always for the better.
OMFG
pnwmom
(108,976 posts)His mother has bone pain from osteoporosis that makes it hard to get moving in the morning, and an unreliable car, and his father leaves for work at 6 am. So instead of supporting the family, the school has been punishing them all.
But even if the parents had been at fault, it is never fair to punish the child.
And the parents didn't even know this had been going on! Poor kid, suffering in silence all this time.
http://kfor.com/2015/02/26/its-our-fault-parents-angry-about-6-year-olds-punishment-for-being-late/
“The other morning, he was just flipping out, crying, ‘I’m gonna be tardy. I’m going to get lunch detention.’ Just tears and, ‘Mom, we gotta hurry up,” said Nicole Garloff, Hunter’s mother.
SNIP
His parents say Hunter was never punished last year, and they didn’t realize it was a problem until recently.
“Tardies is an issue and I understand that it’s disruptive. But he’s only ever one or two minutes late,” Garloff said.
After posting a photo of her grandson at lunch on Facebook, Laura Hoover’s page was flooded with comments and likes.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)It's mom who's been doing it for months, and last year too. Being "just one or two" minutes late, that is.
Because everyone with a disability and a small child is always just one or two minutes late. There's something about being disabled and having a toddler that makes one incapable of being on time.
Disabled people can somehow never cope or make adjustments for their disabilities so we should never expect them to be able to function, nor should they expect to be able to function.
what a load of crap.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)We need to be MORE accomodating not less. Ever hear of empathy? Get some.
Why do we have special parking for disabled individuals? Because they have to wirk harder for every single inch of forward progress towards their goals.
The woman is having financial problems and problems with her bones. If she is one minute oate so what? Should we punish her for not moving that fast? It's obviously hard.
Hell I guess we should just send her some bootstraps rather than ask why no school bus?
Republicans are like this. They punish poor kids because their parents are broke.
Treating this disabled woman like a villians for being 60 seconds slower than other folks is sick and embarassing.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)middle to upper-middle class, single-family-home neighborhood of quiet streets with sidewalks.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)She should just get up earlier to work harder than everyone else or be punished? I don't care if they live in a nice place. She still has a car issue and a health issue that will not go away. She may have good days and bad days. On bad days it's harder to get going, hence the tardys.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)I'm much older, have a 20 year old car, and am able to get places on time. When my car has problems I walk and take the bus. But I get where I need to, and on time.
My neighbor has Parkinsons and can hardly walk for shaking. She can no longer drive, but is regularly able to get to places on time, on the bus.
I know a couple, one of whom has MS; both are in their 80s. Somehow they make it to all their doctor's appointments on time, though it's difficult for them and takes them longer than it would younger, weller people.
If I were in charge of a child and lived less than a mile from the school, I would be able to get the child to school on time despite my osteoporosis and my old car.
My neighborhood, btw, is much, much poorer and likely more dangerous than this woman's neighborhood, which looks rather idyllic to me. And it has a lot of sidewalks, and not so much traffic, so despite what the husband said, walking the child to school is not out of the question.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)My child has autism and acts out and makes us late all the time. Sometimes she acts so outrageous that we stay home and try to ge her to calm down. The average child can run a parent ragged. If you factor in the disease with child rearing, and stress of having car issues, i'd say give her empathy or stop calling yourself liberal.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)http://www.everydayhealth.com/osteoporosis/who-gets-early-onset-osteoporosis.aspx
The woman has osteoporosis, which only means she's had a bone scan and has lower bone mass than 'normal'. She's thin and about 30. She can pick up and carry her 6 year old. She can drive. She likes to decorate. She has two young kids and apparently she's a stay-at-home mom.
My aunt had 8 kids and could always get to places on time. My grandmother had the same, and likewise, managed to be on time. My mother had 3 kids, a full-time job, no husband, and managed to get everywhere on time.
I have the same diagnosis this woman has and another as well; I work, I take classes, I live in a much worse neighborhood & am fairly sure I'm a lot poorer -- but manage to get everywhere on time, or early.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)So empathy only if she meets your high standards? If you can do it so can she? Osteoporosis is different for everybody. You keep talking about money like that is the only factor and that since she's not as poor as you, she deserves no understanding for her unique situation. it doesn't matter what you think you could do in her situation. You are not in it. 1 minute late?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)habitually a couple of minutes late, as it appears she is, she can be habitually a couple of minutes early.
I don't think her osteoporosis, or her kid, has a lot to do with why she's late. I don't think she's gone through menopause, because she has a babe in arms. She had a bone scan and has low bone density. She's thin. Not so unusual, and not so disabling.
That's my opinion based on my own life experience and my experience working and living with severely disabled people, and I'm not likely to change my opinion.
Everyone has a unique situation. Nevertheless, we're expected to show up on time for life.
So this is pointless and tiresome. I don't see any merit in your posts and doubtless you see none in mine.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)anything but unpleasant. Thanks.
bravenak
(34,648 posts)Thank you for understanding my right to do so. I find you unpleasant myself but would not say so unless you had first.
I rarely post to you as it is. I'll continue posting as I normally do without any thought as to your wishes.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)bravenak
(34,648 posts)kath
(10,565 posts)Sooooo glad we homeschooled our kids.
geomon666
(7,512 posts)Do your job, which is to EDUCATE.
krawhitham
(4,643 posts)ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)
Turbineguy
(37,319 posts)re-institute stocks, the other kids could throw shit at him. What about flogging? If you're going to be medieval, be medieval; don't just pussyfoot around!
As any educator can tell you, school is about punishment. That's how kids learn best.
fredamae
(4,458 posts)I demanded she be fired....and asked what kind of pseudo military bs rigid school they were running that they would punish a 6 yo who had No control over his ride and was a mere 60 seconds late to class.....
I added-the first thing that popped into my mind was: The smaller the victim the sicker the mind...Fire Ms Fitzimmons!
Grants Pass is a Red, Red part of Oregon.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)winger, btw. it's the folks calling for her head.
fredamae
(4,458 posts)I did not claim she was a rw...I believe I stated Grants Pass is a Red, Red part of Oregon.
I asked for the principle to be fired. I stand by that.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)the principal to be fired.
grants pass is red, and the people calling for the principal's head are too. as are the folks making death threats.
Trillo
(9,154 posts)It's always good for the other kids at any school to understand what is expected of them. Remember, while the punishment will always be psychologically devastating to the child, the intended lesson is to the other kids. To make an example for others.
surrealAmerican
(11,360 posts)... to get children to school on time.
If this school relies on parents driving their children to school, it is not the child's fault if he or she is late. Punishing a six-year-old for something entirely outside of his control is just plain stupid and mean. That said, kids learn at this age that they will be punished for things outside of their control. They usually hate it.
dilby
(2,273 posts)It was in class, I was kind of a smart ass that would rile my teachers up. Anyways one of my teachers did not like a comment I made during class one day so she put me in a desk at the back of the class and put up a cardboard divider just like that so I could not see anyone in the class and they could not see me. I used that time to draw a great picture of her naked on the desk and took the suspension with pride since they had to get rid of the desk, sorry Mrs. Parker for ruining a desk with permanent marker but on the upside your tits looked great you old bag.
hunter
(38,310 posts)By high school I'd gathered up the gumption to quit.
Funny thing, of all my siblings, the two high school dropouts among us have university degrees and a whole lot of education beyond.
Our "normal" siblings just quit college when they got good jobs, and moved on up the ranks from there.
I almost got one of these good career type jobs in college, but part of me was still little Hunter, not playing well with others.
Nevertheless, the whole lot of us have raised some wonderful high-achieving kids.
Man from Pickens
(1,713 posts)Look up "seclusion rooms". But first, put anything throwable and breakable out of reach.
Liberal_in_LA
(44,397 posts) 
Dawson Leery
(19,348 posts)From experience, these s**tbag administrators need to be dealt with harshly.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)has been late often, and reading between the lines, it's because mom can't get it together.
However, his parents say being late is not Hunter’s fault. “We drive him to school, so if he is late, it’s because of us,” said Mark Cmelo, Hunter’s father. The family lives within a mile of the school, but walking is not safe. “I don’t want my kid walking down a busy road,” said Cmelo.
Nicole also struggles with osteoporosis. “It causes a lot of pain and in the morning, it’s especially hard for me to get going,” she said. On top of that and a 3-year-old, the family had some car issues.
It was a problem Cmelo couldn’t help with since he leaves for work at 6 a.m. “It does not make it easy for her in the morning,” he said.
His parents say Hunter was never punished last year, and they didn’t realize it was a problem until recently. “Tardies is an issue and I understand that it’s disruptive. But he’s only ever one or two minutes late,” Garloff said.
http://kfor.com/2015/02/26/its-our-fault-parents-angry-about-6-year-olds-punishment-for-being-late/
This is my grandson, Hunter. He's a little first grader. His momma's car sometimes doesn't like to start right up. Sometimes he's a couple minutes late to school.
If mom left about 10 minutes earlier, there wouldn't be a problem when her car wouldn't "start right up". And after bringing the kid late on a habitual basis, included during the last school year as well, you'd think she'd figure it out instead of blaming everyone else.
Trillo
(9,154 posts)in order to punish the parent who is not under school control?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)habitually late except her own failure to get it together. It's been going on for more than a year, and the school didn't start doing anything about it until this year.
I agree that the policy is bad and cruel. But since it's not the kid's fault at all, the school has no choice but to ignore it if they don't want to unfairly punish him.
....Rather than expect the school to ignore my lateness and irresponsibility, or to have them punish my kid for my own failings and then whine like I'm the aggrieved party, I'd get my butt up 15 minutes earlier and make sure the kid got to school on time.
Trillo
(9,154 posts)I'm no lawyer, but in loco parentis means that once the kid is in the custody of the school, they are now essentially the parent. There are lots of reasons why the parents may not have a reliable car, but I'll just pick one: poverty.
You wrote, "the school has no choice but to ignore it". I think that's the crux of the matter as well. Since the school doesn't want to ignore it, they punish someone other than the responsible party. WTF? That seems to me to rise to child abuse, and I find myself wondering why the Department of Child Care, or whatever it is named, child welfare department, the folks who investigate child mistreatment at home, are not investigating the school.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)control; therefore, since mom apparently prefers to be late than to take responsibility, the school has no choice but to ignore it.
And for the record, I don't believe that the story is entirely as reported by the parents. Missing information at the least, and distorted information at worst.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291203
And I also notice that most people on this thread are dumping on schools in a pretty general way. But no problem there, I guess.
Trillo
(9,154 posts)Most folks had miserable experiences in schools. A few had either wonderful or okay experiences. That is my guess as to why you are noticing "dumping on schools." However, I don't see how it is "dumping on schools" to call for a child welfare check of the school by social services.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)personnel who get joy from harming children.
That's foreign to my experience. The majority of people go into elementary ed because they like young kids and like working with them.
No one comments on the article being almost entirely a reflection of the parents' POV, with
nothing from the school itself and only a couple of sentences from the Superintendent, who doesn't seem to know what's happening at that school.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)Reading your posts makes me wonder what life must be like in your house.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)"lousy," "cruel," and otherwise bad policy.
I can only assume in your book, criticism of the family = support for the school's policy.
But you'll be glad to know the issue is already resolved to the satisfaction of all. And reading between the lines, the mother will continue to be late.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)So, let's see, that's... one, two, TWENTY ONE posts in this thread, that you spend defending this, justifying it, attacking those who don't support it, and just otherwise express what a huge fan you are. Yes, you say "it's lousy"... All while completely defending it, endorsing its practice, justifying it, and attacking the rest of us who see a problem with treating a first-grader like a prisoner.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291068
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291076
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291110
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291128
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291149
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291162
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291157
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291214
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6292203
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291158
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291203
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291169
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291211
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291055
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291101
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291208
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291108
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291146
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291177
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291192
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291188
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)or correction of the record (in the case where a poster claims the school has been doing this for months and months, when even grandma says they've done it 6 times).
Funny you linked all those posts but I didn't see you link any where I said the school's policy sucked, so I'll do it for you:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291183
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291146
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291208
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291108
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291177
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291055
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291146
As it turns out, the school did indeed call the parents when the tardiness became a habitual problem. So that's one point in this storyline that appears false.
hughee99
(16,113 posts)Coincidentally, I dropped my daughter off a minute or two late the just this week. She seemed nervous about it. I told her she didn't do anything wrong and if the office has an issue with her being late they should call me, and she felt much better about it after that. I gave her a note with my cell phone number on it to give to the people in the office when she went in.
She said they just sent her up to class, and nothing else happened. They never called me.
I don't think the mom is blaming anyone else for her being habitually late, she's just pissed they punished her child in a rather public and humiliating way for something that's not her child's fault.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)facebook and pretended to be the sole aggrieved party.
I think it's clear mom's blaming others for her own problem, as the excuses just keep on coming -- her arthritis, her 3 year old, her car that doesn't start immediately (though she only lives a mile away).
well, the school likely has excuses too -- one would be that the woman has brought the kid to school late for going on two years at least.
I think the school's policy is cruel, but maybe mom will finally get off her lazy butt.
hughee99
(16,113 posts)I also think the school should have talked to the mother rather than punishing the child. It's not clear from the article, as far as I can tell, if that happened or not. I'm sure it will now.
As far as blaming others, she's not really doing that. She has a bunch of excuses, yes, but other than her 3 year old (who she's also responsible for, so IMHO, it's more of an excuse than passing blame) she's not really "blaming others".
What I find disturbing is that they seem to have put this policy in place without asking a few basic management questions (the kinds you'd think a professional administrator would know to ask before implementing a policy). Will this fix the problem? Is this the best way to fix the problem? Will this create bigger problems than it fixes?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)especially since the kid is 6. he's obviously not responsible for getting himself to school on time. something seems very off about this story.
of course she's blaming others. she blames the school, her arthritis, her car; she says it was 'just one or two' minutes late; she says they didn't know there was a problem until 'recently -- even though she's been bringing the kid to school late not just this year, but last year (but just a few minutes late, like that somehow makes it ok instead or making her look like even more of a screw-up, because if you're habitually a couple minutes late what does that say?)
Blame/excuses, she's not taking any responsibility for a problem she could have solved months ago with no help from anyone else, because she's the ultimate cause of the problem. Everyone else reacted to the conditions *she* created. She doesn't get a special dispensation because the school reacted badly.
hughee99
(16,113 posts)child being late. Some mornings when I drop my own daughter off, I don't know if she's late or not, if it's really only a minute or two. I agree that this is within her power to control, it's HER responsibility and she doesn't seem to be doing what is necessary to resolve it, but her issue with the school seems to be the punishment her child is getting is unfair, and she's right. NO child should receive this punishment whether they are 1 minute or 1 hour late, whether they are late once a year or every day.
The punishment doesn't even seem to fit in with their own superintendent's priorities (from the article).
"John Higgins, the school district’s superintendent, said each elementary school develops their own system for addressing tardiness.
However, he said discipline is not the purpose of the protocols, adding that the priority should be on allowing the child to catch up on what they missed."
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)mother could resolve it easily but chooses to make a big public stink and blame others.
yes, *her* issue is about what the school is doing, not about what *she* is doing. because it's always easier to put the responsibility on others and she apparently doesn't want to change her habits -- which is why we heard so much about her osteoporosis, her 3 year old, her cranky car, etc.
I personally think her behavior is selfish and uncaring and the kid is likely to pick up on that.
hughee99
(16,113 posts)with the school's unfair punishment. Yes, she should have brought it to the schools attention first and given them the opportunity to get their head out of their ass, but if they had decided not to, I wouldn't have had any issue with her going public.
Maybe the child will pick up on her selfish and uncaring attitude, I'd like to think the child may also pick up on the idea that when something is WRONG, you should say something rather than just going along with it because it's "policy", albeit an unjust one. If this woman was perfectly healthy with a chauffeur driven limo and just dropped her child off late out of pure spite, the policy is still wrong.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)the article is all from her and her husband's viewpoint, with a line or two from the superintendent of schools, who doesn't seem to know what's going on.
we also don't know why she decided to just drop in at the school at lunchtime that day, despite her 3 year old and her osteoporosis; nor why her son doesn't seem to acknowledge/notice her presence in those pictures.
Kalidurga
(14,177 posts)I make sure they are also too poor to afford a reliable car and that they also have a child who is just out of toddlerhood.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)late to a school a mile away on a regular basis, for years.
But then allow you to drop by the school at lunch with no problem.
Yes, I call her lazy, because I know people with much worse disabilities who manage much harder things.
Kalidurga
(14,177 posts)it is very likely it was more than that. On the other hand we are never going to know the whole story. And we are never going to know why no one talked to the adults in the family when they felt the tardiness was the problem. Or why they chose to punish the child who had nothing to do with the tardiness problem.
DeSwiss
(27,137 posts)
JonLP24
(29,322 posts)There was flooding in Lacey for chris'sakes. No big deal though, just some push-ups.
This is very BS to do this though, kids are new & developing experiences and elementary kids are the harshest in terms of humiliating experiences or it was for me. The day I worse cowboy boots to school was the last time I ever wore cowboy boots, that was the worst & entire humiliating full day I at school. Even more than the day I had a hole in my shorts, also in elementary & also a humiliating traumatizing experience.
ReRe
(10,597 posts)As soon as this became an issue at school, like the 2nd time the boy was late, either the school administrators and or the teacher should have gone the extra mile to solve the problem. The child wasn't at fault and should not have been singled out/punished. And what's up with not contacting the parents?
OK... so the mother has health issues and car issues, and no telling how many other issues. What to do? Does the family attend church regularly? If so, contact their church to see if the pastor/priest/etc could help this family out by transporting the child to and from school each day. Is there a law against administrators or teachers giving rides to their students? One of them could help the family out until the family has solved their transportation problem. Perhaps there is someone, like the parent of another child that goes to school there, who runs a car pool. Maybe the father could talk to his employer about changing his schedule, so he could get the boy to school & home every day? What about family members, like that concerned grandmother, Laura Hoover. Does she have a car & no scheduling problems? Might it be time to contact social services to check on this family? (That would be the last resort.)
I hope Ellen DeGeneres hears about this and investigates the back story on the family. The boy needs some serious encouragement at this point in time. The first couple years of school are the most important time in a child's education. What happens there can make them or break them.
Thank you, Liberal_in_LA, for inking this story. Hope the family gets the help they apparently need.
Oktober
(1,488 posts)If they are sick or have a crap car then they are the ones who should reach out to do all of the things you suggested.
All of this paternalistic crap where we just hand over responsibility for our children to 'someone else' is creepy.
All your post shows is that there are a myriad of options the parents chose not to take.
... ok then. Social Services should have been contacted. If this isn't an instance for Social Services, I don't know what is. And if Soc Services didn't do anything, then the family just slipped clear through the all the cracks and the consequences fell squarely on the shoulders of the child.
Oktober
(1,488 posts)The child is regularly a few minutes late... The parents need to leave the house a few minutes earlier...
Why is this such an odd concept to people?
ReRe
(10,597 posts)...evidently needs help! 
Oktober
(1,488 posts)ReRe
(10,597 posts)... Empathy. Look it up.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)parents about the habitual lateness problem. Reading between the lines, the problem continued.
ReRe
(10,597 posts)... do you know if Social Services was contacted? What do you think should have been done? Do you agree with punishment of the child? Should he have been expelled?
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)very willing to work with the family (and in fact, a mutually agreeable resolution has already been reached, making this discussion moot).
I think the mother should have got the kid to school on time.
I don't agree with the way the 'punishment' was handled, but it wasn't even supposed to be a punishment, more like a study hall so the kid could finish the work he missed. (as might be suspected, the kid was absent more than a few minutes and more than the 6 times grandmother noted.) It's unclear why the school started doing the 'study hall'/detention at lunch; it wasn't that way originally.
dembotoz
(16,799 posts)and if i saw that being done to my kid the other kids in the lunch room would have heard some new words
just the type of white trash that i am
Enrique
(27,461 posts)there is no sign that the parents ever reached out to the school about this, explain about the osteoporosis and the car troubles. Being human, like us, the teacher or principal might have made some kind of arrangement.
But this story is part of a trend of anti-school stories that have an underlying assumption that teachers are some kind of "other", that don't have the same kind of feelings that we the readers do. That trend is political, in my view. A lot of the stories originate on the local Fox TV station.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)You can stow the wobbly lip and blathering platitudes. This shit is not regular and common practice by teachers. it is malicious and aberrant, an intentional cruelty thrown on the child for circumstances beyond his control.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)parents' version of events.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)Again, it is malicious and aberrant. Your defense of it is as grotesque as Enrique's attempt to slime all teachers with it.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)the anti-teacher bias in the media that's so common these days.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6291326
Like when people immediately conclude a media story about teachers proves malicious intent, for example.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)Rather, he is excusing this treatment of a child by saying "well, teachers are human and make mistakes" - as if, well, no problem here, it's just something teachers do whaddyagunnado, right?
Thing is, it wasn't "a mistake." It's not a goof, that oops, anyone might do. Nor, i imagine, is this sort of thing regular among teachers, as is the implication from Enrique's statement.
if he was trying to make a pro-teacher statement, it was flubbed. Maybe the placement had something to do with that.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)there is no sign that the parents ever reached out to the school about this, explain about the osteoporosis and the car troubles. Being human, like us, the teacher or principal might have made some kind of arrangement.
But this story is part of a trend of anti-school stories that have an underlying assumption that teachers are some kind of "other", that don't have the same kind of feelings that we the readers do. That trend is political, in my view. A lot of the stories originate on the local Fox TV station
I don't read it as you do. The denotations or the connotations.
msanthrope
(37,549 posts)geomon666
(7,512 posts)show up a day after the story is posted to spew their crap about how the mother and child are so evil for being one fucking minute late to school and thus deserve the humiliation and social awkwardness, probably for the rest of the child's school life.
Enrique
(27,461 posts)this statement came out yesterday:
There has been considerable general and social media attention regarding the Lincoln Elementary School Attendance/Tardy Academic Catch-up Protocol, which is intended to help support students address learning gaps arising from chronic tardiness/absenteeism. Principal (Melissa) Fitzsimmons immediately reached out to the parents involved in order to meet, and we are looking forward to addressing their concerns regarding Lincoln's current practice in this area. Lincoln's current attendance support protocol was communicated to parents via newsletter and is intended to provide the students with an above average level of tardiness, supervised additional learning time in a non-distracting setting. It was never intended to isolate or stigmatize students.
The District is taking the concerns raised very seriously and are reviewing alternative approaches for Lincoln Elementary to accomplish this worthwhile objective while avoiding any chance of adversely impacting a child, which was never intended. Lincoln Elementary is a warm and caring learning community receiving Student Success Champion School recognition from the Oregon Department of Education in 2012 as an inspiring example of what is possible when teachers, administrators, parents, students, and communities come together behind a shared vision of excellence for all students.
The District is open to constructive criticism with respect to current practices which can almost always be addressed and resolved informally. Modifications are already being made to the Lincoln tardiness support protocol in order to ensure "catch-up" learning opportunities are being provided in a supportive and caring setting. In order to minimize the disruption of Lincoln's ongoing educational process, please submit any additional concerns or input to the District Office at
treestar
(82,383 posts)It's not his fault he was late. If it had something to do with his own acts, that would be another situation (but that particular punishment is not a good thing either).
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)And of course when rules are broken someone must be punished so what is an authoritarian to do?
That seems to be the thinking.
ladjf
(17,320 posts)they teacher has overreacted to a minor infraction of school rules.
Sunlei
(22,651 posts)So wrong of the school leadership to stress a child with hours of worry about 'punishment'. Punishment that he is helpless to prevent.
Arugula Latte
(50,566 posts)milk the cows, and walk three miles to school through the snow with his lunch pail and his books in a strap, like we did?!
Kids these days ... *mutter, mutter*
No, really, this is sad. The poor little guy. The school's Decider in Charge is lacking both compassion and common sense.
Liberal_in_LA
(44,397 posts)Comrade Grumpy
(13,184 posts)Sometimes it's good to see where people stand on things. Tells a lot.
Liberal_in_LA
(44,397 posts)abelenkpe
(9,933 posts)Totally inappropriate to punish the kid for something out of his control.
ND-Dem
(4,571 posts)Last edited Sat Feb 28, 2015, 10:42 PM - Edit history (3)
it's middle to upper middle class, single family. a nice area.
and there are plenty of sidewalks and not much traffic -- no major roads, just suburban streets.
doesn't quite match what's being portrayed in the media.
I'd guess this couple owns a home.
I also noticed that the folks making death threats against the principal are also spamming the school ratings.
https://plus.google.com/110522768156748470951/about?hl=en&gl=us
bluestateguy
(44,173 posts)1. For the start of the day, indeed much of that is in the hands of the parents, or the traffic or other factors well beyond the control of the 6 year old boy.
2. Between classes tardiness sanctions can also be very hard for children who have a physical disability or otherwise don't move around so fast (if they are fat, for example).
