Teacher assault underscores need for crisis training

[Kacey]

As if the basis of this story is not bad enough...

Teacher assault underscores need for crisis training

Attack on city teacher highlights training gaps: Educators lack skills to defuse clashes, some say.
The grainy cell-phone video of a student hitting Baltimore art teacher Jolita Berry in her classroom, replayed in the national news and on the Internet, has reinforced the wide concern among school safety experts that teachers often don't receive enough training in how to defuse potentially dangerous confrontations with students. Berry's case has angered local officials, who said they would hold a meeting to try to find ways to give teachers skills to deal with disruptive students.

Baltimore schools offer classes on how to deal with such situations, but they are voluntary and are only available to a small number of teachers. Those who study school violence say that kind of instruction is crucial. "An essential part of new-teacher training has to be about how to de-escalate conflict," said Jane Sundius at the Open Society Institute, a nonprofit that has studied school suspensions and funded programs to improve student behavior.

Here is one of the comments posted in response (2nd from the bottom, unless the order changes):

Sad to see so many teachers who want to blame students for these violent attacks rather than teachers who don't take the free course ''coping with violent kids'' These kids are the hope of our future! Our kids deserve competent teachers not complainers!

Am I missing something? Granted, the teacher should not have said what she did, and it probably did have a triggering effect:

The attack occurred after Berry asked the student to take a seat. The girl refused and walked up to her. "She said [she was] gonna bang me," Berry said. "I said, 'Back up, you are in my space. If you hit me, I'm gonna defend myself.'"

Nonetheless, I have a real problem with this poster's comments, that the fault lies solely with the incompetent, complaining teacher. Am I the only one?

 

[kidswarrior]

Nonetheless, I have a real problem with this poster's comments, that the fault lies solely with the incompetent, complaining teacher. Am I the only one?

No, Kacey, you're not. We love to blame the victim in America. Almost a national knee jerk. Since I work with kids who often have violent pasts, many of whose violent episodes involved previous teachers, I have no desire to glamorize a violent act perpetrated against a responsible adult by any juvenile.

But I'm too tired from working with this very population to say anymore tonight. (We're also hosting the every-six-year accreditation committee for the past/next few days :erg. So, I'll leave it at this and try to come back tomorrow.

 

[Steel Tiger]

I'm with KW on this one. The poster comes across as rather ignorant suggesting that the training course is some sort of instant defusing device for these sorts of situations. The simple fact of the matter is the student may never have backed down regardless of what methods were employed to attempt to defuse the situation.

This is all further compounded by this really ugly trend of internet celebrity for beating on people. There is a very good chance that the entire situation was engineered to produce something to post on Youtube.

The commentor declaims that "these kids are the hope for our future!" Someone's future perhaps, but not mine and probably not Ms Berry's.

May I ask Kasey, have you done anything like one of these training courses? And if so, what does it entail?

 

[Hawke]

Home, Streets Cause Pent-Up Teen Anger, Expert Says

This shows a small clip of what happened in the classroom.

 

[Andy Moynihan]

These kids are the hope of our future!

No. In order for me to be able to believe that, I first must be able to believe there is gonna BE a "future" to have "hope" for.

And I don't.

 

[CoryKS]

Sad to see so many teachers who want to blame students for these violent attacks rather than teachers who don't take the free course ''coping with violent kids'' These kids are the hope of our future! Our kids deserve competent teachers not complainers!

Well, no, not exactly. Some kids are the hope of our future. Some, like this kid, are the broken, valueless refuse that those other kids are going to have to work to support. Second verse, same as the first.

 

[newGuy12]

To blame a teacher for this is completely, totally wrong.

 

[Empty Hands]

Am I missing something?

Maybe yes, that comment looks a lot like sarcasm or trolling. Completely unjustified, in any case.

Granted, the teacher should not have said what she did, and it probably did have a triggering effect:

I back the teacher up 100% on this comment, but I'm surprised she said it. Can't teachers be suspended or fired for striking or threatening to strike a student for any reason?

In any case, as others have noted, the training may be useful but will not prevent all incidents. Especially in the Baltimore school system, more protective mechanisms should be in place for the teachers apart from what they can say. Many "kids", like myself when I was that age, are adult sized with greater than adult sized aggression, and female teachers in particular need protection of some sort.

 

[MJS]

Well, regarding that comment that was made...I'm not sure if the person who wrote it was reading the same article I am, but IMHO, I do not feel that the teacher should take 100% of the blame for this. Unless I'm missing it, I do not see anything that explains why the girl would not take her seat. Was class already in session and she stood up? Did the bell ring and while everyone else took a seat, this girl continued to stand? Did someone, either student or teacher, say anything to this girl to make her stand up? These are things that are key to this topic, but seem to be missing.

One thing that caught my eye was this:

There were about 500 assaults on teachers and staff at Baltimore schools last year, although they represent a variety of incidents. For instance, students will be disciplined if a teacher is inadvertently touched while intervening to break up a fight.

500 assaults in one year!!!! Something is wrong here. Now, it seems that training is offered, but is optional. Sorry, but if there're 500 assaults, then every teacher should be made to attend. I don't know what this training entails, but one thing for sure, it should contain methods of defense for the teachers. Can they get in trouble for touching another student? Very possible, but I'd be damned if I was a teacher, that I would just stand there and be a punching back for some punk student. In this case, the student hit the teacher with her hands, but what if she had a weapon? What if she pulled a knife or picked up an object to throw or strike with?

 

[Kacey]

May I ask Kasey, have you done anything like one of these training courses? And if so, what does it entail?

Not through the school system, no. But the district I work in doesn't have problems anything close to what Baltimore sounds like, either.

 

[terryl965]

This is one main reason we never have enough teachers, why would anybody want to put themself into these types of stituations. I know it is killing me that my wife wants to go back and teach but she is her on Boss. Me I left teaching because of this crap in the late eighties, teacher are targets for to many students for every one good one we have 20 bad ones that is just frustating in itself.

 

[grydth]

Violent students are no hope for the future; if we want a future they need to be consigned to the past. Those trying to justify the attacker are simply laying the groundwork to be future victims themselves.

 

[thardey]

ORS 161.205(1) A parent, guardian or other person entrusted with the care and supervision of a minor or an incompetent person may use reasonable physical force upon such minor or incompetent person when and to the extent the person reasonably believes it necessary to maintain discipline or to promote the welfare of the minor or incompetent person.

A teacher may use reasonable physical force upon a student when and to the extent the teacher reasonably believes it necessary to maintain order in the school or classroom or at a school activity or event, whether or not it is held on school property.

I printed that out for my wife, who works in a middle school. She highlighted the second paragraph and posted it in her classroom. She was getting a lot of the "you can't touch me! I have my personal rights!" kind of responses from the kids if she tried to break up a fight, or physically barring the door from letting them leave before the bell rang, etc.

After she put that up, they didn't give her any trouble. The other teachers wanted a copy, too.

(Of course, we didn't post the School policies on how the teachers were supposed to behave, but that wasn't State law, that was just policy!)

 

[grydth]

You know, from both a legal and a physical standpoint, I would be wary of using physical force in anything but a self defense or defense of others situation.

That said, I suspect that you may dwell in a place far different than the Peoples Republic of New York. Would the school district back you up - or fire you? What risk of lawsuit exists? How well armed are the crazy students - what are the chances of one having a blade or razor?

There's a real concern of student violence at the midwest university my wife teaches at.

 

[thardey]

You know, from both a legal and a physical standpoint, I would be wary of using physical force in anything but a self defense or defense of others situation.

That said, I suspect that you may dwell in a place far different than the Peoples Republic of New York. Would the school district back you up - or fire you? What risk of lawsuit exists? How well armed are the crazy students - what are the chances of one having a blade or razor?

Absolutely - but the kids didn't know that. :ubercool:

For them, it was posted, and therefore not to be questioned. It was THE LAW.

The ones spouting off about their rights (who actually didn't know anything about rights) weren't experienced enough to know that words like "reasonable force" didn't really amount to much in a practical situation. All they saw was "Teachers can use physical force to control students" (Oregon State Law). It was enough. For all they knew, it gave my wife Carte Blanche to break out the paddle! (obviously she never would dream of it.) Let their own imaginations run away with them - it works great.

Heck, print that off and give it to your wife, you don't have to explain to the kids that it's an Oregon law! Just stick it on the wall and don't say anything about it! (I'm just kidding, BTW!)

 

[Sukerkin]

Even better, actually re-introduce proper punishment in schools.

Discipline does not flow from reason, it seems - I think the past couple of decades of mis-management have proven that.

Bleeding-hearts have destroyed one of the fundamental systems that feed supposedly civilised and trained young people into our society. Is it any wonder things are falling apart before our eyes?

 

[Twin Fist]

I couldnt agree more.

 

[kidswarrior]

This is one main reason we never have enough teachers, why would anybody want to put themself into these types of stituations. I know it is killing me that my wife wants to go back and teach but she is her on Boss. Me I left teaching because of this crap in the late eighties, teacher are targets for to many students for every one good one we have 20 bad ones that is just frustating in itself.

God bless you, sir, for saying this. :asian:

The popular media certainly isn't wasting any time praising teachers, and that's the feed most people rely on to form their opinions. Has the term 'Failing schools' reached cliche status yet?

 

[thardey]

Even better, actually re-introduce proper punishment in schools.

Discipline does not flow from reason, it seems - I think the past couple of decades of mis-management have proven that.

Bleeding-hearts have destroyed one of the fundamental systems that feed supposedly civilised and trained young people into our society. Is it any wonder things are falling apart before our eyes?

Ahh, give me a moment to think about that world for a moment.

Mmmm, I think I just found my new "happy place."