Stopping behavior

A friend of mine was principal of a junior school which enjoyed a positive reputation amongst educators, although some punitive parents and idiotic inspectors disapproved of her methods. Her position was that the teachers have an educative responsibility for all kids who happen to be in the school, and that judging, sidelining or excluding any of them was just an excuse for a lack of creativity. Her classrooms were a sight to behold, for they reflected the reality of 25 unique young beings grouped together in a single room, where there might be six or seven activities going on at any one time. Her opponents contended that there should be dead silence in a classroom – to which my friend retorted, “Yes, with the accent falling on the word 'dead'."

Some people don’t learn. The best way to stop unwanted behavior, they believe, is to stop it. For one thing, the unwanted behavior will usually involve noise, self-expression, individuality, confusion, frustration ... in fact anything that causes us discomfort. And for another thing, “stopping” means just that: disallowing, curtailing, restricting, proscribing, regulating, criminalizing ... Their watchwords are stop, don't, cease, end ...

Well, this month we saw this negative attitude demonstrated by a principal (no name, no pack drill) in Arkansas who “handcuffed an unruly 9-year-old student as a punishment”. Well that’s an effective way to stop behavior, even in a nine-year-old. More, this principal (allegedly) “handcuffed the wrist and ankle of the student and then forced him to walk back to his classroom". This is a very impactful and effective treatment, for yes, it certainly stops behavior (nobody will annoyingly move around the classroom with wrist and ankle handcuffed together), but it also sends a powerful message to any prospective student individualists, for if this can be done to a nine-year-old, just imagine what would happen to you if you were fifteen!

What could this nine-year-old have done which was so culpable? Fifteen-year-olds (so much more imaginative and competent that nine-year-olds) would imagine themselves being racked or nailed to a cross.

Society has already worked out a process for kids who are much older than that. It is the “Go directly to Jail, Do not pass Go, do not collect $200” solution: Try 'em as adults. It all starts with hand-cuffing nine-year-olds.

No colleagues of ours!

See http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=1874793