Entry #22 - Feb. 15, 1999


"We also need more incentives for students to work hard and succeed. Since this is a low-income neighborhood (no Title I funds in Toronto -- poor kids don't get lunch, or any special services) there are few field trips or enriching activities."

Do I have the gift of prophecy, or what? Sometimes I wonder. No sooner had I mused about the problems posed by unruly and usually disturbed students than it suddenly became a public issue overnight. In a way.

Some of our politicians have spoken up on the need for behavior and dress codes in the schools and have been getting lots of publicity and press for emphasizing a need to "get tough" with out-of-control kids. Could an election be around the corner?

Of course, we HAVE behavior and dress codes -- I can't think of a school that does not. Enforcing them effectively is (and always have been) another matter entirely. I'll be listening closely to hear whether any of the public figures speak to THAT. The nitty-gritty of effective discipline comes down to such things as adequate staff to supervise kids to prevent problems, and a range of consequences to deal with infractions. We are lacking in that department.

Although we have many gifted teachers, none has been favored by Providence with the gift of bilocation, and when students change classes and move about the school there are not enough adults to monitor the halls, bathrooms and stairwells (which is where most incidents occur).

We can't offer in-school suspension because there is no staff to supervise such a program. Substitute teachers are so hard to come by that Special Education programs have to be closed frequently so the special education teachers can be used to supervise classes, and regular grade teachers are often asked to give up their (very few) prep periods to cover emergency situations. No wonder we can't even think about "teams" or a coordinated school theme or project!

High school teachers tell me their situation is much worse. At our parent council meeting this past week, the behavior concerns dominated the agenda. Parents from the elementary school reported assaults and gang-type behavior in kindergarten and first grade! They said the teachers were trying to help but simply could not be everywhere at once. A woman with an eighth grade son reported her boy was threatened and a knife held to his head to force him to give up his lunch.

Our principal was shocked and will certainly track down these situations, but I'm not sure how we can prevent them without adequate staff or resources. Most of our serious problems are caused by a small group of kids, all of whom have severe Special Education needs that are not being met in our "inclusive" setting. My feeling is that the "discipline" issue will never be resolved satisfactorily until we can offer first-rate classroom programs for all the students, and that may mean separate special education programs for some students for part of the day.

We also need more incentives for students to work hard and succeed. Since this is a low-income neighborhood (no Title I funds in Toronto -- poor kids don't get lunch, or any special services) there are few field trips or enriching activities. I'd like to see fund-raising for supervised trips to our many wonderful local resources (museums, hands-on science centers, wildlife parks and much more) that could be arranged for students who achieved designated goals or earned a certain number of "credits" based on attendance, effort and achievement.

Expanding the music, sports and arts programs would also help. I know that kids who are involved in something meaningful to them are far less likely to get in trouble, or "hang around" with the wrong people. At the council meeting, though, we didn't really get beyond talking about the problem, as one parent after another added personal observation to the mix.

I wanted to bring up program and timetabling concerns, but didn't really get a chance to do so. I'll hope for better luck next time, but I'm afraid a putting-out-fires mentality tends to impede any real movement towards substantive improvement. If we want to see the school take a significant step forward, we will all have to back up for an overall view: what works? what doesn't? What special local strengths do we have, and how can we capitalize on them? What kind of a school community do we want to have (ideally speaking). Alas, we never seem to get to asking any of the big questions as we combat one crisis or another.

Speaking of crises, we had another on Friday (this wasn't even Friday, the13th!). I don't usually go out for lunch, but made an exception -- the sun (which has been hiding for months) was out. When I came back in, by the office, several of my "good" kids were sitting on the bench. I couldn't imagine what trouble they could be in. They looked really upset; one appeared to have been crying. What happened, I asked?

"It's Luke," one said in a quavering voice, "He was just hit by a car."

"WHAT!!" I said, incredulous, and proceeded to get the story from them.

They had come out from a chicken-deli type restaurant that serves a lunch special many of our kids buy and decided to go to the variety store across the street. They crossed to the streetcar island, and Luke suddenly
jaywalked across the other two lanes. One boy cried "No!" and grabbed Luke's jacket, but he was too late. A car trying to beat the yellow light sped up, braked when the driver saw Luke, skidded on the snow and hit the boy with a sickening thud.

Luke was thrown into the air, apparently somersaulted and his head struck the concrete of the streetcar island. He lay on the ground, eyes open and glassy, body twitching. The boys said he did not respond to them, and "there was lots of blood." The kids were shooed away and an ambulance was there within minutes, hurrying Luke off to a specialty children's hospital where I'm sure he will receive the best treatment available.

Meanwhile these boys needed help. They were clearly traumatized, and nobody had had time for them yet. I sat down on the bench with them.

"I can't believe I saw my best friend hit by a car," gasped Ahmed in a shaky voice. "I tried to stop him..." I knew they blamed themselves, so we talked it out. Not to "blame" Luke either, but to remind them that he made a snap decision that turned out to be a wrong one. That they were not responsible for his mistake, and had been the truest friends possible -- had tried to stop him being hurt, and stayed with him till help arrived.

I told them of a friend's sister who was hit by a car in a similar situation, and took weeks to recover but did, indeed, get back to normal. I told them to expect the hospital to keep Luke for days or even weeks to make sure he all right, and that it's harder to hurt your brain than you might imagine... but I privately did not feel very confident. We didn't know whether Luke was in a coma, or what.

An hour or so later, when I came down to the office again, I asked our principal if she had heard anything from the hospital about Luke's condition. She said, yes, and seemed relieved. Luke was conscious and remembered his name and other personal information, but couldn't tell them what happened -- he didn't remember anything after having lunch at the chicken place. He has major facial and scalp lacerations but, here's hoping, no skull fracture or brain injury. Guess we'll know more on Monday.

I went back up to find his friends and tell them the good news! I guess our writing activities for next week will be making joke books and writing letters to Luke, as I'm sure he will not be released right away.


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READER COMMENTS:

Hi, I am a Mother of four young children and have yet to experience high school here in Australia. My eldest daughter will be in year 7 next year, and in the latest "Parents and Citizens Journal," it was mentioned that middle school may well be considered an option for our children somewhere in the future (near future, I hope).

Your website was recommended to us to visit, and it has been well worth the time to sit here and read all your diary entries. How rewarding and yet so frustrating your job must be, what with the lack of funding resources and understanding. I for one believe that you are doing a great job under your conditions. Here's hoping for more money to be invested in educating today's children. Keep up the great work and thanks for the inside look at a teacher's role.

Claire