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Two staff members seen on video standing in the door way during the incident.After incident seen smiling in hall way as one making flicking motions with finger / hand. Kilroy says seems like other two teacher thought it was some kind of joke! The board NEEDS to take action!!!!!!!!!!!
see bottom of page one and top of page two
http://blogs.delawareonline.com/delawareed/files/2012/05/TEACHERCHARGED.pdf
Update 05-11-2012 from Delaware Ed Nichole Dobo
Teachers initially told police that the student bit his lip and that’s why he was bleeding, according to court documents. However, another teacher witness eventually came forward to back up the student’s account of what happened, calling it the “biggest mistake of my life” to not tell the truth sooner, according to court documents
Proof others in Kirk weren’t telling the truth and I would love to see their internal statements provided to the building administration. Those who try to cover up crimes in schools should be held legally accountable.
All school boards need to change policies requiring a district level representative be present during any school level interview of staff re: potential crime and unprofessional behavior. Beau the ball is in you court! Let’s get it right.
Why did it take 11 days for the police to to be called on an incident where a student was injured by a teacher? When was the district superintendent informed and when did the superintendent inform the school board?
The victim then responded to the school nurse for treatment.
The investigation into the incident began on Friday, April 27, 2012 after the Delaware State Trooper assigned as the School Resource Officer at the George V. Kirk Middle School, located in the 100 block of Brennen Drive in Newark, was informed by school officials of an incident in which a teacher allegedly struck a student
The police revealed via their investigation the incident took place on April 16 in the classroom.
The student received treatment by the nurse day of incident and the school has an SRO! Did the student or staff tell the nurse what happened? If yes, didn’t anyone report it to the SRO the same day? There apparently was physical evidence.
News Journal reported, “Surveillance video in the classroom shows the teacher leaning toward the boy and her hand going toward the boy’s face”.
I do want to hear a bout the teacher or student whom some say he had it coming. My concern right now concerns school district policy and events that took place during those 11 days before police involvement. Will the district including school board review statements made to the building level administration and review any staff changes including contract vendors? Was there an efforts to downplay this incident by building administration? If so I must suspect the police have more work to do! Beau Biden wants to protect children from bullying and crimes committed by adults within the schools he best take serious not of these 11 days.
The school board has an obligation to address these concerns and a greater obligation to oversee rules and regulations protecting our children. If the board turns a blind-eye it will be a very sad day for children.
Beau Biden I urge you to investigate these 11 days.
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I have a relative who taught in NYC and he told me teachers were taught to keep their hands in their pockets when speaking with a student. Not so much to stop themselves from striking them, but to prevent an accidental touch, or a pat on the shoulder or something from being misinterpreted. Sounds like this teacher wasn’t misinterpreted though.
Mike, whatever happened here is captured on video according to News Journal report.The real issue I am trying to point-out is not that the teacher lost her cool but what happened during the time between April 16 and 27? In Delaware a professional working with children knows the law that says, those who are knowing of such crime against a child and don’t report it can be charged. I hope the AG investigates the 11 days. It hard to believe there is an SRO in the building! Teach lost her cool and part of me really feels for teachers in these situations. However, did the building administration lose the professionalism and sense of moral duty? Far too many times things are swept under the run and its time for it to stop. I hope the AG see merit in addressing the concerns within the 11 days
whats an SRO? I am feeling shocked at my own self I think, but every time I read yet another story of a teacher losing their cool, I have sympathy for them. Is it a ‘straw that broke the camels back’ kind of thing? Seems like it. I would like to say to all of my kids teachers out there, if they are disrepectful and call someone a name, please flick them. If they refuse to apoligize, flick them again. When they come home from school, I will not call the school. I will flick them again.
I do hope the video shows the whole story. I is weird that it took 11 days. Maybe there is something behind it that we just don’t know?
off topic, but I have been snooping around at the stats. on schools SAT scores and was wondering if someone can tell me the difference between these two :
“11th Grade Schoolday SAT Reasoning” and
“Public School SAT Reasoning Test”
School Resource Officer (SRO) State Police in this case
Other than self defense, there is never a justification for hitting another person. Once you reach the point where you raise your hand in anger you’ve lost control and the argument.
So, I really don’t care why the teacher hit the student. That doesn’t matter.
SRO = School Resource Officer
I have no problem with appropriate discipline used on my child, but I don’t want any adult, teacher or other, physically disciplining my kids. Personally, I don’t think you will get the results you desire if a kid is humiliated in front of peers (again, just my opinion
)I don’t think we want to go back to corporal punishment days. If you don’t have the patience to deal with kids (middle schoolers are particularly hard) then you are in the wrong business.
To your point, kilroy, I thought I did read that the SRO was brought in immediately, maybe there is a reasonable explanation for the paperwork trail to take this long? I can understand your point that it could indicate a kind of cover up, or down play, but maybe the chain of command takes that long?
I wish DDC was here to blame this on NCS
I agree that you can’t hit the students, but how do you discipline this kid? I would guess he isn’t getting parental support at home (my opinion only).
I know this isn’t HS… but if I did something like this my coach would find out about it that same day and I would be running for 2 hours in practice or until I puked… whatever came 1st.
ok, glad I read these comments before I left for the day.. I don’t hit my kids and I don’t want anyone to hit my kids either.. I was saying the flicking thing in jest. (that’s why I put the smiley) my kids got a wack on the butt at about age 3 , that’s it, and only for ‘federal offenses’ like running in the street over and over and over again.. only after 50 warnings and only after I deemed something dangerous, and I did it for shock value.. and it worked.
Thats why I started with “I am shocked at myself because I have sympathy for these teachers”…. I don’t want to have sympathy for them for putting their hands on someone. And I know that they know better. That’s my point.. They are being pushed to somewhere that I am guessing under different circumstances wouldn’t BE pushed to these kinds of reactions. Are there more teachers being pushed to the edge and if so why? Or are we just hearing about it more?
If my kids teachers were pushed to their edge, I would hope I would have sympathy for them. I would like to think I would still hold my kid to some degree of accountability, like telling them… “teachers should not do that and should have to take anger management or something, BUT you are still grounded for being disrespectful”
I have sympathy for these teachers. This kid called her a Cow and refused to apologize for it. Respect starts at home. I don’t know how you discipline this kid because it sounds like he was already in some in-school suspension program already.
How do you discipline kids who don’t seem to care?
based on recent ‘bitch’ comments i would assume that with out hesitation this teacher is fired effective immediately. there is no excuse for ever hitting a child. and if a teacher of my kids ever touched one of them, i would very quickly be ‘touching’ back
Arthur, Then you would end up in jail and teach your child an awesome lesson about respect for authority and controlling your emotions.
I would teach my kids that violence against children and women is unacceptable.
To follow up on Arthur’s point, violence against anyone is unacceptable.
Here’s the truth… a teacher wouldn’t dare raise a hand to one of our (commenters here) children, because they know they wouldn’t get away with it.
If you believe discipline is administered consistently along socioeconomic lines then you haven’t been paying attention.
Artur, In this case the teacher is a woman that you would be “touching back”. Great lesson. How about you don’t “touch back”, be the bigger person and end the cycle of violence?
Pandoa, I am not getting into income and demographics again over student discipline.
This student deserves to be disciplined… not saying it is ok to hit him. How do you address what the student did and teach him to respect authority?
Pandoa, I am not getting into income and demographics again over student discipline.
Why not? It happens to be true. Socioeconomics plays a part.
Unless you see a CSW or NCS parents being okay with a teacher hitting their kid. If you think that’s preposterous… ask yourself why.
As recently as my Wilmington public elementary school days (mid-80s) we had a closet where kids got paddled, by the principal. Extreme cases only I’m sure but it was a long march from the principal’s office and I always felt like everybody saw it happen. Wasn’t just the poor kids, either. Sounds wrong on so many levels now…
This is an authority figure who lost her self control. Super disturbing.
Thanks for the link Pandy… but all this reports is the total # of kids from each demographic that is disciplined. What I would like to see is a report that says kids from each demographic who committed the same offense and how they were disciplined. Only then would I believe a certain demographic was being unjustly disciplined.
The schools track data affecting our children in huge volumes but they only show us the reports they feel like showing us.
Not to worry Coolspringer–your principal was legally protected. We only had corporal punishment taken off the books for Delaware schoolchildren in the early 2000′s. So quit being a tattletale
!!!
How about this link, Greggy-poo-bear.
Really Pandora? You have to throw in the socioeconomic thing and a crack against NCS. Even though my socioeconomic standing may not be near yours I still don’t beleive it is acceptable to hit my child. I do however, beleive that the teacher and student were both wrong. Respect does start at home and it cost absolutely nothing to teach. They should both be ashamed of their actions and the school for not handling it properly. I do feel for the teacher. Times have drastically changed sinnce I was in school. Teachers have to put up with so much.
It is what it is- let’s not make it about income levels or NCS.
Kilroy, delaware online updated this article. The boy had a bloody lip. sounds more than a ‘flick’ now. What I was trying to ask above was does it seem like teachers are starting to pass their own boiling point now or do we just hear about it more? Pandora I just skimmed your article trying to see what you were trying to show Greg and not sure which part, but did want to comment on that great principal. Do you think schools around here try that approach first? (the first part of your article) maybe some teachers do but like I said above, reach their boiling point and react without thinking by flicking, swearing, etc. after see so much for so many years??
If a student is having issues and throwing Fbombs, etc. aren’t they refered to a guidance counselor to see what’s up? I would think before a suspension, a guidance counselor, or someone, would at least talk to the student before a school can just throw out punishments.
Pencadermon, the police did their investigation and determined a crime was committed and teacher charged.
Read Exhibit A
http://blogs.delawareonline.com/delawareed/files/2012/05/TEACHERCHARGED.pdf
Proud NCS, one person was an adult and the other was a child. One is trained (teacher) and other is not (student). There needs to be a “timeout” support network for teachers.
Kilroy- that is true. There needs to be some kind of support for teachers. They are just that- teachers. I’m not a teacher so i can’t profess what training they get to help thme deal with situations like this. I would hope there is something. But I think the point was that they shouldn’t have to put up with the disrespect and behavior they deal with. Isn’t it just putting a bandaid on the issue by giving “timeout” support to teachers?
Pandy poo, I like the idea in that article but the cynic in me says that all this teaches the kids is that they can use the “bad family” excuse to get out of trouble. Suspensions might have went down but how did the students do (grades, test scores, etc…) the same year? Sorry if the grades are listed here… I didn’t get all the way through. This touchy/feely idea will work for some kids… but not all.
“they can use the “bad family” excuse to get out of trouble. Suspensions might have went down but how did the students do (grades, test scores, etc…) the same year?”– this is why our schools should be much much smaller (and K-12) – they can be so much more personal, teachers and staff get to know all of the kids and it will be much more likely that they would know if a student really has issues at home, and might be able to actually help them, instead of suspensions, social passing, blah,blah blah
“But I think the point was that they shouldn’t have to put up with the disrespect and behavior they deal with”
How about this, Rodel Charter School for Disruptive Students (joking) There were two teachers standing in the doorway as the teacher in question loss her cool! Rather than assisting per the police report the two went back into the hall smiling. They should have offered assistance and called principal or AP. Bit no they shouldn’t put up with disrespect nor should the police patrolling the street. Teachers have been disrespected for years. Perhaps when students get out of control in in-school suspension room as in this case perhaps parents should be required come get their child or better yet come and sit with their child while in this room. For sure something has to give and teachers are under stress. Maybe this why there should be trained crisis interventionist working these in-school suspension rooms. The teacher cross the physical boundaries and the student never left his seat. But my post is about pointing out a possible cover-up! Why 11 days to contact police which there was blood drawn? It appears witness we’re encouraged to lie.
The adult witnesses should have intervened. If I am reading your attachment correctly, It seems there was some back & forth that happened before the “flicking” of the lip. If they were watching in the hallway, they saw the situation escalate someone should have stepped in and calmed it down, instead of watching it, seemingly for sport. It does appear that a cover up happened, whether encouraged by admin or not. It seems the nurse did report the right way, but doesn’t mention the trail from her on up. There is a big difference between instilling and enforcing acceptable behavioral standards and rules, and putting your hands on a child in anger. It doesn’t really matter how this child behaved in the past, the adults are supposed to handle themselves properly at all times; if they can’t control those impulses, they need to find another profession.
“It doesn’t really matter how this child behaved in the past, the adults are supposed to handle themselves properly at all times; if they can’t control those impulses, they need to find another profession.”
Very true 100%
But make note, what the teacher did was reactionary and lacked self-control. However, what the admins did creates a situation the questions overall safety of students and raises concerns of integrity. To come a crime by weak impulse is more human than to cover a crime or distorts the facts which is pure evil. If I were a parent of a student at that school I would have deep concerns about the well being of my child. I hope the AG follows trough on justice!
Has anyone else heard the story of Newark High School suspending for a week, a science teacher for pulling a knife on a student, and that teacher had previously been fired from Shue for comlaints of his touching of a student?
didn’t hear such rumor
I agree what has happened is wrong, if this is what really happened.Teachers go threw a lot to deal with these kids in the school system in return can be very stressful,I think this could have been resolved in another way instead of destroying a teacher career over a flicker? she could have been disciplined another way not this way,her life is ruined over this and it probably more.
Coolspringer: I was one of the last people in that school to figure out what was going on in that particular closet. My students clued me in. This was of course at a time when paddling by the administrator was permitted, but not by a teacher.
Oops,no tattling intended.
I think I assumed all the grownups knew and it was like that everywhere! Word spread fast among kids. I don’t remember us ever thinking it was at all unjust (never happened to me personally), just one of those awe-inspiring things that was…
Not that I would ever advocate for a return to corporal punishment, but what a different, controlled thing it was compared to this sort of… chaos…I suppose that was what the memory and feeling this story was evoking.