'The Disruption Made Teaching Virtually Impossible. I Could Not Believe What I Saw' (UK)

The Telegraph (UK) ^ | 4-24-2005 | Julie Henry

[Hetty_Fauxvert]

The thing about corporal punishment is that, when truly implemented, the threat is what keeps most kids in check. That is, for every one that actually gets swatted, there are many who stay in line simply to make sure they don't get theirs.

Oh, so true! I grew up in an era where the wooden paddle in the vice principal's ofice was a real threat. But as I recall, we had maybe two or three actual paddlings per year -- a pretty low percentage. Part of the threat of being paddled was the humiliation when you came back to class, since the other kids would cheerfully remind you of the paddling every chance they got for several weeks. (That was the "upside" of peer pressure!)

[mcg1969]

The solution COULD be very simple - - weed ou the dispurtors (send them home for good) and teach only those children who are civil and wish to learn. Why do I suspect that the education mafia in the UK, like here in the US, would have a problem with that?

I appreciate where you're coming from here (and no, I don't think the US or UK would go for it), but I think it's a better option to restore a teacher's right to administer serious discipline. I believe that would result in far more civil, educated kids than just sending the bad ones home. (Of course, we'll still need to do that too, only hopefully less freuqently.)

[the invisib1e hand]

...we don't need no education....

[Poser]

"For Poser's sake, I wish more would get a job, rather than waste their time and everyone's money on 'higher education'"

I would like to make a rule that colleges can only accept students who have been out of high school and worked full-time for at least one year.

Of a freshman class of 82 teenagers, I have fewer than 10 who are serious about learning anything. About 60 of the 82 don't ever crack a book outside of class. Most skip at least 15% of classes. They wander into class 30 minutes late, talk continuously and expect make-up exams for no reason.

What is most amazing is that they expect to receive a B or better for that type of effort. Parents regularly show up in the Dean's office with a lawyer when I flunk their kid.

I'm the lucky one. I can throw them out of class when they won't shut up. Public school teachers don't have that luxury.

[Tom Morris]

Far simpler solution: if the pupils misbehave, we should chuck them out. They obviously don't want to learn (not that they would learn much in our crud schools anyway). They can take the economic responsibility which goes along with being kicked out of school: not getting a job. There are more than enough intelligent people finishing school and university who wan't jobs. Why do we bother teaching these idiots who have no hope of holding a job anyway?

Shocking article. I'll definitely tune in to the show when it airs here on Channel Five. I'm betting I won't be surprised, since I left school only a few years ago.