Posted on 12/30/2005 10:39:06 PM PST by TFFKAMM
Matthew Almodovar likes holding his girlfriend's hand during lunch or when they're walking to class. But at Culver City Middle School, that display of affection could land the couple in trouble.
At the only public middle school in Culver City, it is against school policy for students to hold hands, hug or kiss on campus. Perhaps more important, the "no contact" rule also prohibits students from hitting, shoving or pushing classmates.
Schools nationwide have policies to prevent violence and sexual harassment, but some go further — such as creating a rule against touching. In March, one middle school student in Bend, Ore., was sent to detention after repeatedly defying a teacher's warning to refrain from hugging another student. A similar situation occurred at a junior high in Euless, Texas, in 2003.
Many educators say the policy teaches students what is — and isn't — appropriate behavior at school, which they say is especially important during the middle school years. What's OK at the mall or the movies, some educators say, isn't necessarily OK at school, where the focus should be on academics.
There are others, however, who say that although in theory the policy could be effective, it is nearly impossible to implement because enforcement is subjective and inconsistent.
The policy came out of a meeting two years ago when administrators, counselors and teachers discussed bullying, a topic that former Principal Patricia Jaffe said was "extremely important" at middle schools everywhere. Jaffe was principal at the 1,739-student school until October and is now an assistant superintendent of the Culver City Unified School District...
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Have they ever seen 10 year old boys play? They run back and forth chasing a ball. There's no way they can play without touching. And if they don't play like that during recess they're going to have ants in their pants all afternoon. Idiots.
It is a bit ridiculous but consider the world we live in.
There are dozens of these stories in a given year. It's shocking. It's disturbing. Add in the increasing number of female teachers (including one with HIV) molesting 13 year old boys and you have to think the world has gone mad.
You need a Yahoo message board, not Free Republic.
So does this mean that touch football is now Mental touch football?
"But Coach, I touched him in my mind he's down at the 5 yard line!"
This is not a new issue. My HS had a controversy over the same policy in the 80's.
And in other news, a no tolerance policy has been adopted against human behavior.
Goes to show how out of touch and intolerant you are. It is now referred to as a Native American Rope Burn.
Please, if you are going to be a proper Freeper, use the correct terminology.
I'm sorry, I slipped into my diverstity training mode for a second. The correct term is Indian burn, not Native American Burn.
It won't happen again.
These students need some contact....with my old Jr. High Principal's paddle.
That depends greatly on the individual female vice principal. The most strict and hard paddling person at one of my old schools was the female VP.
"Government gulags suck"
There are other kinds?
If the touching is a significant obstacle to the school's basic educational function, then it can be restricted and still survive a Free Speech challenge.
Would you rather he have a boyfriend? ;)
The boyfriend/girlfriend thing was standard practice when I went to middle school almost thirty years ago. Don't act shocked and sad, or try to blame it on Clinton.
Reminds me of one the high points of my public school experience. Our principal, "Jolly John", called an assembly to chastise the student body for "inappropriate displays of affection" ie hand-holding, even hugs! He announced that henceforth any intentional physical contact between the sexes would be grounds for an immediate three day suspension. I was sitting with about twenty of the all male, "resist authority" group, as usual, front and center.
We exchanged not a word, planned nothing, had no advance notice of the topic, BUT; every one of us walked out arm in arm with another guy, a couple of the bolder throwing in a peck on the cheek. I really thought the vein in Jolly John's forehead was going to rupture on the spot. By the time we hit the doors, he was hollering something, but who could hear over the laughter, and some of the teachers were laughing the hardest.
Something our litigious times have forgotten; make someone too silly to be taken seriously and you have punctured him more surely than a basketful of lawsuits.
I walked in on students having sex in a classroom twice in my 4 years, but the mental image burned into my mind was from my first day of student-teaching... walking into a new building, nervous and excited, and I in the stairway I pass a young man with a girl under each arm. He sees me walking up, looking at hime, happily and greedily makes out with one, and as I pass by with a slightly stern look (and probably some confusion in there as well), he non-chalantly turns and starts tonsil boxing with the girl under the other arm. A very quick lesson on what I was walking into.
And Wedgies? harmless play or sexual emascualization?
It's a slippery slope but we won't go there.
"Lighten up Francis."
The ones I've run into are hard core feminists. Boys are evil and girls are perfect.
I had a "girlfriend" in 8th grade or so.
It is actually that time when you get the Puppy Love and all the sleepless nights.
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