Debates about school discipline have become polarized between proponents of restorative justice and those who believe a get-tough approach is required.
Race, class and gender can not only impact the education that students receive, but also the punishments they receive.
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Schools and teachers are reporting increased cases of ill-discipline and behavioural problems as a result of the challenges pupils experienced during the pandemic. Here’s what can be done.
A third of students say they don’t like school, and that dislike often begins around the time they enter high school. But the reasons they give point the way to solutions to this problem.
Black and Latino students are suspended at higher rates than their white peers.
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Teachers say school districts have left them in the lurch in the wake of attacks by students. Some admit they resort to violence themselves to send a message to students who might want to test them.
Charter school enrollment reportedly grew 7% during the pandemic.
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Charter school enrollment grew during the pandemic. But behind these schools’ rising popularity is a history of harsh discipline, inaccessibility and targeted marketing.
Some preschoolers are encouraged to bring in their favorite toy or stuffed animal, while others risk having it confiscated.
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When students are allowed to bring personal items for show and tell, it can build their senses of self-worth, belonging and control. But poor kids often don’t get that opportunity.
Black parents are having to call off work to deal with their children’s minor infractions at school.
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Abuse, neglect or witnessing violence at home can lead kids to misbehave. Some schools are doing away with expulsions to focus on childhood trauma instead.
The Supreme Court ruled that a school could not punish a student for a profane Snapchat post made off campus.
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The Mahanoy v. B.L. ruling did not give schools or free-speech advocates the clear lines they may have wanted, but it did attempt to address some of the complexity of modern-day speech.
At least 92,000 K-12 students in the U.S. were paddled or spanked at school in the 2015-2016 school year.
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‘Behavior vaccines’ – practices meant to improve safety and well-being – have been around for years. An educational psychologist says they are particularly important for schools to adopt now.
School police officers walk in a hallway at a middle school.
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A former deputy chancellor of New York City schools explains why the police don’t need to patrol the nation’s public schools.
Suspensions have continued throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, while children are attending remotely from their homes.
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