gangs

In preparation for parent / grandparent / therapist / caseworker / principal meeting this afternoon, I asked my colleagues about their experiences with misbehaving students. Particularly the possibly emotionally disturbed misbehaving students. Because everyone has at least one student who is a little bit . . . off.

I was not at all prepared for the phrase, "Gang Retaliation" to enter into the conversation.

Apparently there are some students that no matter how egregious their behavior, they never get in real trouble. They are frequently not suspended nor expelled. They are sometimes not even referred to behavioral specialists. My "off" student has thrown pencils and chairs, slammed cabinets and doors, and openly defied administration every day for two weeks. I have sent him to the principal's office at least six times. He hasn't suffered a consequence beyond missing his recess.

One teacher told me about a student who was acting out of control, and when admonished, she BACKED the teacher UP AGAINST A WALL. The teacher called for help. The student was removed from the classroom. When searched, she was found to have a steak knife in her pocket, stolen from the cafeteria. Her punishment? She was suspended for one day and moved to a different classroom. When the teacher pressed charges, colleagues didn't want to testify because they were afraid for their own safety.

I was told that schools put up with gross misbehavior of this sort because SOME OF THE FAMILIES ARE IN GANGS. Parents and relatives of students have "let teachers know" that their children can "do whatever they want." What do you do when a large and strong man tells you to your face (really close to your face) that his child will not be receiving any punishments from now on?

!!!

Now, I know that not every parent in my area threatens teachers or administration. In fact, most of them are very understanding and supportive. Most of them come to conferences and threaten their children to behave properly in class. Most parents are on our side. But apparently not all parents.

I'm completely surprised and alarmed that gangs have penetrated the educational system, the very establishment that houses their children safely behind locked fences and barred windows, that feeds them two meals a day, that provides them with a path to success without guns and drugs. Don't they want better for their kids?