What should be done when young students behave badly? According to an Associated Press report, more than 17,000 students in preschool through third grade were either suspended or expelled for disruptive behavior during Ohio’s 2015-16 school year.
Ohio lawmaker, State Sen. Peggy Lehner, a Kettering Republican who leads the education committee, is focusing on alternative ways to deal with disobedient or violent behavior in young students and plans to introduce legislation that would ban suspension or expulsion except when students threaten harm, the AP report said.
Support for banning suspension or expulsion of young children seems to be gathering momentum, and some states have already barred the practice.
Washington state’s ACLU education equity director Vanessa Hernandez in a January 10 article posted on the ACLU website, wrote: “Suspension and expulsion are counterproductive to student learning. Students miss academic time that is crucial to their long-term academic achievement. They also fail to learn the skills necessary to modify their behavior and solve problems.”
On the other hand, should students who repeatedly disrupt classrooms and grab the lion’s share of teachers’ time be allowed to remain? Should teachers get better training on how to restrain and resolve problem behavior? Is therapy and counseling the answer? Should the issue be left to local school districts rather than the state? What do you think?
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