Protesters or Hostage Takers?

Recent events at Morton West High School in Berwyn, Illinois have many people concerned. Some students are facing lengthy suspensions and the possibility of being expelled due to their participation in a protest. The protest occurred within the school and during school hours on November 1st.

Are students receiving proper consequences? Have students been properly educated on how to voice their views? Do students have productive outlets for their views? What should the roles of parents be concerning how they need to support their children?

Let it be known, this blog does not entitle me the ability to exercise my right to freedom of speech so that I can voice my personal views on this topic. In fact, no one within the field of education has the right to use their position to inform others on what to think. Parents may be obligated to instill values within their children, but educators must tread carefully here. Parents who want to impose their personal beliefs upon schools would be equally operating without caution.

When teachers discuss history, conflict, critical thinking, and acts of civil disobedience, teachers must present balanced views. They must indicate how laws work, share the rights we have as citizens, and impart a vision of the potential consequences student actions can produce. When teachers address these issues in such a manner, they provide students with opportunities to lead successful, independent lives.

This doesn’t mean educators can't address values. Teachers can draw from current events, literature, texts, experiences, and fiction to help students understand the world around them. Character traits which can assist students to operate in the 21st Century and also change it are within their charge. However, doing so is less of a prescription but more like helping someone undergo a personal journey.

On issues of controversy, teachers must present balanced lessons. Imagine not. Imagine an educational system that does otherwise. We could allow schools to tell children what to think as opposed to how to think. We could tell student which jobs to pursue and train them accordingly. We can narrow their choices and views by our own standards, but at what cost to our schools and our democracy?

On another front, some people charge school authorities of delivering punishments that are too severe. If that is the case, appeals and hearings will draw out those issues. Authorities such as me do not make decisions in a vacuum. We reflect upon time honored rules and protocols, drafted from thoughtful councils, when determining consequences.

Our democracy is not absent of such an adherence to guidelines. There are laws, ordinances, and amendments. The First Amendment may entitle all of us to freedom of speech, but not at the expense of the Fourteenth Amendment, which entitles children and adolescents an education as a property right.

Consequently, school authorities must balance these rights. A responsibility to provide an educational environment that suits the needs of all students, not merely the First Amendment rights of a few students, is the intended goal.

Of the approximate 3,400 students who attend Morton West High School on a daily basis, we must ensure there are procedures in place to help all of them. These procedures include rules for students to follow so that order and safety can be secured.

Therefore, if students are to be educated, parents and teachers must inform them in such a way so as students will understand what consequences are at stake when they protest. I cannot imagine a school that would encourage and allow students to disrupt the educational rights of other students via loud protest. Fortunately, it appears many parents are in agreement with this requirement. Some parents may be disputing the severity of certain charges, but this is not uncommon within the realm of administering discipline.

As Morton West High School progresses through appeals and hearings, dialogue must be ongoing and process must be followed. Teachers must use their creativity to provide students positive outlets of expression. Parents must teach their children of the responsibilities of adulthood. Students must carefully choose which activities they engage themselves.

School leaders will continue to provide crucial programs to guide student engagement. Those programs will include classes and experiences enabling students to pursue a future in the trades, attend college, and enlist in the military. We will continue to provide these opportunities and allow students the ability to make these choices for themselves, not matter how disconcerting this freedom of choice may sit with a few.

Students, parents, teachers, and administrators have a right to personal beliefs but they do not have a right to use their classrooms as indoctrination zones. Personal beliefs must not override a true educator's judgment and cause a lapse in discipline. We could easily allow discipline to be waived under the pretense of good intentions, but what good would come from it? We might be tempted to allow pro-life demonstrating students a pass when they protest. We may allow anti-nuclear protesters a pass. What about students who want to protest less serious matters, like students who want to amass crowds over cold mashed potatoes?

We cannot afford to release our schools to students and parents of students who hold strong political views, one way or the other. We respect the rights and thoughts of students who are pro-war, those who are anti-war, and those who have yet to come to their own conclusions.

Let it not be lost on all of us to respect the educational rights of the majority of students who demand their daily dose of mathematics, science, English, and physical education. We must not allow protesters to take schools hostage, for whatever purpose, no matter how we may personally feel about the issue.

IMSA -- Great Minds Program

The Illinois Math and Science Academy in Aurora, Illinois held its Great Minds Program on October 20th, 2007. This specific program was centered on "Learning and the Brain: Where Are We and Where Do We Need to Be?”

There were distinguished presenters who provided information on cognitive brain research. Find details about their work by following the link below.

MATHguide: News for October 28th, 2007