Zero Tolerance

      Calcasieu Parish Schools have implemented a zero tolerance policy on fighting... But should there be a zero tolerance policy on bullying?  The prevalence of bullying in our schools nationwide is at an all time high.  A new survey finds half of teens have bullied a peer at least once in the past year.  The report from the Josephson Institute of Ethics was completed just last month and surveyed over 43 thousand U.S. high school students.  It shows that 50 percent of students admitting they bullied or teased someone recently.  And nearly half reporting they have been a victim of bullying.  Have you or anyone close to you been the victim of bullying in our local schools?  And what's your perception of how school administrators have dealt with the problem? 

Comments

[christy]

I asked my son that question the other day and he said he had not, nor did he know anyone who was being bullied at school. I don't think it is possible to cut out every bit of teasing at schools. I wish it were. I think we have to be sure to seperate severe, repeated bullying from teasing.

[Tammy Fielder]

My children are bullied by their bus driver! I have tried to get something...anything done and to no avail. She still drives the bus...still bullies the children and the school does nothing. This woman cusses at the children, threatens to call the police on them, and threatened my child with bodily harm! Namely she said, "I will kick your a**" But my son gets suspended off the bus for calling her a liar!? What was her punishment? Nothing! The way I see it, if the school board won't deal with an adult bully in their midst, how will they deal with a bully in the school? How will they answer the child that says my bus driver threatened me?

[CamoBuck Reborn!]

it's a culture of bullying....which stems from a non-perception of the world....when juan williams was fired, it was because he failed to fit, or rather, negatively fit in a perceived world view held by people who learned nothing from the scourge of Nazi Germany...because they lost and we won, so we must be right and they must be wrong, so what more is there to understand?

[bill]

There should be no such thing as zero tolerance at all. Zero Tolerance = Zero Common sense!

[Steve]

First of all, I hate all zero tolerance policies. Zero tolerance was invented so schools wouldn't have to use any kind of judgement therefore they will have zero liability for their actions. Bullying is too vague. What is bullying and what is a kid being a kid. My friends and I used to tease each other all the time it was all in good fun and I never wanted to kill myself.

[Mike]

I have a big problem with both the zero tolerance and the bullying concepts. Zero tolerance flies in the face of common sense. If attacked, I have the right to defend myself but the zero tolerance provision denies me that right. The bullying concept also defies common sense. All of us were teased and bullied at some point when we were kids. It's a natural part of growing up and we learned to deal with it. If it becomes severe then adults or law enforcement would step in. I defy you to find a kid who has not been teased by his peers at some point. We've all been subjected to it and we learned valuable coping skills in dealing with it. Bullying is much harder to define. Where does teasing stop and bullying begin? I don't think you can honestly tell me. When dealing with extremes, it's easy to tell but what about all the "in between" stuff? I think the bottom line here is that we've already got laws on the books that deal with harassment and physical assault so why do we need special ones to deal with kids? Most of the problem with kids stems from bad parenting and that's where the solution needs to begin. Parents need to take an active part in shaping the psychological development of their children. I know there are instances where kids will become bullies regardless of what parents do but these are isolated instances and should be dealt with on an individual basis. You cannot put teasing and bullying in a single inflexible category and expect to find a common solution. It's a kneejerk reaction to a much more complex problem. If a kid feels bullied then he needs to confide in his parents and they need to take it to the appropriate authority and DEMAND a resolution. If it doesn't happen then it needs to be taken further up the chain of command with the same demand. Keep in mind that the solution may not be what the parent expects but it should be balanced and fair. Authorities (and parents) who refuse to deal with the problem need to be held accountable. I know it sounds simple but most common sense solutions are.

[Jessica Bland]

Where do I begin? This topic gets my Blood BOILING! I have a 14 yr old who is in 9th grade at IOWA HIGH SCHOOL, he has been Bullied for 9yrs.& I'm getting REALLY TIRED oF it.. The schools & the school board does NOTHING.. They don't even take it Seriously. When my Child QUITS SCHOOL b/c YA"ll WILl NOT STOP the Kids from BULLYING him, YOU WILL b hearing from ME!
I think i should STOP before I go OFF & ya'll Put this on the news!

[Bad American]

Just my two cents worth..To establish a policy of zero tolerance, is to suggest that there was an acceptable tolerance level before, I am not sure what that was, I mean was there a 50% tolerance level of in school fighting before. In the words of ESPN Sports Center "COME ON MAN". As for bullying as others have said it is almost a way of life.. Take the following I drink white milk at lunch 3 of my friends drink chocolate, they tease me about it, is this bullying? to some yes to others no. Or my mom makes me do my own laundry, I wash my jock strap with my Barbe shirt it turns blue, I wear to gym the next day ALL men out there know I will be teased, is this bullying?? I guarantee you I WILL NEVER DO IT AGAIN, so was I bullied or did I learn a very important lesson. A lot of fine lines need to be addressed before this can be answered properly.

I would have much rather seen KPLC post a blog about the "TIME TRAVELER PICTURE ON YOUTUBE"

OH a side not to J. Bland tell your son to whip their butts, he will end the bullying.

And for the bus driver, ride the bus with the child for a few days, this way you will send a message to the bus driver.

[Elohssa]

If the bully is one of a group of high school athletes and the victim is a kid with high IQ, weight problems and poor socialization skills, then apparently it's not "bullying", it's justifiable attitude adjustment.

Heaven knows we wouldn't want to "zero tolerance" a star member of the football team right in the middle of the season just to protect some nerdy kid.

[Mike]

To Jessica Bland: Why have you tolerated having your son bullied for 9 years? I cannot believe that you've tried for all this time to get something done and nobody will listen to you. If your child quits school, that's YOUR fault and not mine. You are responsible for his socialization skills and teaching him to cope with everyday problems. You sound angry so why not direct this anger toward your school officials and get something done? To say you've tried just doesn't ring true to me. This sounds more like a parenting problem.

[Worried dad]

Yes my son has been bullied all year this year at school on the bus as well it us unreal !!??? I raise my son to treat everyone the way he would le to be treated but thAt can't happen these days .. He is only 7 and he goes to a k-12 school and has 16 year old boys cussing him and teasing him at school his class mates are all sooo mean to him kind like monkey see monkey do .... I'm not sure what more to do he is a very handsome young man and dresses well u name it but no one seems to want to play with him it breaks my heart everyday to have to send him to school I am even thinking of home school... I have talked to bus driver several times nothing gets done talked to teachers nothing gets done talked to everyone still nothing .... What more do I do fixing to go to school board !!?? He's only seven for Christ sakes the are to little for this where are there parents to teach them how to be kids !!?

[Jessica Bland]

I'm STILL BAFFLED at that comment "It must be my parenting" & if he quits school it's MY fault not yours?? WHO THE HELL R YOU ANYWAY b/c I was NOT Talking to YOU, I Was talking to CALCASIEU PARISH SCHOOL SYSTEM!.. Sounds like a have a Lil BULLIE on my hands as well!

[teach your kids to love their fellow man.]

moe ham Id,..you ..sound like a perverted aminal. what you are saying makes no sense at all,for your information liberals would never want anyone to be bullied and what is the crap about taking god out of education,god plays a large part in my life and it started at home,where it should be taught by loving parents not nut cases like what you sound.

[bullied]

The teachers and princables have ways ignored kids that are bullied. I know because i was bullied for three years and know matter who i told nobody did anything. I still today 3 years later suffer self-esteem problems do to one bully. So, students need to beable to talk to someone with the confindece of knowing someone is going to help them. I is a horrible feeling to be bullied, so i only hope that this is heard and something is done. Teachers and Others who work in a school and are told the someone is being bullied need to do something.

[Corrinne]

I have a problem with the zero tolerance because if my child is being bullied, and the bus driver, principal or teachers are ignoring their requests for help, they should be able to defend themselves. I have 2 children that are having problems with this, and are being ignored when asking for help from their supervising figure. One of my children got a repremand for defending himself against another child, after repeatedly reporting that he was being bullied. I think that the school officials should be more tuned into the "bullying situation", and step in where needed. If a student is being ignored by the authority figures we have a problem. We trust our children with the bus drivers, teachers and principals for 8 hours a day, and it is their job to keep order for that time. I bet they don't let their children get bullied when they are in charge at home, so why let it happen when they are in charge at school?