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Two
articles appeared in the Toronto Star recently that caught my attention.
They may seem totally unrelated at first glance, but upon closer
examination, it is clear that they reflect a reality which school
administrators simply cannot ignore.
The first article
was a report about how
Toronto
police have been increasing the number of officers patrolling the downtown
entertainment district on weekends. The main objective was to increase
their presence as a deterrent to individuals who might otherwise be
tempted to get out of control. The officers hoped to be able to ward off
trouble while it was brewing before it escalated into something more
serious.
The second article was
about the professional hall monitors who patrol the hallways in many of
Toronto
’s
secondary schools. There are almost 160 hall monitors employed throughout
the Toronto District School Board. They earn about $30,000 per year and
are considered a critical element in the drive for safer schools.
When lawyer Julian
Falconer released his report earlier this year which was an examination of
school safety following the shooting death of Jordan Manners at C.W.
Jefferys Collegiate, he recommended that high schools should have more
hall monitors on duty. He also stated that there should be more teachers
on supervision duty, especially in between classes when “hallway
wanders” tend to cause problems for everyone. These “hallway
wanders” are often students who skip class and are just looking for
trouble.
The connection between
the two articles mentioned above is that when Jordan Manners was shot the
first thing the Toronto Board did was hire two extra hall monitors at the
school.
They, like the downtown
Toronto
police, hoped that their presence would act as a deterrent and prevent
trouble from happening in the first place.
Most teachers will
readily admit that they are not equipped or trained to deal with the
serious behaviours of kids today. One teacher from
Toronto
was quoted as saying, "There are kids whose behaviour is so bad that
20 years ago they'd be told to leave school. They don't want to be there,
they're not respectful, they're aggressive and quite prepared to be
violent if they need to be - and yet the school system is trying to keep
them in school and trying not to disaffect them by punishing them for
everything. So consequently, there's a bit of a mixed message."
The guidelines from the
Ministry of Education and the school boards are quite clear about what the
duties of a teacher with respect to reporting incidents involving
students. Nevertheless, there is so much pressure in schools today to
uphold a positive public image and to focus on student success that some
teachers may be hesitant about bringing forward negative reports to
administration.
The key to the success
of hallway monitors in
Toronto
,
and anywhere else where the policy has been implemented, is to hire the
right people for the job. That and consistency. The hallway monitor being
interviewed for the article I read had been in his position for 15 years
and knew the students very well. He knew where to look for trouble, but
more importantly he knew when and how to respond. He sounded as if he had
what it takes to make sound, intuitive judgments about when to act and
when not to act.
This is not much
different from being a police officer in the downtown district on a
Saturday night. There are some incidents which require you to take formal
action that often leads to arrests and charges being laid, while there are
other incidents that can be diffused simply by “being there” and
giving the person a “second chance” to make a better decision.
In my 28 years as a
classroom teacher I spent my share of time on supervision duty both inside
and outside. I learned early in my career that at times it was best to
just give a child “the look of displeasure” and allow the situation to
resolve itself. At other times I had to resort to more serious action that
involved the office and parents. Knowing which course of action to take
requires the use of your natural intuition and an understanding of the
children for whom you are responsible.
We must understand and
be aware that the “culture of fear” which is prevalent in our society
today is exhibiting itself in the schools. For example, many adults who
consider themselves to be good citizens think nothing about turning their
backs when out and about on the streets of the city on what they know are
incidents that should be reported to police. They do this not because they
are “bad people”, but simply because they do not want to become
involved in long, drawn out investigations that will merely make them
“targets for reprisal” once the courts hand out “meaningless”
punishment to the criminals. Parents do not want to place themselves or
their children at risk of danger so they find it is must easier to simply
pretend not to notice what is going on and let someone else take care of
reporting the incident. And so it is that many people who witness others
carrying weapons, committing acts of sexual assault and violence,
vandalizing or stealing public and private property, and a whole list of
other misdemeanours are too intimidated to report what they have seen.
They are just happy that they have not been the ones where were victimized
this time around. This “culture of fear” has been created by a
“society of bullies” and bullying comes in a wide variety of forms and
disguises.
And so it is with
teachers who must deal with so many students in their classrooms who come
from such a wide variety of backgrounds. The pressures these students are
facing in their life spill over into the classrooms and into hallways,
resulting in “flare-ups” that must be dealt with appropriately. Yet,
this strong, societal urge comes into play for most people, including
fellow students, teachers, administration and parents. Something tells
them to turn and walk away rather than get involved in something that may
in fact have a profound negative impact upon them and their families. The
reality is that students can easily get back at teachers and
administrators who make life difficult for them. They can make life
horrible in retaliation and can inflict serious, long-lasting consequences
on anyone who reports them to the authorities. The consequences to a
person who “reports a crime” are often far more serious than the
penalty imposed on the person who “commits the crime”. It doesn’t
matter how you feel about this situation. It is a reality with which we
must all live.
You can provide
teachers college students and professional teachers with all of the
information necessary for them to know and understand their duties and
responsibilities. However, when all is said and done, the fear of making
false accusations, of alienating students and parents; of facing the wrath
of parents whose children have been accused of wrongdoing, and the fear of
retaliation against your home and your family members is going to play a
huge part in whether a teacher actually reports an incident of abuse or
violence or other inappropriate action he/she has witnessed. In most
cases, it makes far more sense to simply ignore the situation, finish your
job and go home; hoping that tomorrow will be a better day.
And so, it would seem
that the best of all situations might be to hire hallway monitors to
provide the supervision needed to prevent flare-ups and keep some
semblance of control in the school. This would allow teachers to deal with
what goes on in the classroom and focus on delivering effective lessons
instead of spending time following up on behavioural issues that occur in
between classes.
As parents we all tell
our children from the time they can understand, that police officers are
good. That police officers are there to protect us and help us when we
need their assistance. Police officers are not bad people. They are there
to make sure that everyone follows the law and to allow us all to go about
our daily business without fear.
So it is with hallway
monitors. They are not there to harm people who respect the rules,
policies and expectations of the school. They are not there to intimidate
the people who respect the rights of others. They are there to make sure
that everyone can go about their business without fear. Their presence
alone may be all that is needed to maintain effective control. But when
called upon to deal with more serious matters, they are trained and
prepared to take appropriate action.
We all know that
violence can erupt anywhere at anytime in any town in any school. There is
no school or any other place in society where people gather for that
matter that is immune to this “disease of humanity”. We can’t
predict when violence will occur, but at least maintaining a
“presence” of supervision will give cause for some people to consider
the consequences of their choices. That is all we can hope for and so
perhaps it is time to bring hallway monitors to all high schools in the
province.
Until next time, this
is Inside Education….. |
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