Graham, G.C. (1988). Discipline in schools. c, Center for Youth Studies.

OVERVIEW

Rape, suicide, assault, arson, bombings, robbery, alcohol, and drug abuse are just a handful of problems facing today’s schools. (Bowen, E. [1988, February 1]. Getting tough. Time, p. 54. Contributing reporters include Beaty, J., Ludtke, M., & Simpson, J.)

Although there are serious problems in many schools, it is unfair to suggest that all urban schools are failing or that only urban schools are facing these problems. There are lots of positive situations with dedicated and caring teachers and administrators. However, discipline in many schools (especially urban) has become a major problem. In the 1940s, schools’ discipline problems included talking, chewing gum, making noise, running in the hallways, and getting out of place in line. But today, the problems are much more challenging. (Ibid., p. 54)

Following is a list of problems facing school districts around the country (1988):

• In Detroit, high school dropout rates are 41%, with 80% in the worst inner-city districts.
• In St. Louis, one of every four girls in public schools becomes pregnant before her senior year.
• In 1987, in Boston schools, 55 students were expelled for carrying guns and 2,500 must report to police probation officers for past offenses.
• In Chicago, an open house for parents of 1,000 pupils at Sherman School was attended by only five mothers and fathers.
• In Texas, the 100 top-ranked school districts spend an average of $5,500 per year per child, while the bottom 100 spend only $1,800. The results are evident in San Antonio’s Edgewood district, one of the state’s poorest, where 50% of the students fall below the national norms in reading and writing.
• In Philadelphia, an administrator describes conditions at an inner-city school: "People coming to class high, not just pupils, but teachers as well; filthy bathrooms; gang intimidation; nowhere to hang coats without them being stolen."
• In New York (January 1988), Principal Edward Morris asked for a transfer from Park West High, where he had clearly lost control of violence-prone students, and where students in the cafeteria stomped a girl so brutally they broke her ribs.

Another problem is "schoolyard bullying." This is not a separate issue. It is part of the problem and must be eliminated. According to Stuart Greenbaum, "Research shows that ten out of 100 students throughout the country regularly are victimized by bullies..." (Greenbaum, S. [1987, November]. What can we do about schoolyard bullying? Principal, 67[2], pp. 21-24.)

Greenbaum continues, "The U.S. Supreme Court recently has issued pronouncements indicating its awareness of the problem..." (of schoolyard bullying). "In their opinion on a New Jersey case, Justice Lewis Powell and Sandra Day O’Connor declared that ‘Without first establishing discipline and maintaining order, teachers cannot begin to educate their students...’ " What has caused these changes to take place in our schools? What can and should be done? Elkind states one perspective when he quotes from The Troubled Crusade (Ravitch, D.) in his book, All Grown Up and No Place To Go. "Ravitch suggested...that bigness contributes to the prevalence of substance abuse, theft, vandalism, and violence in the high schools. Social controls are weaker in large schools than in small schools." (Elkind, D. [1984]. Teenagers in crisis. In Elkind, D. All Grown Up and No Place To Go [pp. 137-156]. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.)

Can parents help? What is the teacher’s role in all of this? Is the school administration helpless? What about the church? Other youth organizations? These questions require responses if there are going to be effective solutions to the mounting troubles within schools.

IMPLICATIONS

• Organizations and individuals must financially support schools. It costs money to keep buildings in good condition and pay teachers.
• Parents can volunteer to help both in the classroom and on the playground. This decreases the ration of students to adults.
• Within a youth group, individuals can teach young people how to stand up for their rights without using physical force. How do you deal with a bully?
• Let the school board know what you want to happen in YOUR school system.
• Many schools are too big and impersonal.

Geoffrey C. Graham cCYS