Getting tough.

Bowen, E. (1988, February 1). Getting tough. Time, pp. 52-58.

OVERVIEW

What is the answer to the growing chaos and decreasing academic achievement in urban schools? Are bull horns, baseball bats, and expulsions the answer? The schools of today face different problems from the schools of the not-too-distant past.

DISCIPLINE PROBLEMS OF THE 1940s VS. THE 1980s*

*The study was conducted by the Fullerton, California Police Department and the California Department of Education. (Taken from Time. [1988, February 1]).

What can and should be done to bring order and academics back into the troubled schools?

One school suffering these problems was Eastside High in Paterson, New Jersey. In 1982, the school was, according to Time, "...crawling with pushers, muggers, and just about every other species of juvenile thug...doors were damaged. Teachers were afraid to come to work." Although the school is now safe and orderly, the person responsible, Principal Joe Clark, has come under fire for his methods. He runs the school as a fatherly military sergeant might. Clark says, " ‘In this building everything emanates and ultimates from me,’ and ‘Discipline is the ultimate tenet of education.’ " Clark expelled 300 students in one day during his first year for being absent or tardy and " ‘...last month (January 1988) tossed out 66.’ " He refers to those he tosses out as " ‘Leaches and parasites (or) hoodlums, thugs and pathological deviants.’ "

He is personable with well behaved students. "He pinches the girls on the cheeks, slaps high fives with boys and girls, greeting most by name." And he helps when students need him. Clark is liked by the students (they affectionately refer to him as "Crazy Joe"). President Reagan and the U.S. Secretary of Education, William Bennett, have supported Clark. Secretary Bennett said, " ‘Sometimes you need Mr. Chips, sometimes you need Dirty Harry.’ "

If his methods have been effective in cleaning up the school, they have also drawn criticism. In his six years, 100 teachers have left and the school board is threatening to fire him. Thomas P. O’Neil, Jr., Deborah Meier, and Edward Martone, among others, are also critical. O’Neil (no relation to the politician) who saved a Boston school, Meier, who turned the Harlem Central Park East schools around, and Martone, one of the American Civil Liberties Union Executive Directors worry about the long-term effects. They claim that his methods encourage people to look for quick-fix solutions, neglect possible achievers, and offer no help for those who will end up on the street without an education.

Kenneth J. Tewel, former principal of Franklin K. Lane High School (a troubled school when he was sent in to clean things up) in Brooklyn, New York now teaching school administration at Queens College, noted, "You cannot use a democratic and collaborative style when crisis is rampant and disorder reigns." However, when personally talking with him, he made it clear that only half of his statement was quoted. He continued to say, "After bringing a school under control the methods of leadership need to change."

IMPLICATIONS

• Many urban schools are in trouble.
• They need a safe environment.
• They need an administration and teachers that are qualified and talented and who care for students.
• The school board, administration, teachers, and parents must work together to provide a good academic atmosphere.
• They must also work on long-term goals to achieve and maintain a safe, stimulating, academic environment.

Geoffrey C. Graham cCYS