Comments on: Zero Tolerance – Seriously, how do we get there?

By: Brooke Leigh Sheldon

Brooke Leigh Sheldon — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 22:01:50 +0000

Fascinating thoughts, thank you for sharing!!!!!

By: Brooke Leigh Sheldon

Brooke Leigh Sheldon — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 21:56:18 +0000

It is a perspective that has lots of confusion built into it seems, and therefore interpretations of it and follow-through on it can be easily pushed aside. It is too sad, but too true….

By: Brooke Leigh Sheldon

Brooke Leigh Sheldon — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:47:30 +0000

Thank you, Kathryn. How right you are! Compassion and empathy are the true root of each of us being able to see one another’s truth and allow each other the space to be safe and honored for unique individuals we are.

By: The1JenChick

The1JenChick — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:54:13 +0000

The problem with “zero tolerance” is that it is based on the Kantian standard of ethics. Policies dealing with justice need to be based more on the Feminist ethics of Care. I did some extensive research on discipline policies when my son, 12, received an â€œin school suspensionâ€ for pushing back a bigger kid who was pummeling a smaller child. We have always taught and modeled the philosophy â€œif you see someone being bullied and do nothing, you are as guilty as the bullying partyâ€ and felt our son had behaved exactly the way we would behave and expected him to behave in that situation. The school said that while he had â€œacted in an ethic mannerâ€, putting his hands on another student was in violation of the school â€œzero toleranceâ€ policy.
From the information I found in my research two things seem to show up in several studies and most of the reportsâ€”zero tolerance was enforced particularly â€œlow performanceâ€ students that endanger the financial rewards given to higher performance schools, and non-white students. There is no report from the NEA, DOJ, or US Department of Education that zero tolerance policies are effective. In fact, every scientific study I found concluded the policy was highly damaging.

By: Lily Casura

Lily Casura — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 05:55:35 +0000

Very good article, Brooke. I learned something about “zero tolerance” last week when I spent time with Susan Avila-Smith in Seattle, who’s an Army veteran, and military sexual trauma (MST) and PTSD survivor. She said the problem with “zero tolerance” as a policy in the military is that’s ALL it is, a policy: no teeth to make anything actually happen (i.e., prosecution of the perpetrators) because of it. So while elsewhere in the civilian world, those terms may signify something; it sounds like they don’t across the board. Sometimes they’re just words, apparently, without the actions to back them up.

By: Kathryn J. Stiles Cook

Kathryn J. Stiles Cook — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 02:48:17 +0000

We need to do more than “zero tolerance.” We need to teach compassion. Oprah did a great feature on the “Challenge Program.” Students had a “retreat” and went through a series of sensitivity exercises. I think it could really work.

My son has Asperger’s which is on the Autism Spectrum. The bullying got so bad, that with the advise of his “support team” we decided it was in his best interest to quit going to school. It was causing too much psychological damage.

Since that time, he has been able to develop social skills by dealing with people on a smaller scale, on his own terms. He is getting better everyday.

This issue is important because more than 3% of our population has disabilities. This figure is prior to the great insurgence of Autism. One out of every 110 kids now has Autism. People with Autism are differently abled.

Autism is a neurological disorder just as epilepsy is. However, one of the most difficult issues with Autism is that people with it often misinterpret social cues, have lack of expression on their faces, and are highly sensory challenged. Often times, they “look” neuro typical but with some type of “ism.” Peers often mistake this and identify it as s/he’s “psycho” or “stalker” or just bully and tease as a result.

It is critical that since so many people are growing up with Autism in their family or lives that being kind and compassonate are taught.

Thank you for addressing this issue in your article.