We Need To End This Liberal Enabling of Bad Behavior in Our Schools

My son turned 11 years old today. Time sure does fly. Part of me wishes that he would have stayed 5 years old forever, the other half of me can't wait to see what kind of man he grows up to be.

I remember when my wife was pregnant we were discussing how we would be as parents. Basically it came down to that our household will not be a democracy, but rather a benign authoritative junta. What we say goes. Wait, before you think I am a crazy person, hear me out. Firstly, we pick and choose our battles. Not everything has to have a fly swatter used. We have done everything we could to teach him to question, think, and have the right amount of skepticism. We both have no problem in him questioning and/or asking us for an explanation. If he wants to try to change our minds about something, well he better come up with a damn good argument. But, some things are non-negotiable.

He is a great kid. Polite, respectful of not only his peers, but of adults as well. If there is a problem at school it is nipped in the bud through punishment, restrictions, etc.. We always, always, tell him we love him, and never condemn HIM, rather the action. We also expect an effort in school as well as life. But the boundaries are there and only my wife and I decide when to move them out.

Why am I bringing this up? Because the lack of discipline in our schools is part of the problem of why education is slowly being sucked into some vortex in which all matter disappears.

We keep on getting these liberal, namsy pansy administrators, who instead of wishing to take a bullhorn and a baseball bat through the halls like Joe Clark, would rather coddle and enable our students for their behavior and the lack of discipline they get at home.

These administrator's come into our schools with some type of degree from exclusive education colleges and university's thinking that if "we just allow the students to express themselves, that it we just allow the student to have their safe emotional response, and give them hugs and kisses all will be good."

Bullshit.

I have had on more than one occasion, in fact many in which 3rd graders, 4th graders, 5th graders, have rebelled at their (and this is in their own words) soft teachers and said to me that they respect me because I draw the line, I am straight up. with them, I have cred. These are kids not of the street, but rather street smarts. They know when the are being bullshitted and conned. You can't go up to a 4th grade boy and say, "Oh wow, that is a nice drawing, you must feel really great about yourself to make such a beautiful drawing." I have seen crap like this first hand and you can see the kids face telling that liberal to "fuck off."

I have seen first year teachers lose control of their class in September and never to regain it because they come in thinking we will all be friends and the class is one big New England Town Meeting in which everyone has a say and everyone shares and listens. Guess what? It ain't gonna, nor has it ever, worked.

We need to bring back true discipline in the schools. Student, as well as parents, need to be held accountable. There should be two chances for any violent or severely disruptive misbehavior. Whether it be in the classroom, the yard, or the cafeteria. The NYC DOE Discipline Code is a joke. It should be done away with. It is there to prevent the DOE from litigious parents and to only enable more bad behavior in the schools. And this liberal crud we get from some of these exclusive education colleges in which everything is just a theory, and never put into practice, must be done away with.

I feel so much for these kids and the homes and situations they come from. Yes, there are so many issues to reckon with. But the first and best way to show them our love, that we care, is to draw those boundaries and be consistent with those boundaries we set up.

Kids want discipline. Kids want rules, expectations. The Bleeding Hearts only set them up for a lifetime of failure.