Educational Issues at SHS - USM Forum -- Message Board

Date: Sep 13, 2005

Educational Issues at SHS

Date: Sep 13, 2005

Love them...

Date: Sep 13, 2005

Please try to understand where these kids are coming from. They lost their homes, their friends, their everything. And then plopped in the middle of something totally foreign to them. Be patient, be understanding, be firm. Let the kids know that you understand it is hard, however, you wouldn't have acted this way in your other school, we don't do it here either. And also take into consideration, some of these kids might have been special education students in a BD/ED classroom (behavior disturbed and emotionally disturbed), or were SLD kids, who knows. There aren't records at this point, and some of the students, especially in the higher grades aren't gonna tell you they were in a sped room. They could be acting out due to frustration levels of not being able to do the work expected of them, especially if they were special education students.

Do set ground rules and then enforce them. Explain that certain behaviors (like fighting etc) will not be tolerated and will result in an immediate_____________(fill in the blank with whatever action is taken at the school), other behaviors might result in a detention, or an in school suspension. But do let the children/young adults know that you expect them to behave as young men and women and don't let it impact the educational setting. Ignore the behavior if you can, they want attention, and god only knows what life was like before Katrina, we know what it has been since. And face it, negative attention is still attention. I see behavior kids almost daily and we have learned not to reinforce the bad behavior, but to reinforce when we see them doing something right and positive. If they need to cope, let them, but allow them to do it in a safe manner and in a safe environment. The classroom isn't the place. Get the counselor at the school involved heavily, if you have a psychologist at the school, have them get involved. Do what you can to help these kids overcome their fears (which are several I would assume) and also let them know that rules will be enforced, that you will allow them a place to vent, and then make sure the school provides that. It could be in the gym or in a separate room somewhere. And most of all, love them and let them know that they are important people and valuable people.

Date: Sep 13, 2005

I have gotten the same story from my child. I plan to inform the administration, and I plan to insist that such activity NOT be tolerated. Sacred Heart doesn't have to put up with the usual public school issues, and I intend to insist that those who "act out" be punished harshly. I will not see my child's school be turned into a ghetto just because of a temporary infusion of poorly controlled children. No one in Hattiesburg caused the losses suffered by these people, and we shouldn't have to pay the price for poor parenting skills and a lack of control in the home or at school. Maybe a few "old school" nuns would do some good at Sacred Heart.

Date: Sep 13, 2005

Nun Influenced wrote:

I have gotten the same story from my child. I plan to inform the administration, and I plan to insist that such activity NOT be tolerated. Sacred Heart doesn't have to put up with the usual public school issues, and I intend to insist that those who "act out" be punished harshly. I will not see my child's school be turned into a ghetto just because of a temporary infusion of poorly controlled children. No one in Hattiesburg caused the losses suffered by these people, and we shouldn't have to pay the price for poor parenting skills and a lack of control in the home or at school. Maybe a few "old school" nuns would do some good at Sacred Heart.

Wow. You get my vote for the most heartless and mean spirited post ever on this board. That is quite an achievement. In this short life, "There but for the grace of God..."

Date: Sep 13, 2005

Nun Influenced wrote:

Sacred Heart doesn't have to put up with the usual public school issues, and I intend to insist that those who "act out" be punished harshly. I will not see my child's school be turned into a ghetto just because of a temporary infusion of poorly controlled children. No one in Hattiesburg caused the losses suffered by these people

Kudos for Sacred Heart. Perhaps this experience will help prepare your children for the real world. They might even learn much more than what is found in textbooks.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

Some of you will excuse anything. Perhaps the rapes in the Superdome were the result of the stress of being in a confined space without supplies. Maybe they were the fault of the federal government. I guess we should overlook that activity and try to get the perpetrators some counseling.

As for teaching my child about the "real world," I guess you wouldn't care if someone came into your neighborhood, camped out at the end of the cul-de-sac, and started taking what they wanted out of your homes because they "lost everything." In the real world, that type of activity will get you shot. At Sacred Heart, bad behavior should get stiff punishment. My child shouldn't be wounded so that others can heal.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

JBdlS wrote:

Love them...

I feel very sorry for these folks.My heart goes out to them. Nonetheless,they are still a huge burden on society.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

Charles Martel wrote:

I feel very sorry for these folks.My heart goes out to them. Nonetheless,they are still a huge burden on society.

Perhaps so, but we are talking about a microcosm of society at a small, catholic school in Hattiesburg, Mississippi just weeks after our nation's largest natural disaster. The original poster asked for advice. I think the advice of the patron saint of teachers would indeed be what I posted in response.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

I understand your concerns for your child. I went to private school for 13 years. My parents had a variety of good reasons for sending me and one of those was issues of control in public school classrooms. i will say that I came out of that setting a bit on the naive side. Even though my parents were very conscious about making us aware that we had been given alot of benefits others wouldn't have access and we practiced generosity in a practical and consistent manner in our home I didn't experience these things daily over a period of time. I think the situation that you are describing while not ideal can definitely be used for good. I don't think we want students to pity their classmates but it is a time to really try to make children understand loss and the emotions that go with it. I think a few days into a new setting is a bit early to be making long term conclusions about how the school year might go. It might be that these students end up learning alot about compassion which will serve them far longer and better than a little lost instructional time.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

Here's a distinction that may not have been thought of. Sacred Heart is a private school.The families who go there are already fully supporting relief efforts in a general and in an educational sense through their tax monies.Theyare being no less charitable by excluding evacuees from SH than are their friends and neighbors who attend public schools.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

Here is another distintion not considered: These are children who have been through a crisis not hardened criminals. Perhaps it would help the children who go to this school, and have been through the storm, and are also emotionally upset, to understand and help the new students.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

disgusted student wrote:

Here is another distintion not considered: These are children who have been through a crisis not hardened criminals. Perhaps it would help the children who go to this school, and have been through the storm, and are also emotionally upset, to understand and help the new students.

I did not say they were hardened criminals at SH. However, one cannot excuse fighting, harassment, etc., just because these children have been displaced. It is not my child's responsibility to deal with negatives introduced by outsiders. It is her responsibility to learn subjects that are taught by instructors.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

Nun Influenced wrote:

Some of you will excuse anything. Perhaps the rapes in the Superdome were the result of the stress of being in a confined space without supplies. Maybe they were the fault of the federal government. I guess we should overlook that activity and try to get the perpetrators some counseling. As for teaching my child about the "real world," I guess you wouldn't care if someone came into your neighborhood, camped out at the end of the cul-de-sac, and started taking what they wanted out of your homes because they "lost everything." In the real world, that type of activity will get you shot. At Sacred Heart, bad behavior should get stiff punishment. My child shouldn't be wounded so that others can heal.

Madam or Sir. You need counseling. I suggest that you speak with your Priest.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

It's not Dylan, but there may be some wisdom in Cohen's lyrics

Date: Sep 14, 2005

RE: Educational Issues at SHS

Date: Sep 14, 2005

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/3352946

The previous post refers to fights in Houston public schools. It is very different situation from parents who can afford to send their children to private schools, whether in New Orleans or Hattiesburg. The students involved in this fight were from an impoverished neighborhood in Houston. They were feeling threatened by the special attention being given to the New Orleans' students. This is going to be a difficult time for many, but the least we can do is have some understanding for all. We are all going to have to give a little -- that includes money, time and patience. I would hope that if the circumstances were reversed, the same consideration would be given to me and my children.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

Second only to Invictus as a conspiracy theorist, a short step behind Emma in sarcasm potential, and neck and neck with Angeline in terms of cynicism, I smell a rat. Don't know what sort of Rattus norvegicus feces we're dealing with but I suspect it has nothing to do with real parents of Sacred Heart students who certainly would be dealing with these issues in more appropriate forums.

Date: Sep 14, 2005

I have read the comments on this message with despair. In regard to school discipline in a non-public setting, I think the answer is obvious, either behave or you hit the bricks. I am not sure what acting out, or coping, or experiencing a hurricane has to do with not following the rules or doing what you are asked to do. I doubt that I would have the problem more than for a day or two. A quick session of attitude adjustment would cure the student. I am not sure what one does with weak parents or goofy parents that cannot handle a child including a teenager. I hope the point has not come where the books on raising children have a chapter on "how to wring your hands" when you have lost control of your child.

Date: Sep 15, 2005

disgusted student wrote:

Here is another distintion not considered: These are children who have been through a crisis not hardened criminals. Perhaps it would help the children who go to this school, and have been through the storm, and are also emotionally upset, to understand and help the new students.

I think it is important that we not comment on the criminal record, or lack of, of these children since this is prohibited by federal laws governong privacy.

Date: Sep 15, 2005

Cossack wrote:

I have read the comments on this message with despair. In regard to school discipline in a non-public setting, I think the answer is obvious, either behave or you hit the bricks. I am not sure what acting out, or coping, or experiencing a hurricane has to do with not following the rules or doing what you are asked to do. I doubt that I would have the problem more than for a day or two. A quick session of attitude adjustment would cure the student. I am not sure what one does with weak parents or goofy parents that cannot handle a child including a teenager. I hope the point has not come where the books on raising children have a chapter on "how to wring your hands" when you have lost control of your child.

FWIW, I'm with Cossack on this one.