brandy
20-Mar-07, 08:23
hey guys ,
was just checking out the local paper from back home and read this..
not a bad idea! and a good way to punish and educate kids!
State gives school suspension program kudos
By Adam Shull
ashull@morganton.com
Monday, March 19, 2007
Adam Schull (The News Herald)
Morganton - Last Friday, Tommy Miguel and Steven Burnette fought in their sixth-grade class at Walter R. Johnson Middle School.
Monday, the two joked as they cleaned cat cages at Burke County Friends for Animals.
The middle schoolers are two of some 550 Burke students who participate in the Burke Alternatives to Suspension program every year, says Ed Hardin, co-coordinator of the program.
BATS students spend their suspension time volunteering at about 30 local nonprofit agencies, he says.
They also complete two hours worth of class work each day to stay on pace academically, he adds.
The idea is to help kids learn from a suspension, not just see it as time off from school, Hardin says.
Statistics say BATS is on the right track.
Hardin says about 85 percent of BATS students are first-time participants.
The suspension program is turning heads in educational and research fields.
Action for Children North Carolina issued a statewide report examining short-term suspensions in state public schools.
It highlights BATS as a model program for keeping students on track while enforcing positive action like contributing to the community.
The report also emphasizes the effects of suspensions on students, says Elizabeth Hudgins, director of policy research for the agency.
Suspended students are three times more likely to drop out of school than their non-suspended counterparts, Hudgins says.
The Freedom High School graduate adds that the state’s short-term, 10 days or less, suspension rate is 45 percent higher than the national average.
The ultimate goal is to provide information to help create positive learning environments where suspensions aren’t common, Hudgins says.
She says BATS is a program schools statewide should copy to meet that end.
Miguel says while he’s ready to be back in school, he’s thankful for the program.
“There’s nothing to do at home,” he says.
was just checking out the local paper from back home and read this..
not a bad idea! and a good way to punish and educate kids!
State gives school suspension program kudos
By Adam Shull
ashull@morganton.com
Monday, March 19, 2007
Adam Schull (The News Herald)
Morganton - Last Friday, Tommy Miguel and Steven Burnette fought in their sixth-grade class at Walter R. Johnson Middle School.
Monday, the two joked as they cleaned cat cages at Burke County Friends for Animals.
The middle schoolers are two of some 550 Burke students who participate in the Burke Alternatives to Suspension program every year, says Ed Hardin, co-coordinator of the program.
BATS students spend their suspension time volunteering at about 30 local nonprofit agencies, he says.
They also complete two hours worth of class work each day to stay on pace academically, he adds.
The idea is to help kids learn from a suspension, not just see it as time off from school, Hardin says.
Statistics say BATS is on the right track.
Hardin says about 85 percent of BATS students are first-time participants.
The suspension program is turning heads in educational and research fields.
Action for Children North Carolina issued a statewide report examining short-term suspensions in state public schools.
It highlights BATS as a model program for keeping students on track while enforcing positive action like contributing to the community.
The report also emphasizes the effects of suspensions on students, says Elizabeth Hudgins, director of policy research for the agency.
Suspended students are three times more likely to drop out of school than their non-suspended counterparts, Hudgins says.
The Freedom High School graduate adds that the state’s short-term, 10 days or less, suspension rate is 45 percent higher than the national average.
The ultimate goal is to provide information to help create positive learning environments where suspensions aren’t common, Hudgins says.
She says BATS is a program schools statewide should copy to meet that end.
Miguel says while he’s ready to be back in school, he’s thankful for the program.
“There’s nothing to do at home,” he says.