If I was a parent of one of the two kids who voted no, I’d be so amazingly proud of them. Can you imagine standing up for what’s right in kindergarten, with the entire class and the teacher against you? Wow.
Well…here’s a scenario that makes this comprehensible without demonizing the teacher.
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Child is disruptive and not responsive to adult efforts to change the behavior.
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Teacher decides peer pressure might work.
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Teacher has the class discuss rules and what will happen if they are disobeyed.
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Class decides (votes?) (with teacher’s approval and urging) that anyone violating the rules more than 3 times will have to leave the class.
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Disruptive chlild continues to violate the rules and is requested to leave the class based on the class vote.
I can see a child explaining this as “The class voted me out.”
And, of course, even this scenario might be poor teaching technique.
From the article linked in the OP:
To this I must say, Piffle. And also, Bah.
Where are kids supposed to learn how to cope with people who are “different”, even “difficult”, if not at school? We’re not talking “kitten-torturing bully” here, we’re talking “that weird kid”. All three of my kids went through the public school system, and all three of them had “weird” kids co-habiting their kindergarten classes, even some kids with major behavior problems, and at no time did anyone suggest removing the problem children in order to “protect” the other, (quote) “normal” kids. Protect them from what, precisely? Behavior that’s different from the norm? Bad behavior? “Kids behaving badly”? “Kids who don’t know how to make friends”? People have to learn sooner or later that there are going to be dysfunctional, “weird” people who you just can’t make friends with. Where else should they learn that except school, unless they should wait until they get out in the workforce–and the dating scene 
--to find that out? Doesn’t sound good to me.
So, then, logically, if you’re going to set out to “protect” children (she said a trifle sarcastically ) from having to observe and even interact with other people whose behavior does not conform to a “norm”, then how are you going to decide what the norm is? Is the norm “never pushing or shoving in line”" Or “never talking to an imaginary companion”? Or “phasing out during class time and not seeming to notice that the teacher is talking to you”? Or “refusing to share glue”?
And then, what happens when the norm turns into, simply, “People who act different than we do”?
Yeh, that’s the part that really blew me away. Those kids’ parents must be damn proud of their kids – and they ought to be proud of what a good job they did raising them.
What disturbs me most is the public humiliation of it all–it’s like this teacher deliberately found the most emotionally scarring way to deal with this kid’s behavior problems, if any. I find it hard to believe that he had no “issues” in pre-school, if he is so difficult to deal with now. Asberger’s/autism don’t just spring up unannounced in kindergarten–and any kindergarten teacher knows what the signs are and how to deal with them (or so I thought–I thought that at least the teachers would know to refer the child or send him/her down to the office, something…).
I feel so bad for this kid–what a way to demoralize a child. 
I think the 2 that voted to keep him should be lauded, but really, those who voted him gone shouldn’t be denigrated. These kids are 5, maybe 6. They don’t know a thing–they were just as manipulated as Alex.
I do hope she is fired–and in the most public way possible. :mad:
UnFUCKINGbelievable! I’m incensed! I…I…(sigh), I don’t have words to express my outrage at this indignity for this little boy. Firing her isn’t strong enough. I hope she is publibly humilitated and denigrated.
At the risk of sounding prejudiced - I won’t believe that this teacher will seriously punished, until I get a report that it has happened.
I’m no expert guessing age from pictures, but she doesn’t look like some fresh-faced kid, but someone I’d expect to have been teaching for a while. In which case she’s likely got tenure, and the teacher’s union will fight tooth and nail against her facing any consequences. Except maybe some “retraining.”
As for those who’ve mentioned the necessity of setting, and enforcing, limits on children, especially those with conditions such as Asperger’s: You set those limits by having the person in authority, in this case the teacher, explain what is considered unacceptable behavior, and discuss what the appropriate consequences will be, if those limits are exceeded. And then following that, when the child does push his limits.
You don’t stand up in front of the class and make the punishment something ex post facto, and you certainly don’t spread the thing into some kind of popularity contest with the students providing some kind of rubber stamp for the punishment.
Is Miss Hanna single? Rowr!
After an investigation,
Principal: You are the weakest link, goodbye!
Which is a very poor justification for humiliating a five year old. A taser might work also, but that doesn’t mean teachers should employ them in the classroom. There are worse things than disruptive students.
This breaks my heart, that poor kid.
I cannot fathom how that child stood there an listened to her encourage his classmates to discuss what they didn’t like about him. He is a much stronger person than I. This is the person who is supposed to be introducing him to the first real society outside his family and she does this?!
Fucking bitch. She does not deserve to be a teacher.
As someone who wants to go back to school to be a Kindergarten teacher, I cannot fathom treating a little boy like that. If the kid has problems, you discuss them with the parents and principal like an ADULT. Five year-olds can’t even be trusted to pick out their own clothing half the time, let alone vote a child out of the class!
Whether or not the kid has Asperger’s is totally irrelevant, though it does give some kind of excuse if he does have a disability. I don’t care if he was a little hellion on wheels. You don’t ever put a FIVE-YEAR-OLD child up in front of the entire class and make them stand there while other children insult them.
What the flying, flipping fuck, seriously?!
I’d like to see her reaction if everyone that is calling for her punishment / dismissal had her stand up in front of them while they all recited how disgusted they are with her. I know that’s sinking to their level, but God. She’s the adult here.
Does he scream at other times? Did he scream during class? I can see why this would present a major problem and I’m disinclined to knee-jerk my way into outrage until more facts are presented.
The way it’s phrased seems like this is a new behavior that has occurred because of the event, not that he was always doing it.
Either way, if he was screaming in class, it’s a problem.
It does not merit him being publically humiliated and ‘voted’ out of the class. If you have to remove him, you do it, but five year olds don’t grasp the finer points of public humility (okay, perhaps some do, but I daresay most don’t) , and all it does is make them feel shitty about themselves.
He won’t associate a bad behavior with, “I was interrupting other students and causing them trouble learning.” All he knows now is, “Everyone hates me.”
Children need to learn to behave, but that’s not the way to go about it.
Survivor: Somebody walks away with a check for a million dollars.
Kindergarten: Well, what do you know? There’s a similarity after all.
And I bet we can all guess who’s the next person to get kicked off the island.
I’d like to kick her off the island, around the block and into next week.
Nope, that still makes the teacher a moron. Even if the kid doesn’t have autism, it’s the teacher’s job to be in charge of the class, not at the head of a mob. Peer pressure is not a proper disciplinary tool in a classroom setting.
Do we have verification yet? :dubious:
The spokeswoman doesn’t say that the teacher confirmed the incident took place exactly as described.
-FrL-