After I watched the video to the end, I Googled the topic and read several responses that made me angry since most are feeling sorry for the kid and not the teacher.
I taught in a tough, barrio high school surrounded by multi-generational, violent Latino gangs.
Over the years, I had hard-core gang bangers known as shooters in my classroom—meaning they had shot and killed rival gang bangers. One kid I taught had a price on his head from another gang and had killed several rivals. Not a year went by that one of these gang bangers didn’t threaten me.
Once, I witnessed a drive by shooting from my classroom as school let out with students streaming out of school while parents waited. Another time, there was a shooting outside my classroom at night while I was working late with the editors of the school paper.
What I witnessed Sheri Davis doing to this dysfunctional kid was something I came close to doing several times during the thirty years I taught. I don’t blame her. I know what it is like to get angry with a kid like the one she beat.
What she says in the tape is true. The system must change to deal with disruptive kids like the one she assaulted. Instead, the system is too soft and talks to kids as if they actually listen and comply with all the self-esteem soft talk. Instead, those types of kids learn to play the system while they continue to terrorize teachers and other students.
Mr. D was in charge of discipline at the tough high school where I taught and he said 5% of the kids at our high school earned 90% of the 20,000 plus referrals written each year. Having dealt with these types of kids and their parents, I’m sure the only thing those parents are thinking about is how much money they are going to get. I can see the bumper sticker on their car now: GO AHEAD, MAKE MY DAY AND BEAT MY KID.
Watch the video but watch it all—hear what the lawyer and Ms. Davis have to say: Beating Caught on Tape: Teacher Speaks
I read once that there is an average of 5,000 students assaults on teachers in America annually but we don’t hear this type of outrage about that. After all, teachers are second-class citizens in the US who are the only Americans who can be tried for the same crime twice.
Assaults on teachers on the rise
Teachers in crisis: 1 school, 16 assaults
So, I call out to all those comments that expressed outrage at Sheri Davis beating one problem-causing idiot. I do not feel sorry for this kid. After hearing about his behavior on a daily basis, there’s only one place for him—the US Marines for six years or prison and throw away the key.
What did you say or do when you read about a teacher being beat up by kids in school? Probably, you just shrugged and forgot about it as soon as possible. After all, in America, teachers are like broken glass to be stepped on and ground into the pavement.
Crazy Normal - the Classroom Exposé 