tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post4360997094689279905..comments2024-03-28T06:53:24.022-05:00Comments on a blog about school: Sacrificing thought for “good behavior”Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12919030671050831251noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post-89434149209165551042011-09-13T17:02:34.792-05:002011-09-13T17:02:34.792-05:00Such a joke. Look at the 2004 Presidential nomine...Such a joke. Look at the 2004 Presidential nominees. Both of them were slacker C students.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post-33733425018908142552010-12-16T10:46:22.438-06:002010-12-16T10:46:22.438-06:00Absolutely not! But be wary of people with a &quo...Absolutely not! But be wary of people with a "new" and better program, is all I'm sayin'. And "BIST" rhymes with "pissed." Still a pretty bad sign, right? :)<br /><br />Here is an example of what I am talking about from another district no more than 30 miles from me. <br /><br />http://www.raytownschools.org/about/emp/HR%20Documents/BIST_Flipchart.pdf<br /><br />You have 10 seconds to comply with the teacher when you are already upset/in trouble or you can go to the "recovery room." Hello, the "recovery room" is a cement closet with a locked door. It also goes by the name "safe room" or "timeout room."<br /><br />It is anything but. I could link to all kinds of studies that show over time treatment like this actually escalates the behaviour you want to avoid, but suffice to say this is legal in 21 states including Missouri. Paddling is also outlined in our district's high school handbook.<br /><br />AND THIS IS PAID FOR BY OUR TAX DOLLARS. There is a reason some of us are militant anti-public school. People show me all kinds of *good* it does and I'm thinking yay, for half the state's operating budget, how could you not get 'round to some good somewhere in there?<br /><br />Of course, my saying that things could be worse in no way negates your argument. ALL I'm saying is that if change is warranted, and they're not abusing kids under the current system? I would proceed carefully. That's all. :) <br /><br />BTW, even without closet-locking, BIST is fatally flawed. Instead of being based on how to help autistic students, they are based on kids with mental health disorders. And the BIST process requires that the student sign off on a sheet about how his/her behaviour was wrong and how it will change next time before any privileges are reinstated and/or she can return to class.<br /><br />Abuse, coercion, intimidation. That's "discipline" in public schools around here. I wish I could get my tax money back...Happy Elf Mom (Christine)https://www.blogger.com/profile/15047347624037697311noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post-18498723240291924412010-12-16T00:19:44.719-06:002010-12-16T00:19:44.719-06:00HappyElfMom -- Thanks for commenting! I don't...HappyElfMom -- Thanks for commenting! I don't know what BIST is (though I'm guessing it's pronounced "beast," which isn't a good sign), but I'd agree that if I have to choose between PBIS and closet-locking, I'd choose PBIS. But do those have to be the only choices?Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12919030671050831251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post-44253588314662629572010-12-15T23:50:53.722-06:002010-12-15T23:50:53.722-06:00I'm a parent of four autistic children and I w...I'm a parent of four autistic children and I would kill or die for the PBS-model approach. They use BIST and closet-locking here. Yay, boyo, a little child abuse'll learn 'em to behave right in school. Knock the autism right out of them. Yes, and we spend almost half our state budget on public schools because the kids are worth it /snark.<br /><br />I don't suppose it popped into any of these educrats' minds to train the TEACHERS instead of the students? That's what will really make the difference.Happy Elf Mom (Christine)https://www.blogger.com/profile/15047347624037697311noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post-21067079050245423012010-11-16T21:02:43.103-06:002010-11-16T21:02:43.103-06:00It's just so odd that a system designed for ki...It's just so odd that a system designed for kids with autism is now being used for neurotypical kids. In the same way, behavior management methods that were designed for serious problems are now being used on perfectly well-behaved kids. And then curriculum keeps creeping younger and younger. None of it makes sense.FedUpMomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00951858601020687242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post-1169484546174221742010-11-16T09:26:32.587-06:002010-11-16T09:26:32.587-06:00I, too, was uneasy about the development of 'r...I, too, was uneasy about the development of 'reward tickets' this year. Indeed, my son and his friends find the system insulting (OK, they're 6th graders, but still...). This system strikes me as similar to training a dog or a circus animal. Indeed the contradiction between the lessons they are getting at school and this reward system are becoming increasingly apparent even to them. One the one hand, they read stories about brave and courageous acts by young people (who stood for what they believed in, and were not necessary rewarded for these acts by reward tickets) - yet they are manipulated to do as they are told, and given to think that they will be instantly rewarded for good deeds.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post-33528601809711663422010-11-15T21:24:57.253-06:002010-11-15T21:24:57.253-06:00FedUpMom -- Thanks for the comment! I don't a...FedUpMom -- Thanks for the comment! I don't actually think it's the mainstreaming of kids with autism that is leading our school to use approaches like this one. Our school has always had several classrooms of kids with autism from around the district, and there has been a fair amount of interaction with the other kids in a way that has been nice. <br /><br />I think this stuff is driven more by a concern about meeting the test score demands of No Child Left Behind. Our school took in a lot of kids from a school with relatively low test scores last year. (Under No Child Left Behind, families from a "school in need of assistance" have the right to transfer to another school in the district.) Because the kids are coming from a school where scores were relatively low, I think our school administrators must be very worried about how its new test scores will look. One aspect of their approach has been to go whole hog with the "behavior" programs like PBIS, and now this. <br /><br />I don't think they see themselves as driven by a concern about test scores. I just think they aren't wholly conscious of how the pressure to perform has altered the way they might otherwise react to behavior issues. In any event, I'm not objecting to working with the kids to try to get them to improve the way they treat other people; I'm just objecting to the way they're going about it, and questioning whether the expectations are age-appropriate to begin with.<br /><br />Readers, if this discussion interests you, you should browse through FedUpMom's site, <a href="kidfriendlyschools.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow">Kid-Friendly Schools</a>, to read more parents' thoughts about the way kids are treated in schools today.Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12919030671050831251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285353362748898720.post-40970239283607619322010-11-15T08:48:07.756-06:002010-11-15T08:48:07.756-06:00Chris, I'm sure you remember Jenni of Kid-Frie...Chris, I'm sure you remember Jenni of Kid-Friendly Schools fame. One of the reasons she likes Whole Brain Teaching is because she thinks it's been good for her son with autism.<br /><br />One more sign that inclusion isn't working, I'd say ...FedUpMomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00951858601020687242noreply@blogger.com