Printer-friendly versionWhen you hear about a school bully, you might automatically picture that big-for-his-age fifth grade boy or a teen girl whose manner of dress and speech makes her look and sound a bit rough and tough. All too often, however, school bullies are actually the grown-ups in charge.
The end of Jim Crow was supposed to herald a new era of school integration and do away with the second-class citizens the law had created. Did it? Or, are these kids—mostly low-income, males of color—being targeted by administrators and teachers, who are mostly middle class and white? Could racism be at the heart of the matter?
As a former substitute teacher, I have witnessed both white- and black-on-black discrimination firsthand. Even the students’ parents who meet with administrators about the treatment of their children are often bullied as a means of control.
Adult bullying manifests itself in different ways: being physically abusive, labeling a student as “trouble,” ridiculing students in front of others, having students arrested without investigations or school-based interventions, or letting certain kids be bullied by other kids or teachers. The stories are endless. They continue only because people with the power to stop the bullying don’t speak up.
Statistics show that white students get little to no punishment for the same infractions that get black students suspended. It’s a vicious cycle for these students who miss weeks of class, fall behind and are lost when they return. It is no small wonder that the result is a high drop-out rate that feeds the school-to-prison pipeline.
By the time these children become known to agencies and organizations, they’ve been labeled “juvenile delinquents,” and the damage has been done. By adults. But not necessarily by their parents.
If all of our youth are to grow and develop properly with an equal chance in life, they need to be protected while they are at school—by the people paid to teach, counsel and lead them. We also need to ensure that students are protected from the people paid to teach, counsel and lead them when those people are abusive.
Editor’s note: Teaching Tolerance has resources to help you combat teacher bullying at your school.
Lama is a social activist and former substitute teacher living in North Carolina.
Comments
I'm so happy that you have
I'm so happy that you have addressed this important issue Ms.Lama. I have been talking about the subject of the Cradle to prison pipeline for about five years now. Our young students have long been abuse, talk about and left behind in the education system. Black and Latino boys don't have a leg to stand on when they are being pushed out of the classroom and into the prison system. No one seems to give them a hand up, and if they do, it's only for a moment and they fall back down. Thanks again for the excellent read you have shared on teaching tolerance web page. I would love to share examples of my work with you, maybe my program can assist you as well with the work you do. I can be reached at idak4u@msn.com, my group is called: Breaking it Down to Build Ourselves up!
Thank you
Charles Lowery
thank you for writing this.
thank you for writing this. i'm a former substitute teacher as well, and have come to the same conclusions. there is a real problem when white teachers and administration are 'leading' predominately black and/or brown schools. this is definitely the case here in southern california. most of the students in the public schools are mexican (either as immigrants and/or mexican-americans), black (immigrants and african-americans), and asian (as immigrants and asian-americans). across the board, their teachers and school administrators are white females, yet nobody seems to say anything about this, nor seems to find this structure problematic. in many instances, i noticed outright neglect in these classrooms, especially at the elementary school level. there is a PROBLEM here, and it needs to be addressed.
Let's be more thoughtful...
Let's be more thoughtful... This is a really important article for the topic it addresses. I have absolutely seen "teacher bullying" in my teaching experience as well, and it is shameful and needs to be taken on, directly and immediately... BUT it is also incredibly dangerous to be so simplistic as to suggest that the problem is "white teachers and administrators" - that is the same thinking with racial stereotypes that results in assumptions about certain groups of students (usually young men of color). I have seen a variety of incidents that could be described as school staff pushing students into the school-to-prison pipeline. I think it is important to note that this is done by teachers, administrators, and staff of both genders and all racial backgrounds, some do it knowingly, while some have no idea they are guilty of this. Students deserve to be valued and served as individuals, and school personnel need to be evaluated as individuals as well. It will take a more nuanced consideration of the issue than this comment provides to make any progress towards solving the problem. Just a word of caution...
I substituted for two years
I substituted for two years and then spent twenty years in the classroom as a regular teacher. I too have witnessed bullying by teachers and administrators. It is exactly as been described here. I cringe every time I see or hear it. I have privately talked with those who do it but it never worked, they picked on me when they found me alone which by the way didn't frighten me at all. It's ignorance at its best and I find it disgusting behavior by those that are supposed to be serving all children equitably.
1. Boss-teacher/principal:*
1. Boss-teacher/principal:* They are obsessed with domination and control of students [PTAVE]. Seven Deadly Habits: 1) Criticizing 2) Blaming 3) Complaining 4) Nagging 5) Threatening 6) Punishing 7) Bribing or rewarding to control. "Some teachers are mean to us." In one school, a teacher was called "Mrs. Bulldog" by students. One called her that to her face. He was sent to AEP. Others: "She is mean. " "She is a Bi---."
a. Does not respect/love students; therefore, students have no respect/love for them
b. Assumes students will misbehave.
c. Continuous discipline problems.
d. Continuously sending students to the office. "Of the students sent to the office, a few teachers send most of them." [Assistant Principal & an ISS teacher]
e. Extremely critical of lead-teachers. Some refuse to allow lead-substitute teachers to sub for them.
2. Lead-teacher/principal:* Seven Caring Habits are: 1) Supporting 2) Encouraging 3) Listening 4) Accepting 5) Trusting 6) Respecting 7) Negotiating differences
a. Never threatens or punishes; Says when there is a problem we will work it out.
b. Will be told that her/his discipline is lax.
c. Very unpopular with boss-teachers.
d. Will be criticized for caring too much. "Touch is our most intimate form of communication." GH Colt, RD, Nov 07 "From birth, children must have nurturing: affection, touching, cuddling, hugs and kisses. Parents, grandparents and teachers must do this. Most children are desperate for attention and affection - "primary reason for teen sexual activity" Columbian exchange student. "21 Tricks for Taming Adolescents: #17: Hold them every day." Pittman, Psy Today, 95.
e. No misbehavior/discipline problems. Students respect them, consider them "cool" and write them love notes.
Free 2 p. document on request from minifarms@gmail.com
Ms Lama, I too, have seen the
Ms Lama, I too, have seen the discrimination you describe. Not with Black students, but with Native American and Hispanic students. I have taught in alternative settings for over 20 years and it still amazes me how the nonwhite student seems to become the target of administration discipline, while the White student walks free. If the White student is an athlete, doubly so. Top athletes of any race also get the bye in my experience.
I have been in classrooms where my student population was predominantly White, an adolescent treatment hospital, predominantly Native American in a small rural logging town, and predominantly Hispanic in a small rural ranching and farming community. You will notice which population gets the treatment they need and which doesn't.
At my present school I haven't seen administrative bullying of students or parents, even though my population is predominantly Hispanic. What I have seen here, is teachers trying to do the best they can with the students they have. The problem lies in the State's insistence that all students meet testing requirements to graduate. Ok, the feds have the same criteria. This puts my Migrant student population at a distinct disadvantage, many have moved so often that they haven't gotten the knowledge they need to pass the tests or the alternative forms. Many students have the capacity to rise above these conditions and excell at academics and sports. Many others cannot and those are the ones that come to me. What is new to me is my inability to get students to be able to complete their GED because they don't have ID. You need a state ID to take the official tests and many of my students came here with their parents when they were young and don't ID. To graduate with a diploma is a great goal, but if you are a senior with 2 credits, not an option. If you don't have ID, a GED is also out of reach. So who's the bully now?
Bullying By Adults/Teachers
Bullying By Adults/Teachers Affecting African-American Male Students
Described Replicates Workplace Bullying By Supervisors/Managers Affecting African-American Male Employees.
Related to "Teacher Bullying" described in the article is the phenomena of "Supervisor/Manager Bullying" that occurs in the workplace. Simply substituting African-American Male Employee for student and substituting Supervisor/Manager for teacher or person with the power to change things in the copied statements from the article following describes something occurring in the workplace that needs more attention.
"Adult bullying manifests itself in different ways: being physically abusive, labeling a student as “trouble,” ridiculing students in front of others, having students arrested without investigations or school-based interventions, or letting certain kids be bullied by other kids or teachers. The stories are endless. They continue only because people with the power to stop the bullying don’t speak up.
Statistics show that white students get little to no punishment for the same infractions that get black students suspended. It’s a vicious cycle
"
The Dream Act initiative has
The Dream Act initiative has been the latest developing to help children of undocumented parents of children who are currently between the ages of 15 and 30, who grew up in this country, went to a K-12 system and is not in trouble with the law. They will be given a chance to get the student ID they need and move on to be a productive citizen. I found it so interesting that you approached the bullying to this issue. The NCLB is a joke because now even more children are being bullied under this initiative that is supposed to help them succeed. We need a reform all around in education. We are a shame that social justice is applied to some issues, but not to education. No wonder our jails are overfilled! Keep up the good work Ms. Lama!
I would like to be in touch
I would like to be in touch with someone interested in pursuing a dialogue concerning teacher bullying.
You can count me in! As a
You can count me in! As a former administrator in elementary and middle schools, I have first hand knowledge of this issue. Beth
Prison Educator Speaks
Prison Educator Speaks Out
Thank you for getting this subject out there. My whole career has been spent in correctional education. It breaks my heart to hear some of the stories of teacher bullying that went on with some of my students. Many of them, with a little guidance, would have been able to finish school.
I have heard students pushed out of schools for being pregnant and not having a place to sit (the *public* school would not provide an alternative chair for this young lady); students hassled for a variety of small things that made their learning difficult.
I feel bad for the teachers that missed out on the many amazing students that have come through my prison clasroom. I hurt knowing that society could have seen their talents in a positive way, with just a little help from a caring adult in their school.
I've no doubt the students
I've no doubt the students who end up in your classes have experienced a great deal of rejection from their families and from society. I have always found that the students who are the most challenging to care for are the ones who need it the most. There is always a reason behind someone's behavior, and sometimes we have to push ourselves make a connection with a student and get past the behaviors. It requires patience and can be a challenge, but I have found it is ALWAYS worth it.
Yes, I also worked as a
Yes, I also worked as a substitute teacher in the classroom in the 1980s and early '90s. I witnessed first hand teachers bullying students, or even urging other students to verbally, mentally and even physically assault students they didn't like, or had had a falling out with a student's parent in retaliation. I've known teachers to under-grade students they didn't like. Or even purposely record a failing grade in their grade books although the student had made a passing grade. Accused the student of not having turned in their homework when in reality they had. This happened to may own son when he was in school. A few teachers, and guidance counselor actually tried to prevent him from graduating. He would have failed 12TH grade if not for his attending a separate school to take a required course and the teacher at the different school realized he wasn't a student with poor learning habits after all. He's a 31 year old grown man now, who went on to Join the Air Force to "SERVE HIS COUNTRY." Yes, his being a minority, a lot of what happened to him was racially motivated, as what happened to some of the other minority students as well. Thank YOU! Ms Lama for your thought provoking observation. There really is "Power in the pen." And teachers have to power to do both good and evil with the pen and having the power and authority. The same as any individual placed in positions of power and especially over our most vulnerable. Our children.
I work as an Early Childhood
I work as an Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant to home-based and center-based birth to five programs. Unfortunately, I have seen teacher bullying--ridicule, criticism, emotional neglect, misreading/interpreting non-verbal cues of the very young. I have seen it exhibited among predominantly white teaching staff toward very young children of color; I have seen it from predominantly black teaching staff toward black children and Spanish-speaking children. I have seen Latina teachers exhibit bullying as well to other Latino/Latina children. I have also seen loving, caring nurturing providers across racial and cultural lines who appear uncomfortable with boys who need big body play, and who often have challenges with self-regulation and sensory processing issues. Most of the time, these challenged teachers are uncomfortable with boys who do not fit the desired mold of "good", compliant behavior. Teaching and caring for children are the only fields where one's own childhood, family and cultural history constantly stares us in the face. If we haven't made peace with our family systems/history, forgiven our parents and their generational mishaps/tragedies, then what is the result? We parent, teach and care for others' children based on what we know, which shapes our frames of reference and perspectives of how we genuinely accept, teach and care for other peoples' children.
Disappointed in the SPLC -
Disappointed in the SPLC - I am so disappointed that this important topic was treated so superficially. The school-to-prison pipeline referenced in the email I received with the link to this article ("Do Teachers Feed the School-to-Prison Pipeline?") was not at all addressed in the article. I am currently reading Michelle Alexander's book "The New Jim Crow" about this problem, and was hoping that an organization like SPLC would give a more substantial look at such an important issue. But this piece offers nothing of substance at all. For example, when I see statements like "Statistics show that white students get little to no punishment for the same infractions that get black students suspended," I expect it to be followed by a reference to some recent research. So much has been done in the last decade by schools to address this issue, that when I see such a statement, I want to know: What statistics? How recent a study? What gains have been made, and what is yet to be done? As a school administrator who takes this issue very seriously, I would love to see that data, but none was given. Further, I don't see the point of calling the adults "bullies," beyond trying to be inflammatory since bullying is a hot national topic right now. Those of us doing the work each day to end bullying in all forms are not well served by an article that frames it so casually. No solutions or even suggestions for improvement were offered, so I'm not sure what I am supposed to be learning from it. That there is still racism in America's schools? I understand that a blog entry is not a news article, but I still expect better from such a reputable organization.
This essay was a first-person
This essay was a first-person account rather than the more substantial analysis you were looking for. We agree that this is a serious problem with many facets, and deserves a deeper look. We're going to provide that look in our upcoming Fall issue of Teaching Tolerance magazine, which will include both an overview of the problem and practical guidance on how teachers can shift from a punitive stance to one that focuses on human development. I think you'll appreciate it.
Sadly, new and more definitive reports come out regularly to show that discipline -- especially our-of-class suspension -- is meted out in such a way that children of color are disproportionately affected. The SPLC published one, "Suspended Education," in 2010. You can find the link to it in our blog (http://www.tolerance.org/blog/cut-your-chances-suspension-don-t-be-black). Since then, the Civil Right Project has published a number of additional studies (http://civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/research/k-12-education/school-discipline). Finally, a study released late last year by the Council of State Governments which followed over a million students in Texas received quite a bit of press and is widely considered to be the most comprehensive documentation yet of the problem (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/19/education/19discipline.html).
All the research points to the fact that one reason for the disparity is that students of color get discipline referrals from classroom teachers at higher rates than white students -- even when the offenses are the same. Moreover, the evidence points to a cultural gap between teachers and students as part of the problem: the offenses for which black and brown students are referred are more often based on the subjective judgement of a teacher (disrespect, disruption). For white students, however, the offenses are more often those that can be objectively proven, e.g. cutting class, fighting.
This blog post, like many of ours, was intended to prompt conversation and reflection. Thanks for joining in.
really looking forward to the
really looking forward to the fall issue!
thank you for mentioning the
thank you for mentioning the great work that michelle alexander's been doing around this issue -- especially mass incarceration. the school-to-prison pipeline and cultural disconnect that exists in southern california public schools makes this a particularly urgent problem here (since, unfortunately, california leads the nation in mass incarceration).
And this is a revelation to
And this is a revelation to someone. This has been going on since we ended segregation. When staff speak out they are told they are over reacting and being too sensitive. Many times the leadership at the school does not see anything wrong as they look through the same lense as the person who is doing the bullying. I am sending this article to all the principals in my district.
Thank you for this long, long
Thank you for this long, long LONG overdue article. Now let's do something about it. My suggestions:
(1) MEASURE THE PROBLEM: get the proper organization (via grant) to do survey (both teachers and students) in a careful cross-section of schools.
(2) Tabulate, analyse the results.
(3) COMMUNICATE THE PROBLEM: Publish in every major news outlet, get spokespersons from schools to do 60 minutes style stories on this. Media campaign.
(4) ESTABLISH RESOURCE TO MONITOR THE PROBLEM: Set up Edu Whistleblower website for students/parent and other teachers to go to.
(5) MANAGE/REVIEW THE PROBLEM: with eventual organization behind it.
(6) ACCOUNTABILITY: Set up scores for each school with a risk measure for students at risk for administrative bullying/abuse. Publish high and low scoring schools.
This is an election year. Economy is bad but help for students does not have to be financial only - quality of humanity servicing them, being paid out of our tax money... Make it an issue - humane education tax dollars - or out the door.
Let me know if you need help on this.
This is a way to be proative.
This is a way to be proative. Thanks.
I think this blog entry is
I think this blog entry is totally off base. The real problem is that the school systems in the USA are getting rid of all the social-emotional support for kids. The schools of today only focus on testing and the false belief that all children are going to be academic. Vocational programs have been mostly eliminated. The real issues are deep poverty, parents who don't care enough to discipline their children, parents who do not support their children's academic life, parents who just want to blame, etc.
Also, some students/children are bad in school. They need social-emotional help that they are not getting at home and school. The teacher cannot be everything to every student. Some teachers have over 150 students. Some children do come to school to learn while others do not. How can you teach some students when other students only want to disrupt the class and abuse the teacher turning the classroom into a big joke. In today's culture, people who truly do not understand the problem want to BLAME THE TEACHERS. THIS IS WRONG !
The truth is that many teachers get bullied and due to this type of blog cannot not even say anything or else they will get accused of racism and bullying. Being a sub, does not give you any real insight what it means to teach over a long period of time day to day, year to year. It appears to me that this blogger is very one sided trying to create drama. Do teachers bully kids at times, yes but it goes both ways. This is the real problem.
When will you address the
When will you address the opposite occurrance: students bullying teachers and also black parents bullying white teachers? Or at the least, of the racially motivated lack of support by black parents of a white teacher who is trying to help their child succeed in the classroom?
It's about time! I'm the
It's about time! I'm the mother of a child who has been bullied/harassed since kindergarten by his teachers. By the time he was in first grade, he hated school because of how he was treated. The problem was that he couldn't focus on classwork and instead of helping find out why this was happening, the school was labeling my child. I soon learned that he was dyslexic again with no aid from the school and even when I presented them with this information it was the same mean treatment by the teachers. Even after being denied a 504Plan, the school insisted he didn't need one and suggested he had ADHD. What's worse prior to this, I was "forced" into him being paddled for the same issue a white student did but didn't get punished for. My son's teacher would call him crazy in front of the clasd and she and the principal denied it.Things such as this open the door for the class to pick on kids. These states have laws for kids who bully; what laws will be developed for the adults who bully the kids?! I'm fed up!
I am an elementary school
I am an elementary school teacher and have been for 10 years. Before that while I worked on my Master's degree, I was a substitute teacher for 3 years. I have always taught in urban, title one schools with African American and Hispanic children. I also have a background in counseling and substance abuse prevention. Here is the thing. Teaching is hard. Teaching children who are disadvataged sometimes with severe emotional issues is really hard. I love my students. And some days I just want to explode. Any teacher who is being honest will tell you the same thing.
Working with a lot of children day in and day out with emotional needs that are valid is, none the less, emotionally exhausting for a teacher. I hope that we can move past this "blow the whistle on teachers" mentality we have created these past few years. Most teachers I know and work with love children and would die if they felt they were doing any harm to their students. And teachers need proper support.
I used to work in subsatnce abuse counseling and every counselor in the building was required to attend supervision once a week to talk about issues that may be coming up for them as they served their population. This was to help the couselors let off steam and re-group so they could better serve their clients. These were counselors who saw one client at a time maybe 5 to 6 clients a day. As for teachers, we spend all day with upwards of 25 children a day with no acknowledgement let alone help for issues we may be experiencing.
Bullying programs for kids across the country are focusing on not just how to identify the bully in a classroom but how we can all at times, unmonitored, have bullying moments. To point fingers and say that there are bullying, terrible teachers out there and we just have to weed them out creates a disservice to all. We really need to work to find a way to support our students and our teachers together.
I am glad to see this piece,
I am glad to see this piece, and at the same time grieved to know how little attention it will get. I, too, have worked as both a substitute, and as a teacher in a GED program where many of my students had stories to tell. I am also the parent of a now young black man and have observed all of the subtle and overt ways in which the school to prison pipeline works.
I think we err if we fall into a focus on individual teacher (or administrator) bullying. Yes, it is there and it is frequently the instrument through which we see the actions that result in systematic disengagement and ultimate drop-out. However, we are really talking about a systemic problem that teachers cannot solve individually. Individual teachers may be able to provide islands of respite (and at times this only serves to isolate such students further)--and sometimes we create "programs" such as those aimed at "recovery" and "drop-out prevention." We work with pregnant teens and those who age out without a credential. But the reality is that we have a system designed to sort and label. Until we begin to meaningfully accept and deal with this reality (and seek change), all individual teachers can do is attempt (with little support) to survive with some integrity.
In order to bring about meaningful change, we need to foster serious discussions about large topics such as "education for what?" and "education for whom?" and "education how?" And these discussions need to be sessions in which parents are present in the discussion from the very beginning. And by parents I am not talking about the gold star parents who organize book fairs and candy sales. I am talking about parents that truly represent the parents of the students in any given school. No more talking about how "they" are too tired, too addicted, too ignorant or too whatever to understand and support what schools are "trying" to do with their children. Parents--even those parents whose children have been pre-selected for the pipeline--generally have quite a bit to say, and we need to stop pretending that they are not there, or that they are "the problem" that either needs to be solved (by someone else), or provides our last, best excuse (after blaming the principal, school board, state and the feds) for what is an appalling failure rate of some of our schools with our most vulnerable students.
Even having this kind of discussion requires a dramatic re-ordering of the way in which we do things. It is nearly a given that schools--particularly those with direct "pipeline" connections--do not know how to gather a group of parents, let alone listen or have meaningful discussion with them. But, there are others--in EVERY community--who do know how. If it is churches, little league, community organizations, the Avon ladies or barber shops, someone knows how to get together a group of parents. We need to find them and work with them. And then LISTEN. What are the hopes and dreams? What do they believe it is important to know? What do they wish was different? What are their horror stories?
And we need to be able to support the professionals in hearing these things without going into defense mode. Give them a chance to air frustrations--but without blame.
Yes--we have these expectations that every child will learn. After all, we are school systems and we should be about learning. Within that context education professionals should be able to begin a process of reordering the way education is delivered that is respectful of shared goals of EVERY child learning. But so long as we allow ourselves to see schools as being separate from the communities where they are located and where their children live, they will be the products of a larger society that still does not expect all children to learn or to become productive.
Ms. Lama, Congratulations on
Ms. Lama,
Congratulations on having the courage to stand up and address this issue. I am a special education teacher in a predominately white school. However, when I speak with other teachers I see similar issues regarding special education students throughout different school districts. Many teachers do not have a background which promotes their understanding of students who do not fit the norm and this sometimes leads to a lack of tolerance of behaviors/ differences and frustration of on the teacher's part.
Maybe these are "Oh duh" ideas to those who will post comments, but here are some ideas I would like to throw out for people to think about:
1: There is always a reason behind any behaviors teachers see. Often, the causes are abuse,or rejection (exclusion) which can happen at school as well as home.
2: All children are born with great potential to positively impact the lives of others. It's the adults in their lives who destroy that potential.
3: Each of us is on a journey towards increasing our understanding and tolerance of people who are different from ourselves. We are, after all, human and therefore fallible.
4: If we happen to be a person who does understand these concepts we have a responsibility to be an advocate for students and keep talking about how discrimination is unacceptable. We need to build positive peer pressure as well as educate those who are not as tolerant.
5: Often, we will need to educate one person at a time. If we approach others with kindness and compassion as we teach we will often get further than if we approach with our own judgmental attitudes and harshness.
Thank you Ms. Lama and the others who have made such positive comments. Thank you for having the courage to stand up and discuss this important issue!
Ms. Brady
Amen, Ms. Brady, Amen!
Amen, Ms. Brady, Amen!
Janet, you have just
Janet, you have just expressed what I have also observed; I intend to write a complete article about this topic because it is one that needs some attention. Currently, I am trying to get some information related to teachers at my former district who have, according to the family, filed charges against the child for a fight at school. I also just attended the Children's Defense Fund Conference and many similar issues came forth about "unequal" and "unfair" treatment of our African American and Latino populations at school. I join you in bringing this important issue to the forefront.
Beth Carow
Ms. Lama, Your title question
Ms. Lama,
Your title question is offensive to me and to my colleagues -- fulltime, diverse, certified, highly-qualified, veteran teachers who have poured decades into serving students and their families in disadvantaged, socially-oppressed communities. It has been our experience that bullying, damaging management approaches are far more frequently used by substitute teachers than our fulltime professional corps of educators. As my secondary students recognize, blogging is subjective, and only as credible as that blogger's experience.
Should all adults who come into contact with young people constantly reflect on their management techniques? Absolutely. We should treat ALL of our students in ways that model positive social relationships for a lifetime of personal and professional success.
Respectfully,
C
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